KENNY Ogunneye was the star off the bench as Lancashire Spinners left it late to overcame London Greenhouse Pioneers 91-89.

The 6ft 5in forward entered the game alongside Mark Rangeley five minutes into the opening quarter and sparked a 9-3 run that saw the Spinners take their first lead of the game at 12-11. The pair would combine for 30-points off the bench.

Throughout the game, the visitors were physical defensively and active in the passing lanes, forcing the Spinners to work extensively on each possession and a deep bench helped keep that high work rate.

Ogunneye made four critical plays during the game and the first came in the second quarter as part of an 18-2 run that resulted in a London time-out.

He emphatically dunked Conor Porter’s one-touch pass after Porter got himself free on the break and Steven Gayle found Ogunneye in stride with a full-court pass.

“Plays like that bring momentum back to the team. We had a very slow start and that energy off the bench gave us a push. We had a lot of drive after that dunk and it put us back into the game,” said Ogunneye.

And then with a minute left in the half, Ogunneye gave the crowd something else to cheer when he dunked over the top of his defender to make it a 13-point lead, capping off a 29-point second quarter by the Spinners, which included five three pointers.

In the final two periods, the visitors outscored Lancashire 57-46 and climbed back into the game, erasing a 17-point deficit to tie the game at 82 with just over three minutes remaining.

Tyrell Isaacs gave his team a four-point lead with under three minutes left, their first since the score was 22-21.

At the 1min 53secs mark, Ogunneye took possession away from London by drawing an important charge in the lane.

Ogunneye said: “Defence wins the game, so taking a charge at that point in time was necessary. It was something that I had to do for the team.”

Josh Houghton was kept quiet compared to his previous game but his lone triple tied the game at 88 with 68 seconds left.On the next London possession, Miodrag Vidakovic turned the ball over after becoming too eager with the ball while looking for his teammate on the wing.

Ogunneye ensured his team made good of the error and when he turned in the lane following a loose ball scramble he had a clear path to the rim and scored with 35 seconds left on the clock.

He said: “That was a tough one. But I was close to the basket so I thought I might as well take it. It was a risky shot.”

Vidakovic and Rangeley both went one-for-two from the line for their respective teams in the final eight seconds, which kept the door open for the visitors.

London Greenhouse Pioneers would have an open look from the corner to win the game but Isaacs, who finished with a game-high 23-points, left his attempt short making it eight-straight league wins for the Spinners.

The Bury-based side travel to Birmingham Mets on Saturday before entertaining Eastside Eagles at Castle Leisure Centre on March 21, tip off 5.40pm.