Tia Weledji tips the balance for battling Caledonia Pride

Emma Findlay drove Edinburgh Kool Kats on to victory

The former Princeton Tigers captain only arrived in Scotland last week but posted 28 points at Barking Abbey as Pride scored their first win of the new Women’s British Basketball League season.

“She was great,” said Sengers. “She’s still getting used to everything, but she’s a really nice person and a great team-mate.”

Encouraged by their competitive opening display against Newcastle Eagles, Pride led London 24-15 at the end of the first quarter, and although the gap was cut to just two points at half time, they clung on to win 75-69. Shawnisay Millar also made it into double figures with 16 points.

“There’s a lot of work still to be done, but it’s great to already have a win under our belt,” added Sengers, whose team faces Durham in the first round of the WBBL Cup at Oriam on Saturday.

Meanwhile, in the Scottish men’s league, City of Edinburgh Kings maintained their 100 percent record after surviving another classic encounter with old rivals Falkirk Fury at Portobello High.

Kings trailed by eight points early on but were level by half time and then four points up entering the closing quarter. They grimly preserved that advantage through to full time, and their 55-51 win puts them joint top of the table with Dunfermline Reign, who notched more than 100 points against Glasgow University.

Boroughmuir Blaze beat  Edinburgh Lions at Broughton High, thanks to a blistering start when they opened up a 17-point lead. The margin remained fairly constant as Blaze eased home 72-56, and although Ben Warrington top-scored with 17, three others reached double digits in an impressive team performance.

Edinburgh University are still waiting for their first win of the season after  going down 63-56 at home to Glasgow Storm.

All eyes in the women’s league were on reigning champions City of Edinburgh Kool Kats when they welcomed Falkirk to Portobello. In their first outing since losing to Edinburgh University a fortnight ago, Kats lacked sparkle and were all-square with ten minutes left before pushing on to win 61-49. Captain Emma Findlay led by example with 19 points as Kats joined a four-way tie at the top. They travel to joint-leaders Glasgow Fever this Sunday.