Worcester Wolves suffered an 81-65 defeat in their season opener against Bristol Academy Flyers.

The National Basketball League clash at the University of Worcester Arena on Saturday (September 28) saw Wolves struggle to keep pace with their opponents.

The Flyers made a strong start, taking a 6-0 lead in the first minute.

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Wolves' Wilfrid Santhe and Emmanuel Yeboah managed to bring the teams level, but it was not enough to deter the Flyers, who nudged in front 17-16 at the end of the first quarter.

The second period saw Wolves struggle to make an impact on the scoreboard, allowing Bristol to build a 40-25 lead at half-time.

A brief moment of hope for the hosts came with a Yeboah spin-dribble straight after the interval.

However, the Flyers' consistent accuracy from distance widened the third-quarter margin to 61-40.

Late three-pointers from Santhe added some respectability to the final scoreline for the Wolves.

Santhe and Yeboah led the scoring with 28 and 16 points respectively, supported by 12 from Finn Rennie.

Wolves now look ahead to their doubleheader next weekend.

On Saturday (October 5), they travel to Cardiff City for a 12.30pm tip-off, before Big Sky Basketball visit Worcester the next day at 5pm for a National Cup tie.

Wolves' coach Dean Blake said: "It’s not the start to the season we would have wanted.

"But we have to apply some context to it.

"We don’t yet have a full roster and we have guys playing out of their usual positions.

"When we get players healthy and the team is more settled it’ll be a different story."

Blake added: "Next weekend will be about the team coming together offensively and defensively and about putting in good performances."