Chasing Playoff Seeding: Wolves Still On Top – For Now

Winston-Salem Wolves 2024 Playoffs

The Winston-Salem Wolves have held the number one playoff seed since defeating the DC Heat at home on April 14, but keeping that seed ranking certainly hasn’t been a cake walk.

Following the win over the Heat, the Wolves travelled to Fayetteville to face a team that had been on a six game winning streak and only one game out of the top seed – additionally, the Wolves had dropped their earlier game to Fayetteville and losing again would mean the Wolves would fall behind if the seeding came down to a tiebreaker. The Wolves managed to eke out the win on the road and hold onto that top seed – for now.

After falling to the Wolves, the DC Heat continued to win, as did the Petersburg Cavaliers, both of whom now only have two losses each; the Heat are 11-2 on the season, with a 9-2 conference record, and Petersburg is 9-2 overall with a 7-2 conference record. This means that despite only a few games remaining in the regular season, the playoff seeding isn’t set, and the Wolves need to remain focused.

The Wolves only have one regular season game on the schedule, June 1 at Petersburg, while the Cavaliers have two games left before the playoffs. On May 25, they will face the NC Capitals before returning home to host the Wolves. Meanwhile, the DC Heat have wrapped up their regular season and can only wait to see if the Wolves drop their final game. A Wolves win clinches the number one seed, but a loss would push DC into the number one spot – DC defeated Petersburg earlier in the season and holds the tiebreaker if both Petersburg and DC finish with the same record.

Of course, playoff seeding is only factor that matters in the postseason, as the Wolves are well aware. Last season the Wolves grabbed the number one playoff seed only to lose in the first round of the playoffs, a sting that the current team is well aware of. The team is focused on not only returning to the playoffs, which they’ve now clinched, but also making a serious run at the ECBL title.

Wolves Defeat KLBC To Stay On Top Of The Playoff Hunt

Winston-Salem Wolves vs DC Heat

The Winston-Salem Wolves secured their fifth win in a row over the visiting Kingdom Life Basketball Club to secure both their 10th win of the season and continue to hold on to the number one playoff seed, with one game remaining in the regular season.

The Wolves led throughout the game, building a 12 point lead in the second quarter before KLBC was able to put together a run of their own and cut the lead to a single digit. However in the second half, the Wolves pulled away and led by 20 for most of the fourth quarter. Head Coach Antonio Robinson was able to rest his regular starters for extended periods during the third and fourth quarters as the Wolves cruised to a win, 111-91.

This win keeps the Wolves in the number one seed position headed to the playoffs; however, with only a single game remaining in the regular season, the final seeding is still very much up for grabs. The DC Heat, who the Wolves defeated earlier in the season, hold the same record as the Wolves and the Petersburg Cavaliers are only one win behind at 9-2 on the season. Winston-Salem will hit the road on June 1 to face Petersburg in another season ending battle for playoff positioning.

The victory over Kingdom Life improved the Wolves record to 10-2 on the season, a follow up to the successful conference regular season title in 2023, and set the Wolves up for another run at the ECBL title.

Wolves To Return Home To Host KLBC on May 19

Winston-Salem Wolves team huddle 2024

The Winston-Salem Wolves, fresh off their fourth win in a row after hitting the road to Fayetteville, are poised to return home to host Kingdom Life Basketball Club on May 19.

The home game versus KLBC will be the final regular season home game for the Wolves, who are currently ranked #1 in the ECBL power rankings and holding the #1 playoff seed with only two games remaining in the regular season.

The Wolves have had a very successful season thus far and are hoping to finish strong as they head into the playoffs.

The game against KLBC tips at 3pm and will be played at the Forsyth Tech Bolton Campus gym.

The playoff picture isn’t set – despite the Wolves defeating the DC Heat earlier in the season, the Heat and Wolves are both 9-2 overall, so if the Wolves or Heat drop one of their last games, it could change the playoff seeding. Fayetteville continues to be in the mix, having been one of only two teams to defeat the Wolves this season – which is exactly why the win over Fayetteville was so critical at this point in the season.

KLBC has struggled this season and continues to look for their second win on the season – but the Wolves are aware that they cannot overlook anyone in the ECBL despite the records.

Following the game against KLBC, the Wolves hit the road for a tough season finale against the Petersburg Cavaliers.

With Playoff Seeding On The Line, Wolves Hit The Road

Winston-Salem Wolves vs SC Upstate Redhawks 2024

On May 11, the Winston-Salem Wolves will hit the road again to face the Fayetteville Panthers with playoff seeding on the line.

While the Wolves come into the game with an 8-2 record and ranked #1 in the ECBL power rankings for the second week in a row, they are facing one of only two teams to hand them a defeat this season in the Panthers, who come in with an 8-3 record and boasting a six game winning streak.

The Wolves will be reliant on a deeper bench than in the first game, but both teams have their sights on the postseason with potentially the number one seeding in the balance.

The DC Heat are also chasing the number one seed with a 9-2 record of their own, with the only on-court loss of the season coming from the Wolves.

If the Wolves are able to secure a road win in Fayetteville, they would have split the regular season match ups with the Panthers and maintain their position with the overall won-loss record.

The game in Fayetteville tips at 5 pm for fans looking to attend at Berean Baptist Academy, 518 Glensford Drive, Fayetteville NC.

Following the road game, the Wolves will return to Winston-Salem for their final home game of the season on May 19.

Winston-Salem Wolves And The ECBL Playoff Landscape

Winston-Salem Wolves 2024 Antonio Robinson Jahlil Rawley

If the season ended today, the Wolves would hold the #1 seed in the ECBL playoffs for the second season in a row – but of course, the season isn’t over.

With a record of 8-2 overall, the Wolves definitely control their own destiny in playoff seeding; however, with a few weeks left in the regular season, nothing has been settled – so let’s take a moment and review the playoff landscape before the final push.

Close on the heels of the Wolves are the Fayetteville Panthers – with a record of 8-3, the Panthers are one of only two teams to hand the Wolves a loss this season. There were a few contributing factors in the loss – the Wolves were short handed, on the road and playing the second game of a back-to-back when they last lost to the Panthers. However, the Panthers have proven to be a quality team this season, winning their last 6 games. The Wolves travel again to play Fayetteville on April 11, so this matchup could create a tie at the top of the division and the tiebreaker would go to the Panthers.

The Wolves have one home game remaining on the schedule – May 19th against Kingdom Life Basketball Club, who have yet to secure a win in the 2024 season and suffered a loss to the Wolves earlier in the season. Following that, the Wolves hit the road again to face another playoff contender, the Petersburg Cavaliers, who won the conference title in both the last two seasons.

Elsewhere in the conference, the DC Heat have been a force, compiling a 7-2 record with only one loss on the court, to the Wolves. The other loss on their record was by forfeit, so the lone loss to Winston-Salem is significant and puts them in a position where they need to win out the remainder of their season and hope for a loss from other teams.

The playoff seedings in the Northern Conference may not be set, but several teams seem to have a spot secured: Winston-Salem, Fayetteville, DC, Rowan County and Petersburg. Where those teams are positioned is still up in the air. Rowan County could be the dark horse, being the only other team to defeat Winston-Salem this season, and despite a slow start, have built a 7-4 record.

For full details in the remaining schedule, be sure to check out the Schedule & Results page.

Wolves Move To 8-2 On The Season With Win Over NC Capitals

Winston-Salem Wolves 2024 Team Photo

The Winston-Salem Wolves improved to 8-2 on the season with a win over the visiting NC Capitals on Sunday, April 28 by a score of 124-107.

The Wolves led throughout the game, despite the Capitals keeping within striking distance, cutting the lead to 6 multiple times, before the Wolves pulled away in the 3rd and 4th quarters to seal the win.

The win keeps the Wolves in the #1 seed spot for the playoffs, but with an upcoming game against the Fayetteville Panthers, the playoff seeding is definitely not set. The Wolves will have to close the final three regular season games as strong as possible in order to secure the best seeding.

Following the win, the Wolves will hit the road to face Fayetteville on May 11, before returning home on May 19 to face Kingdom Life Basketball Club.

For the current schedule and dates, visit the Schedule & Results page.

Note that the remaining home games are being played at the Forsyth Tech Community College campus, located at 1300 Bolton Street in Winston-Salem.

Wolves Improve To 7-2 With Win Over DC Heat

Niquan Cousins Winston-Salem Wolves

For the second time this season, the Wolves took on a #1 ranked team in the ECBL and came away with a victory. Previously, the Wolves had travelled to Rock Hill, SC during a tough road stretch to take on the PrimeTime Players, who were ranked #1 in the ECBL power rankings at the time.

Sunday the Wolves hosted the currently #1 ranked DC Heat, who came into the game undefeated on the season (save for one forfeit loss) while the Wolves came into the game ranked at the #2 spot.

The Wolves jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter, leading by as many as 9 points, but the DC Heat were able to close the gap in the second and the game became a back-and-forth affair with multiple lead changes. The Heat led by 4 at the half.

In the third quarter, the Heat raced out to a 17 point lead, with the Wolves appearing out of sorts, taking ill-advised deep shots at times and not focusing defensively. Despite holding the leading scorer for the Heat, Cory Moore, to a modest game, the Wolves struggled and it appeared that the game was quickly getting out of reach.

However, a late third quarter surge, fueled a 17 point comeback and the Wolves closed the deficit heading into the final quarter.

During the fourth, both teams continued to battle for the lead, but momentum slowly moved to the Wolves, as their defense created multiple turnovers, which they were able to capitalize on. Sharp shooting down the stretch sealed the win for the Wolves, 110-102 and handed the DC Heat their first on-court defeat of the season.

The Wolves improved to 7-2 on the season, and with four games remaining before the playoffs, the team once again looks poised to make a playoff run.

Winston-Salem Wolves Improve to 4-1 With Home Win

The Winston-Salem Wolves continued their pursuit of a repeat conference title with a win over the Carolina Chosen Lions, 128-117.

It was a tough game for the Wolves as they continue to be plagued by slow starts, and the team trailed for most of the game, despite a last-second three-pointer just before the half to take the lead. The Chosen Lions continued to hold a small lead throughout the third quarter, before the Wolves grabbed the lead in the fourth and maintained that lead for most of the remainder of the game. In the final 3 minutes, the Wolves asserted their will with multiple defensive stops and quickly built an 11-point lead to close out the game.

The win moves the Wolves to 4-1 on the season as the team remains on top of the ECBL Northeast Division, with Rowan County a close second.

The Wolves now face a tough road schedule, starting with back-to-back games at league leading PrimeTime Players in Rock Hill, SC and then facing the Fayetteville Panthers in Hope Mills, NC.

Although the Wolves have already faced Fayetteville once this season, this will be the first meeting between PrimeTime and Winston-Salem since the 2019 ECBL Championship Game, which PrimeTime won.

The Wolves will then face ECBL newcomer Kingdom Life on March 30 before returning home to face another power team, the DC Heat on April 30.

Wolves Win Season Opener At Home

The Winston-Salem Wolves began ECBL league play for 2024 at home on February 18 and secured a win against the SC Upstate Redhawks 141-116.

The Wolves, defending conference regular season champions, led throughout the game, which included a 14 point halftime lead following a last-second deep shot from guard Brandon Schlosser.

During the third quarter, the Wolves saw their lead dwindle to just two points as the Redhawks stormed back – however, the comeback was short lived as the Wolves deep shooting was too much for the Redhawks to overcome and Winston-Salem pulled away again in the fourth, building a double-digit lead that they never relinquished.

The win moves the Wolves to 1-0 on the season and is a great start in an attempt to make another run to the playoffs and conference title.

Home games for the Wolves are broadcast live on Tobacco Sports Radio and select AM/FM outlets.

The Wolves travel to Salisbury on February 24 to face the Rowan County Bulls.

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2024 Winston-Salem Wolves Schedule Mini Poster
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