Alisia Jenkins produced 21/20 in a Saturday night NBL1 South win for the Kilsyth Cobras with a Eilidh Simpson triple-double for the Sandringham Sabres while Jack Davidson delivered a remarkable game winner for the Ballarat Miners as the Frankston Blues, Knox Raiders and Sandringham kept winning.
The women's Saturday night results in Round 11 saw the Kilsyth Cobras beat the Ballarat Miners 64-58, the Waverley Falcons defeat the Casey Cavaliers 88-59, the Sandringham Sabres down the Ringwood Hawks 94-84, and the Diamond Valley Eagles prevail 76-58 against Keilor Thunder.
The Eltham Wildcats also beat the Knox Raiders 66-61, the Dandenong Rangers defeat the Frankston Blues 78-72, and the Nunawading Spectres beat the Launceston Tornadoes 89-72.
Then in the men's contests, Ballarat beat Kilsyth 97-96, Waverley defeated Casey 90-54, North West Tasmania defeated Nunawading 92-79, Sandringham downed Ringwood 110-87, Diamond Valley prevailed 91-89 against Keilor, Knox downed Eltham 103-67, and Frankston beat Dandenong 95-90.
NBL1 SOUTH RECAP | FRIDAY ROUND 11
WOMEN
Jenkins has 21/20 as Cobras make it four straight
The Kilsyth Cobras made it four straight wins to continue to make a charge to the NBL1 South top eight with Georgia Booth and Alisia Jenkins starring in a 64-58 victory against the Ballarat Miners on their home floor.
Kilsyth came into the clash on a three-game winning run but they couldn’t quite ever shake the second last placed Miners throughout the evening.
The Cobras were only clinging to a 21-20 lead by the end of the first quarter but did manage to open up a handy half-time lead of 40-31 thanks to 19 points to 11 in the second stanza.
However, the Miners stayed in the contest and outscored the Cobras 14 points to nine in the third quarter but Kilsyth was able to go on a 7-0 scoring run in the final term to open up a 12-point lead and then hold out Ballarat to win by six.
It's a fourth consecutive win for Kilsyth who improve to a 7-10 record now while Ballarat has lost three straight to be 3-14.
Georgia Booth was outstanding in the win for the Cobras with 29 points and four rebounds while knocking down 5/12 from behind the three-point line.
Alisia Jenkins was then brilliant finishing with 21 points and 20 rebounds for Kilsyth as well while Nikita Young added four points, six rebounds and five assists.
Abbey Wehrung fought hard once more for Ballarat with 17 points and nine rebounds with Tayanna Jones putting up 18 points, 11 boards and three steals, and Emma Karamovic 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Ernst shines as Falcons keep on winning
The Waverley Falcons maintained second position in the NBL1 South with a strong all-round performance to beat the Casey Cavaliers on the road 88-59 on Saturday night.
The Falcons bounced back from two straight losses with a win over the Hobart Chargers last week but did need to keep winning to stay in second spot as they took on the Cavs at Casey Stadium.
After a tight first quarter with Waverley leading by just three at quarter-time, the Falcons took charge in the second to go into the half-time break in control at 43-26.
Waverley only continued to build on that advantage throughout the second half with the lead getting out to 21 points in the third stanza, and 33 in the fourth before they won by 29.
The victory keeps the Falcons in second spot with a 13-3 record while the Cavs remain in bottom place at 2-15 having lost seven in-a-row.
Carley Ernst came up huge for Waverley with 26 points, seven rebounds and four assists while hitting 6/13 from beyond the arc with Maddi Utti adding 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Renae Mokrzycki also had 18 points, seven rebounds and two steals for the Falcons on 7/11 shooting with Sophia Locandro contributing 14 points and 11 boards, and Amelia Todhunter seven points and five rebounds.
Rachel bell finished with 20 points, seven rebounds and three assists for Casey while Lauren Van Kleunen added 13 points, three steals and two boards, and Taylah Simmons eight points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Simpson triple-double huge as Sabres keep on winning
The Sandringham Sabres scored a crucial 94-84 road win against the Ringwood Hawks as they attempt to break into the NBL1 South's top eight.
Both teams came into the contest on three-game winning streaks at The Rings with Ringwood needing to keep winning to stay in touch for a top four finish while Sandringham is also attempting to break into a playoff spot.
The Sabres came out hot away from home to lead the Hawks 26-14 by quarter-time before both teams combined for 57 points in the second term, and Ringwood outscored Sandringham 29 points to 28.
The Sabres were still leading, though, 54-43 at half-time and maintained that double-figure advantage through the majority of the second half on the way to the important 10-point victory.
The result improves the Sabres to a 9-8 record with four straight wins while the Hawks are 10-7 with their winning run coming to an end.
A triple-double from Eilidh Simpson was instrumental in the win for Sandringham made up of 14 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists on 4/7 shooting from the floor and 4/4 from the foul line.
Funda Nakkasoglu contributed 21 points, four rebounds and four assists for the Sabres, Klara Wischer 17 points, eight boards, six assists and four steals, Georgia Pineau 16 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and Britt Smart 16 points and three boards.
Ariel Jones delivered 22 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals for Ringwood on 4/8 three-point shooting with Marena Whittle ending up with 22 points and 12 rebounds, Marta Hermida 20 points, seven assists and five boards, and Toni Farnworth 10 points and four assists.
Eagles stay alive with win over Thunder
The Diamond Valley Eagles are another team in the NBL1 South who kept their playoff hopes alive with a Saturday night win, beating the Keilor Thunder 76-58.
Diamond Valley was looking to string wins together after beating the Casey Cavaliers last week when they arrived at Keilor Stadium on Saturday night taking on a Thunder team also out to get back on the winner's list.
The Eagles closed the opening period with eight straight points to lead by 11 at quarter-time and they never looked back from there.
The lead for Diamond Valley got out to 15 points in the second quarter, 20 in the third and 22 in the fourth before they ended up winning by 18.
The victory gives the Eagles two in-a-row to improve to a 9-8 record while the Thunder continue to struggle at 4-12 having lost three straight.
Sophie Burrows ended up top-scoring for Diamond Valley with 15 points and six rebounds while Monique Andriuolo contributed 12 points, eight boards and two steals, Jennie Rintala 12 points and four rebounds, and Eliza Bannan 10 points and three boards.
Anna Clephane finished with 15 points and two rebounds for Keilor with Eva Kristjansdottir adding nine points, six boards and three assists, Ai Yamada eight points and five assists, Juna Umezawa eight points, eight rebounds and three assists, and Grace Graham eight points and five boards.
Crucial Eltham win over Knox
The Eltham Wildcats came from behind at three quarter-time to beat the Knox Raiders 66-61 in what could be a crucial result in the playoff hopes for both teams.
Coming into the game and the Raiders were seventh having won two straight while the Wildcats were clinging to eighth after two consecutive losses as they locked horns at Montmorency Secondary College.
Louise Forsyth HUGE block leads to a timely 3?? ?
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Eltham did lead by three points at quarter-time but Knox took charge in the second period with 18 points to 14 to opening up a lead at one stage by eight points, but just leading 32-31 at the half.
The Raiders were then still clinging to a one-point lead at three quarter-time but the Raiders came out inspired in the fourth period to score seven straight points at one stage and to open up a lead of 12 before then holding on for the five-point victory.
It's a big result for both teams with Eltham improving to a 9-7 record with the win while Knox slips to 9-8 with the defeat.
Hailey Leidel came up huge once more for the Wildcats with 24 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals while Bec Pizzey produced 20 points, 15 boards, three steals and two assists, and Louise Forsyth nine points, nine rebounds and four blocks.
Alicia Froling did what she could to lift Knox to the win finishing with 28 points and six rebounds while Leah Santomaggio added 12 points, four assists, three steals and three rebounds on hitting 4/9 from beyond the arc.
Hailey Leidel spin cycle ?
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Boothe fires Rangers to important win over Blues
An impressive night from Sarah Boothe has helped the Dandenong Rangers keep their NBL1 South playoffs hopes alive by holding out the fast finishing Frankston Blues for a 78-72 victory.
Dandenong had lost its past two games so were slipping from playoff contention as they hosted the fourth placed Frankston on Saturday night who were on their own five-game winning streak.
However, the Blues were without Chloe Bibby who is with the Australian Opals for the FIBA Asia Cup and after falling down five early, it was the Rangers who caught fire.
The home team scored 11 straight points to open up a 14-point lead in the first quarter and to still be up seven at quarter-time.
Dandenong maintained that seven-point advantage by half-time before building on it with 24 points to 18 in the third quarter. The Rangers then pulled away further to lead by 22 early in the fourth.
From there they did have to hold out a fast finishing Blues team but the Rangers did enough to win by six and keep their playoff dream alive at 8-9. Frankston's winning run ended as they slip to 11-5.
Sarah Boothe finished the evening with 25 points, six rebounds and four assists for Dandenong on 10/16 shooting from the floor and 5/5 at the foul line.
Nyadiew Puoch had another 17 points, 10 rebounds and four assists, Amber Smith 17 points, five boards and two assists, and Briahna Whatman eight points, four rebounds and three assists.
Chelsea D'Angelo delivered 22 points to top-score for Frankston with Louis Browne delivering 13 points, 12 rebounds and five assists despite shooting just 2/13 from the floor. She did go 8/8 from the free-throw line.
Micaela Cocks added 11 points, five rebounds and five assists, and Courtney Wilkins 11 points, three boards and two steals.
Important win for Spectres over Tornadoes
The Nunawading Spectres bounced back from a Friday night loss to beat the Launceston Tornadoes 89-72 on Saturday night.
The Spectres opened their road double in Round 11 with a loss to the Hobart Chargers on Friday and needed to bounce back away to a Tornadoes team missing Keely Froling on Saturday.
Froling was on national team duties for the FIBA World Cup and the Spectres were able to take advantage getting off to a strong start with 27 points to 13 in the opening period.
Nunawading still led 46-38 by half-time and it wasn’t until the fourth stanza when they were able to put the game to bed with 26 points to 15 including completing a remarkable 19-0 scoring run to secure the 17-point victory.
It's an important win in the context of the season for the Spectres as they improve to 8-9 after splitting their weekend in Tasmania. Launceston is now 6-11 having suffered consecutive losses without Froling.
Devon Brookshire top-scored for Nunawading with 23 points, eight rebounds and four assists with Rachel Brewster contributing 19 points, eight boards and two steals while nailing 3/5 from beyond the three-point line.
Emma Pearce also had 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Rachel Antoniadou nine points, seven boards and seven assists.
Riley Lupfer put up 20 points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists for Launceston on the back of hitting 6/14 from downtown.
Olivia West also had 20 points, eight rebounds and four assists on 3/5 three-point shooting while Taya Webb also had 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals on shooting 4/7 from long-range.
MEN
Stunning Davidson game winner for Ballarat
Jack Davidson's highlight reel with the Ballarat Miners continues to grow after he hit a stunning three-point game winner on Saturday night against the Kilsyth Cobras.
Both teams came into the contest at Kilsyth Sports Centre needing a win to keep their playoff hopes alive too in the NBL1 South only heightening the stakes.
It was an incredible battle all evening long with the nine-point lead the Miners opened up in the first quarter the biggest margin all game.
Even with that early lead, by quarter-time Kilsyth had already taken over to be up 26-25 before scores were all tied at 48-48 at the half-time interval.
Both teams had their moments with a five-point lead in the third stanza but by three quarter-time, it was still a level ball game.
It just was a game destined to go down to the wire but Kilsyth did open up a five-point advantage with 30 seconds to go so the Miners had find something special.
Tyler Rudolph and Nic Pozoglou then both scored over the next 20 seconds to make it a one-point game. Chris Galbreath then made just 1/2 at the line for Kilsyth and it left the door open for Ballarat.
Jack Davidson took the inbounds pass from the free-throw make, dribbled up the floor and then pulled up metres behind the three-point line, and his shot simply never looked like missing.
There were still 0.8 seconds left and Adrian Tomada's prayer was no good and Davidson's heroics won the game for Ballarat to improve them to 8-9 on the season. Kilsyth is now 7-10 with the heartbreaking loss.
Not only did Davidson hit the game winner for Ballarat, but he finished with 27 points and five rebounds with 5/12 three-point shooting.
Tyler Rudolph added 25 points and eight boards, Adam Thoseby 24 points and five rebounds with 4/7 downtown shooting, and Nic Pozoglou nine points, five boards, three assists and two steals.
Chris Galbreath delivered 29 points and 13 rebounds on 12/19 shooting for Kilsyth with Adrian Tomada delivering 20 points and seven assists, Auryn MacMillan 15 points and six rebounds, Jamie Ahale 14 points and seven assists, and Ben Ursich 11 points and five rebounds.
Jack Davidson's 35-FOOT BOMB wins it for Ballarat ?
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Falcons keep hot streak going over Cavs
The Waverley Falcons kept their winning form going beating the Casey Cavaliers 90-54 away from home with Dillon Stith strengthening his case to earn another NBL contract.
The Falcons have been on quite the tear to move into the NBL1 South's top eight and they again started impressively on Saturday scoring 13 consecutive points against the Cavs to lead by as much as 14 points during the opening period.
That lead grew to 16 points in the second term but the Cavs were able to make it a contest to cut the margin at half-time to nine points.
However, Waverley took back over in the third period with 28 points to eight, and then 21 to 14 saw the Falcons secure the 36-point victory to improve to a 10-6 record having now won four straight and nine of the last 10.
Dillon Stith was impressive once again for Waverley finishing the night with 25 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks on 10/15 shooting from the field.
Tristan Forsyth added 14 points and eight rebounds, Jake Heath 12 points and four boards, Michael Harper 10 points and nine rebounds, AJ Harris eight points and eight assists, and Dylan Larkin eight points and seven boards.
Patrick Emilien produced another 21 points for Casey while Preston Bungei contributed 11 points and eight rebounds.
Dillon Stith skies for the JAM ?
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Sabres keep rolling with eighth straight win
The Sandringham Sabres made it eight straight wins with Ben Ayre and CJ Asuncion-Byrd combining for 53 points in Saturday night's 110-87 road victory against the Ringwood Hawks.
The two teams were in contrasting form coming into the contest with Ringwood having lost five straight and Sandringham winning seven consecutively, and things went to form.
However, the Hawks did start the game well to go on an 11-0 run in the first quarter to lead by seven, but the Sabres had assumed control to be up 31-27 by quarter-time.
The lead for the Sabres grew to 15 points in the second term and by half-time they were in control leading 60-45.
Sandringham continued to pull away through the second half with the advantage out to 25 points in the third quarter, and 29 in the fourth before the Sabres scored the 23-point triumph.
With the win, the Sabres have now strung eight consecutive victories together to improve to a 13-4 record while the Hawks have lost six straight to be 4-13.
Ben Ayre delivered 26 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals for Sandringham with CJ Asuncion-Byrd contributing 27 points, three rebounds and three assists with the pair combining to 18/35 from the field, 8/16 from beyond the arc and 9/9 at the charity stripe.
Tom Koppens added 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Sabres, Campbell Blogg 14 points and four boards, Dave Barlow 14 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists and four blocks, and Nic Gabsch 11 points and five boards.
Jonathan Lawton produced 24 points, five assists and three rebounds for Ringwood with Matthew Roberts adding 18 points and six boards, and Kyle Daggett 15 points and five rebounds.
Eagles snatch it late from Thunder
The Diamond Valley Eagles maintained their place in the NBL1 South top eight thanks to two huge late buckets to Ryan Bowkett and Erik Kafritsas to secure the 91-89 win against the Keilor Thunder.
Keilor was playing host to Diamond Valley with the Thunder trying to stay in the playoff race while the Eagles were looking to keep winning to stay inside the top eight.
The Thunder started strongly too to lead 26-23 by quarter-time but Diamond Valley turned things around in the second term with 27 points to 23 to lead narrowly 50-49 at intermission.
The Eagles then opened up a lead of eight points in the third term and 11 in the fourth, but the Thunder weren’t going away.
By the time Zac Triplett completed a three-point play with just over a minute to go, Keilor was leading 88-87. However, Diamond Valley responded with buckets to Ryan Bowkett and Erik Kafritsas.
Triplett had a couple of good looks late at a three for Keilor but his first attempt wouldn’t go, the second was blocked by Bowkett, and then another prayer on the buzzer wouldn’t fall either with Diamond Valley holding on to win by two points.
The victory improves the Eagles to a 10-7 record with three straight wins while Keilor is now 7-9 with back-to-back defeats.
BJ Symons produced 19 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals on 9/10 shooting with Jock Perry contributing 18 points and eight boards, Ngor Manyang 17 points and five rebounds, Mandrell Worthy 13 points, and Erik Kafritsas 13 points, nine boards and three assists.
Despite the loss, Zac Triplett finished with 29 points, eight rebounds and six assists for Keilor with Rhyss Lewis contributing 22 points, William Jenkins 13 points, seven boards and four steals, Cirkook Riak eight points and seven rebounds, and Oliver Hayes-Brown eight points and eight boards.
Raiders dominate Wildcats for fifth straight
The Knox Raiders maintained their top two position in the NBL1 South by beating the Eltham Wildcats 103-67 on Saturday night despite 28 points from Angus Glover.
The Wildcats were back home at Montmorency Secondary College attempting to arrest a two-game losing slide, but the Raiders weren’t interested in any charity and put together a 19-0 run in the opening quarter to lead by as much as 15 points.
Knox was still on top 27-17 by quarter-time and the Raiders never let up the rest of the evening with the lead growing to 16 points in the third quarter, to 25 in the third and then 40 in the fourth before they beat a team in fourth position coming into the round by 36.
As a result of the win, Knox improves to a 13-4 record with the five consecutive wins while Eltham's slide continues with a third straight loss to see them 10-6.
Ke'Jhan Feagin continued his outstanding form for Knox in the win with 23 points, three assists and three steals on shooting 4/7 from three-point range.
Deng Acouth also had 15 points and 11 rebounds, Mason Peatling 14 points, 12 rebounds and three assists, Austin Rapp 14 points, two boards and two assists, Wayne Stewart Jr 11 points and five rebounds, and Jacob Foy 10 points and four assists.
Madut Akec also added seven points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals.
It was a rough night for Eltham despite 28 points and five rebounds from Angus Glover on 11/18 shooting from the field and 5/10 from beyond the three-point arc.
Josh Sykes added 11 points for Eltham and Sam Whelan nine points and two assists with 3/5 three-point shooting.
Frankston hold off fast finishing Dandenong
The Frankston Blues opened up a 22-point lead in the third quarter and then withstood a fast finish from the Dandenong Rangers to win 95-90 to maintain top position in the NBL1 South.
With both the Knox Raiders and Sandringham Sabres hot on their tail, the Blues did need to keep winning to stay in that top spot as they took on the Rangers at Dandenong Basketball Stadium on Saturday night.
Scores were level by quarter-time and by half-time it was Dandenong leading by two points, but in the third quarter Frankston got on a roll with a 16-0 run to have a lead of 22 points in their favour.
The Blues were still on top by as much as 21 points in the final stanza but still the Rangers refused to give up the ghost. Dandenong scored 34 points in the last quarter to make things interesting but Frankston still held on for the five-point win to stay in top position.
Daniel Trist produced a tremendous performance for Frankston finishing with 31 points, 10 rebounds and five assists on 8/16 shooting from the floor and 13/15 at the free-throw line.
Igor Hadziomerovic produced 20 points and eight rebounds as well, and Lucas Barker 20 points, nine assists, six steals and four boards.
Jack Roberts finished with 26 points, four rebounds and three assists for Dandenong with Mike Amius adding 18 points and three rebounds, Lawson Eales 11 points, five boards, four steals and three assists, and Jesse Ghee 10 points, five assists, four steals and two rebounds.
Sylla dominates in big win for Thunder
The North West Tasmania Thunder snapped their losing run on the back of 35 points and 13 rebounds from Sekou Sylla to defeat the Nunawading Spectres 92-79.
The Spectres began their weekend in Tasmania beating the Hobart Chargers on Friday night as they attempt to close in on a top four spot in the NBL1 South, but it was always going to be a test against the Thunder at Mazda BT-50 Thunder Stadium.
While North West Tasmania did race out to a flying start to lead by as much as 14 points in the opening term, Nunawading did well to weather the storm and close the gap to four by quarter-time.
Then by half-time it was only a narrow 42-40 lead in favour of North West Tasmania but Nunawading briefly grabbed the lead during the third term.
However, the Thunder took back control with 25 points to 18 before the lead got out to 13 points in the fourth stanza and the home side went on to score the 13-point victory.
The result sees North West Tasmania improve to a 7-10 record on the season while Nunawading goes 1-1 on the weekend to be 10-7 and still short of the top four but in a playoff position.
Sekou Sylla was ultimately the difference between the two teams as he delivered 35 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals for North West on the back of shooting 14/26 from the floor and 6/9 at the foul line.
Vionte Daniels also had 17 points, five assists and four rebounds for the Thunder, Tre Armstrong nine points, two rebounds and two steals, and Paul Campbell eight points, six boards and three blocks.
Kingsley Box top-scored for Nunawading with 16 points and seven rebounds while Tristan Devers added 11 points and three assists, Nicolas Tata 14 points and six rebounds, and Christian D'Angelo 10 points and a steal.
