TEAM Solent Kestrels closed out the regular season in style as they took a hard-earned 87-80 victory over Hemel Storm.

The victory sees Kestrels finish the NBL Division One season as champions with a record of 24-2 and avenges a loss to Storm earlier in the season at the Solent Sports Complex.

The hosts would jump out to a 7-3 lead behind a balanced scoring effort, however Luke Busumbru and then Max Richardson would score, to level things up almost immediately.

Hemel guard Sam Newman pushed the gap to five when he split a pair of free throws but Kestrels’ bench trio of Andre Arissol, Kemel Archer and Orlan Jackman tied things up at 12.

The rest of the first swung back and forth as Bode Adeluola and Taylor Johnson found their rhythm for the home side, whilst Arissol and Busumbru ticked the scoreboard for TSK, Storm led by a point after the first quarter.

It was much of the same to open the second quarter as both sides were in free-scoring mood, Kestrels’ Travis Charles found his range whilst Johnson and Greg Poleon scored for Storm.

Hemel would find themselves up seven points after a 6-0 run, forcing a coach Guymon time-out to steady the ship for TSK.

Arissol would respond for the Kestrels post time-out - however the hosts pushed the gap to eight points through Newman.

Kestrels rallied behind a 7-3 run to trim to the gap to two points, forcing coach Spinks into his second time-out of the period, ahead of the half-time break.

Storm restored a six-point advantage out of the time-out but Cole Gentry ensured it would be a one possession game at the interval.

Newman scored four quick points, either side of a Travis Charles jumper, for the home side to give them a five-point lead but eight unanswered points, as Busumbru and Brendan Okoronkwo combined, gave TSK a 48-46 advantage just three minutes into the third quarter.

The lead would swing between the sides as both teams edged in front and on the ensuing possessions would relinquish their leads, after some stellar offensive output.

A Busumbru dunk with a little over a minute left in the quarter gave Kestrels a four-point lead, however Poleon ensured the lead would be just two heading into the third quarter break, TSK 61-59 to the good.

If the rest of the game was anything to go on, the fourth was set for a tense finish to a high-quality encounter.

Kestrels raced out to a 7-2 start behind Cole Gentry and Charles, to extend their lead to seven points at 68-61 but Johnson and then Adeluola immediately trimmed the arrears back to just two points.

TSK would settle down after the hosts response and a 6-0 run capped off by Gentry, forced Hemel into a time-out with Kestrels now up 74-66.

The sides traded scores post time-out but when Adeluola made a jump shot with just under five minutes to play, he would pull his side within three at 76-73 to Kestrels.

Kestrels quick set about restoring a seven-point gap behind Arissol and Okoronkwo and it looked like they had taken control of the lead with just over two minutes left.

However, Newman would trim the arrears to four points with a triple and a number of empty possessions would follow, all until Cole Gentry knocked down a tough pull up jumper with 53 seconds left to restore a six-point cushion for TSK.

Post Hemel time-out, a frantic two possessions that resulted in both teams turning the ball over, ended with a Poleon score to pull the home side back within four points with just 15.4 seconds remaining.

Chris Scarlett split a pair at the foul line before Storm came up short from the three-point line and Gentry iced the game from the free throw-line to seal a Kestrels win.

TSK coach Matt Guymon said: “This was a fantastic game in front of a packed house, which really set the tone for what can be expected in the play-offs. Hemel came in with a clear game plan which allowed them to control the pace of the game in the first half.

“I was proud of our guys for the way we responded in the second half and the composure we showed down the stretch to close the game out.”

Kestrels now shift their focus to the playoffs as they return to the Solent Sports Complex on Saturday, as the number one seeds welcome Reading Rockets for a 6pm tip-off.