BRADFORD Dragons supporters looked on in disbelief as their team threw away a 20-point first-quarter lead to lose 77-75 to visitors Newcastle University Knights in English League Division One.

Then the following day, to make it a black weekend, the Dragons lost their National Cup quarter-final 79-76 in the last minute at Loughborough Student Riders.

Top-flight newcomers Newcastle arrived at the Dragons' Den with only one win from their opening eight league matches – and that was against bottom side Lancashire Spinners – but they did have a 73-70 National Trophy win in Bradford to look back on.

Determined to erase that defeat, the hosts were scoring almost at will in the first quarter, defending with great tenacity and picking up virtually every loose ball or rebound as they established a 30-10 lead.

Yet harsh words by Knights coach Ian Hewitt triggered a response in his players and by half-time the gap was down to 12 points at 48-36 as Bradford, who were maybe resting on their laurels, lost their rhythm.

The trend continued in the third quarter, with a three-point jump shot from Newcastle's 6ft 8in Croatian forward Fran Urli giving them the lead for the first time at 54-52.

The teams then traded baskets, with Bradford leading 60-57 going into the final quarter, but the advantage swung back and forth in the last period.

Another Urli three-pointer put the Knights five up and although Rihards Sulcs replied with a three-pointer, it was not enough and the Dragons lost by three.

Ricky Fetske and Marcus Gooding shared top slot for the Dragons with 18 points each, with Fetske also taking 14 rebounds for a double-double.

Rafi Saipe, who picked up the official player of the game award, hit 15 points, while Sulcs contributed 14.

For Newcastle, Joey Bennett came off the bench to score 21 points and Urli totalled 19.

Sunday's match at Loughborough gave Bradford an early opportunity to get back on the horse and once again they made a superb start, leading 23-12 at the end of the first quarter and 37-34 by half-time.

But the hosts piled on the pressure in the third quarter, after which they led 57-51, and the game looked beyond the visitors when they trailed 73-63 with three-and-a-half minutes left.

Against all the odds, however, Bradford hit back to lead 76-75 with just 56 seconds remaining, only for the students to pinch the match by three points to reach the semi-finals.

The game's high scorer was Sulcs, who hit an impressive 24 points, supported by Fetske (19) and Jermaine Laing (14). For the hosts, Alex Roberts and Max Richardson topped the scoring charts with 15 and 14 respectively.

Dragons coach Chris Mellor reflected: "It was disappointing to lose both games by small margins."

The games do not get any easier for Bradford as they face another double-header this weekend.

They make the long trip to face leaders Hemel Storm on Saturday (7pm) before returning to the Den to face last season's double winners Team Northumbria on Sunday (4.15pm).

In other results, the Dragons under-14s lost 82-35 at York Eagles, with Jervaise Edwards (9) and Kristians Haidukovs (8) top-scoring for Bradford.

The under-16s won 84-37 at City of Leeds Black, with Arnas Kildisas scoring 20 points, Great Osobor 19, Olufemi Bright 18 and Theo Antwi 17.