It looked like Manuel Pena Garces’ men could miss out on the chance to defend their title in the final but Alex Zurn led the fightback to the delight of the Rivermead crowd.

The game began at a frantic pace as Rockets blasted into a 9-2 lead only for Thunder to level it at 11 points each, a position that both teams found themselves at the end of the opening quarter with the scores still tied.

Thunder edged ahead early in the second period but some great team play by Rockets saw Joel Keeble stroke a treble before Matt Davis floated a score, Keeble drove and scored off the glass and Sergi Guardia drove for two before hitting a treble from the top of the key giving Rockets a six points advantage, before Thunder replied to make it a one point game at the interval as Rockets led 35-34.

It was a tense game and Rockets kept ticking along through a Emmanuel Campi treble and a couple of baskets from Deion Turman, but the visitors were just as deadly and a superb treble put them 48-46 ahead.

Zurn replied with a trble of his own and a bounce pass from Campi gave Danny Carter an easy score but Thunder bounced straight back with a nine-point run to lead 59-53 at the end of the third stanza.

Rockets began the fourth quarter with a five second violation quickly followed by a 24 second violation, which Thunder took advantage of to shoot another treble.

Within two minutes of the restart Rockets were eight points down, a position they were still in midway through the period.

A turnover with four minutes to go saw the home side fall even further behind and Pena Garces’ side looked like they could be heading out of the National Cup.

But as they have done so often in recent years, the Rockets’ star players stepped up to the plate and delivered.

Zurn hit three from four from the free throw line, Turman spun twice to score four quick points, Guardia orchestrated the play and went coast to coast and the home crowd were suddenly roaring their team on as the comeback suddenly looked very possible.

With the score tied at 74-74 with 38 seconds remaining it looked like it was going to be a nail-biting ending for the Rockets but it proved to be anything but as the hosts continued their fantastic scoring to notch a further eight points.

A Zurn steal caused Thunder to foul him and he stroked the shots from the penalty strips, before a Rockets shot rebounded off the ring and hung in the air until Zurn rose higher than anyone else to tip dunk Rockets into the lead.

A double steal from Keeble and Zurn saw Zurn score again, Guardia was secure from the line and Carter finished the game with a slam dunk on the buzzer to take Rockets to the first national final of 2015 to the delight of the Rivermead.

The irresistible Zurn was the star of the show for Rockets, scoring 20 points in total with 15 coming in the second-half as he led the Rockets comeback to set up a January final with Manchester Magic in Sheffield.

Before that, Pena Garces’ side will return to league action this weekend when they host the Leicester Warriors on Sunday afternoon at the Rivermead Leisure Complex (4pm t/o).

Rockets lie fifth in the league at the moment but can leapfrog Leicester if they can beat them for the third time this season.

Pena Garces, who was recently appointed assistant coach of the Spanish U18s national team, admits Rockets must work just as hard as the previous two games if they are to get continue their surge towards the top of the table.

““It has been quite a couple weeks for the club and for me personally and I am really proud of our achievements so far but nothing is won yet and we would be foolish not to work even harder and fully focus on this week’s game against Leicester. We need to use the good things that are happening to push forward rather than sit back and we will be working on preparing for the game this weekend because there is still a lot more to do.

“Leicester is a difficult opponent who have made us work hard for our wins and they have started the league campaign off very well so we need to be focused and ready for what they are going to bring.” Rockets hit a treble of a different kind on Sunday evening when they were honoured three times at the Reading Sports Personality awards at the Hilton Hotel.

Head coach Manuel Pena Garces was was voted Coach of the Year for his success with the Rockets last season as they won the treble.

Chairman Gary Johnson was also recognised as he was given Clubman of the Year for his efforts with the Rivermead outfit.

The club as a whole was also then honoured as the Rockets were named as Team of the Year for their superb efforts last season in winning three trophies.

As well as the three honours for the club, volunteer Frank Norton Hill was given one of the special volunteer awards for his efforts with Rockets.