Jordan Williams says a renewed focus on defence has been key to Cheshire Phoenix's resurgence in the BBL Championship.
The 98-90 success over Manchester Giants at the Cheshire Oaks Arena on Sunday was the Nix's fourth straight win, a run that has seen them break into the top four of the league and progress to the semi-final of the BBL Cup.
Cheshire had been, prior to their win at Worcester Wolves earlier in the month, been on a worrying five-game losing streak, but Williams, who hit 31 points in the win over Manchester, including 19 in a pulsating final quarter, believes that hard work on defence has paved the way to their recent successes on the court.
"It is just our defence," said Williams, who signed for the Nix during the summer straight out of the University of North Texas in NCAA Division One.
"We are locked in now in training every day and focusing on our defence. We know we have got scorers who can score from the perimeter and we have a down-low presence. We just focus on our defence and that is going to turn into our offence, that's pretty much the game plan for us.
Cheshire had to pull off an almighty comeback to claim the win over Manchester on Sunday, overturning an 11-point deficit inside the final seven minutes as Williams caught fire, with a huge four-point play proving to be a pivotal moment late in the clash between the north-west rivals.
Williams added: "That was a big shot. From there we all got on the same page.
"It was a great team effort and my teammates just came behind me. Sedale (Hanson-Young) came in and played great defence. Kinu Rochford had an outstanding game and they kind of keyed in on him and it was my time to step up and make some big shots, but it really was a team effort.
"We put ourselves in a hole and Manchester, they had a big lead on us. We had a timeout and just said we got to stick together and fight through this adversity and get this win and we just brought it together.
"It was great. It was a local derby and it's always a big game whenever we play Manchester. They got us the first time and it was a must that we came in and split the series until we play them again."
