Chris Pearce believes that there will be ‘no love lost’ when the Nix take on the Glasgow Rocks in their BBL Trophy semi-final second leg tomorrow night.
Pearce, 24, emerged from the bench to play his part in his side’s stunning fightback against the Rocks at the Northgate Arena last weekend.
The 6ft 4ins forward is now hoping to see his side finish the job in Glasgow and admits that victory will taste that little bit sweeter as a result of the rivalry between the two sides.
“They walked off the court on Sunday without shaking our hands, which is what we expected,” said Pearce, a full Welsh international.
“It’s no secret that there is no love lost between the two sides and we will be going all out to make sure we get the win on Friday, but it’s going to be tough.”
Pearce, in his second season with the Nix, has been used mostly from the bench this campaign but has impressed when he has taken to the court.
The former Newcastle Eagles and Durham Wildcats man credits team spirit for the Nix recent good form which has seen them register 13 wins in 16 games in all competitions.
“There are no egos in this team and that is a rarity in basketball in my experience,” he said.
“There is a great team spirit at the moment and it’s an enjoyable place to play basketball. That shows in how we have been playing.
"Everybody gets along and everyone just wants to play to the best of their ability. We're all young guys who are looking to make a name for ourselves and further out careers."
Pearce, who represented the British Universities basketball squad while at Northumbria University, admitted he had been surprised with the rapid progress that the Nix have made since their reformation and claimed that now was the time for the club to claim their first piece of silverware under their new guise.
"I didn't expect us to be such a strong force so early on, but that is credit to the work that Coach Lavery puts in and the work that has been done behind the scenes," said Pearce, who lives in Manchester.
"We've got a golden chance to claims some silverware and win a trophy this season and there is no reason why we can't do that on our current form.
"If you look at the form teams in the BBL, we are right up there. There is nobody that is wanting to play us in our current form. If we can continue how we have been in recent months we should hopefully enjoy a really successful end to the campaign and give the fans something to cheer about."
