Ben Thomas has been pleased with the start made to the new season by his Cheshire Phoenix team despite them suffering a first loss of the campaign on Sunday night.

Having won their opening two games – one in the BBL Championship and one in the BBL Cup – Cheshire gave up a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter to slip to an 86-80 league defeat at home to Glasgow Rocks.

Two late turnovers hampered Cheshire’s efforts to make it a perfect start to the season, but head coach Thomas says it was hard to be too down after the opening three games.

“If you would have offered us a 2-1 start at the beginning of the season, especially after how last season panned out, I think we would have bitten your hand off,” said Thomas.

“We’ve had a good start and it’s important not to get too down about losing the game.

“That said, we’re disappointed because we thought we had a great chance of going 3-0. We were up by 10 points in that fourth quarter and we really needed to be a bit smarter with our play and make sure we saw the game out.

“A couple of turnovers hurt us late on but it’s what we do as a team throughout the game that is important.

Cheshire Phoenix centre CJ Gettys goes up for two points against Glasgow Rocks

“But we’ve started well and the guys have really responded and the team chemistry is great.

“There is also the fact that we had a double-header weekend and that Glasgow didn’t. Whether that made a difference or not, who knows? But they were more likely to be bit fresher legged than us.

“There’s some of our guys who have never played games with such a quick turnaround before, so it can make a difference.”

Thomas’ side are back in action this Sunday at Ellesmere Port Sports Village when they entertain London Lions (5.30pm).

And after such a positive start, Thomas is keen to keep the momentum going.

“London will be a tough game but we’ve shown that we are a competitive side this year,” said Thomas.

“And that’s the key. We’re competing and we have plenty of reasons to be positive. We’ll be looking to win the game, that’s for sure.”

Cheshire booked their place in the quarter-finals of the BBL Cup with an 82-79 success at Bristol Flyers on Friday night.

At the WISE Arena, Malcolm Riley poured in a game-high 24 points to seal the triumph while Robert Sandoval impressed with 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.

Fans can watch the Nix at home to London on Sunday for a reduced price of £6, with family tickets for four priced at £20 for the game.