WORCESTER Wolves have cranked up the “intensity” in training as they look to return to winning ways in the British Basketball League.

Head coach Paul James admitted his side were “hurting” after producing a disappointing display to lose 78-64 to Sheffield Sharks in front of their home fans.

And he said they were determined to come back stronger when they take on Glasgow Rocks at the University of Worcester Arena on Friday (7.30pm).

With no game last weekend, Wolves have had a break from competitive action but James insisted his players have wasted no time in getting themselves into the best shape possible.

“Training has been very intense,” he said. “I think it needs to be as we need to show we can show up everyday and work hard.

“And, to be fair to the players, they have come in and done that.

“They have realised we let a lot of people down with that performance (against Sheffield) and we are doing our level best to make sure it does not happen again.

“Guys are really challenging each other in training, which is what we need because in games we are not going to just sit back and let teams play.

“All that bodes well and hopefully shows the character of this team as we want to bounce back.”

Wolves started the campaign with an 88-85 overtime victory over Cheshire Phoenix, who had won their last five meetings.

They then held a slender lead going into the final quarter against Leicester Riders before the defending champions came roaring back to win 77-66.

“We are all very disappointed with our performance (against Sheffield) and are all hurting,” James added.

“Prior to that, I was delighted with the way we had started, so we have to make sure everyone is on the same page and working as hard as each other.

“We know what team we want to be, so I don’t think we will see a performance like that in a long while.”

With Deondre McWhorter arriving late due to a delay with his work permit, James said the 6ft 9in forward, who made his home debut against Sheffield, had “disrupted the rhythm” of his team.

However, the Wolves boss said he had been pleased with how quick the 23-year-old American had got up to speed with his new team-mates.

“He is four weeks behind everybody else, so it can be a bit overwhelming,” James said.

“But he is working hard and is getting there. We are getting him into the flow of things and playing at the pace we want to play at.

“We are finding out where he is going to get his points from and where he is going to be most effective for the team.

“He is listening and certainly wants to help the team.”