New boy Hank Rivers has revealed his extra motivation for making a success of playing happy families with Worthing Thunder.

The former top-flight college player from New Jersey is mucking in with four Thunder team-mates as they share a house in Lancing this winter.

He has plenty of reason to make it a year of domestic and sporting bliss, starting with a shock win at home to Guildford Heat in the BBL Trophy tomorrow (8pm).

Power forward Rivers, 25, left his division one college Stephen F.

Austin in Texas more than a year ago but delayed his entry into the professional game when his partner gave birth to a little girl.

Daughter Kennedy is now one year old and Rivers is ready to try to forge a career for himself in basketball.

Lancing offers a bit of a culture shock to his home city but he said: "I'm enjoying myself.

"I'm from Jersey City, ten minutes from New York City and it's a lot different to around here.

"Lancing's quiet but I like it. There is always something to do but you're not going to get into trouble.

"I could have gone to Australia when I left college but the time wasn't right. It's hard coming over here and leaving my daughter but I've got to think about the bigger picture.

"I'm trying to make things better for her."

Cosmopolitan Rivers, who was named as one the top 25 junior college players in the States in 2002, is now part of a cosmopolitan household.

Alfredo Ott, the team's big-scoring guard, comes from New Orleans while Ryan Marrast is a British passport holder, thanks to his mother, but has spent his life in Canada.

Latvian forward Janis Ivansovskis and English playmaker Steve Vear are also in the house.

Rivers said: "They are all pretty nice guys. We give each other space or I'll go out for a while if I want my own space.

"Ryan is pretty funny, Janis is kind of quiet but it's all a good experience."

Ott is one of the veterans of the household as he enters his second season in English basketball.

He can see a shift in emphasis at Worthing this year but insists it is too early to come to any firm conclusions after three games, two of which were won.

It's welcome to the house of fun at Thunder Ott said: "I guess we are a bigger team and we have slowed our game down a little but I don't know if that will change.

"Once we get to know each other more I think we might start scoring more heavily again."

Thunder have already won away to EBL rivals Reading in their BBL Trophy group.

Home and and away matches with Guildford and Plymouth are given extra interest by talk of Worthing possibly joining those clubs in the BBL next season.

Thunder make no secret of the fact they are thinking of moving up though whether they actually take that step could depend on events in Brighton where, in theory at least, the Bears could still return to action.

The response of both public and players to tomorrow's game will be a useful indication as to how Thunder would fare in the BBL.

Assistant coach Alan Sweetman- Hicks is confident they will give a good account of themsleves on court.

He said: "People are calling us the makeweights of the group but let's see. We need to play better than when we lost at Manchester last week but I think we've got the players to do it."