Panthers Under-18s star Chiem Eluwa feels his side will benefit in the long run from the disappointment of their Community Basketball League play-off final defeat.

The Islington side put up a tremendous fight in Sunday’s final at the Copper Box Arena, but eventually went down to their local rivals by 13 points.

Eluwa said: “We’ve had a great season and I’m glad our hard work got us to the final. Although it’s an achievement to come second, we’re going to learn from this loss and come back stronger next season.”

The Hawks led by a narrow 7-6 margin at the end of the first quarter, with Eluwa scoring four points for Islington and that achievement was matched by team-mate George Davis in the second.

Haringey’s 13-12 advantage going into the half looked slender, but they then began to pull away as Ryan Springer landed two dunks before Matthew Mastallers hit a buzzer beater to make it 34-20.

Davis added another four points for the Panthers in the final quarter, but it was not enough as Haringey closed out the game.

For more information about the league, which is run by the London School of Basketball in partnership with Reach and Teach, and will resume in September, contact lwilliams@reachandteach.co.uk