South Recap | Round 15 Saturday

Image credit: Cam Brown | @cambrownvisuals

Jaz Shelley's triple-double ensured Geelong United a perfect 22-0 NBL1 South regular season with Waverley Falcons entering the finals having won six straight, Knox Raiders 11 and Georgia Booth shot Dandenong Rangers to a top four finish.

SOUTH RECAP | ROUND 15 FRIDAY

SOUTH RECAP | ROUND 15 TUESDAY

WOMEN

Geelong United (103) defeated Eltham Wildcats (60)

Jaz Shelley had a triple-double and Geelong United completed the undefeated regular season by beating the bottom placed Eltham Wildcats 103-60.

After winning their opening 21 matches of the season, it all came down to Saturday night at The Geelong Arena with United needing to beat the Wildcats to secure the perfect regular season.

Both teams played on Friday night with Geelong beating Keilor Thunder on the road while the Wildcats did lose to the Sandringham Sabres although they had won their fourth game of the season last weekend against the Launceston Tornadoes.

Geelong shook off any nerves with that streak on the line by racing out to a 14-point lead in the first quarter and leading 22-9 by quarter-time.

It was then another 38 points to 23 in the second term on the back of shooting 13/22 from the field including 7/13 from downtown. Eltham also hit seven three-pointers, but they just couldn’t go with Geelong who were leading 60-32 by half-time.

Geelong then still outscored Eltham 33 points to 28 in the second half to secure the 43-point victory to ensure the perfect regular season with 22 wins where they have averaged scoring 90 points a game and with an averaging winning margin of 25.

Jaz Shelley delivered a triple-double made up of 22 points, 13 rebounds, 12 assists and six rebounds with 5/11 three-point shooting.

Hannah Hank added 26 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots, Taylor Mole 21 points, seven assists, five boards and three steals, and Lilly Rotunno 14 points and three steals.

Eltham finish their season as well with a 4-18 record in bottom spot with Jayde Cadee finishing with 26 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists on 6/13 three-point shooting.

Kennedy Dickie also had 20 points and six rebounds, and Taylah Short six points and four boards on 2/6 from downtown.

GEELONG UNITED 103 (Hank 26, Shelley 22, Mole 21)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 60 (Cadee 26, Dickie 20, Short 6)

 

Waverley Falcons (96) defeated Melbourne Tigers (78)

The defending champion Waverley Falcons continue to loom large heading into the finals and they'll do so on a six-game winning streak after ending the season of the Melbourne Tigers with the 96-78 home victory.

The Falcons were home at Waverley Basketball Centre needing to win to break into the top four while the Tigers had plenty at stake too needing to win to make the finals altogether.

Waverley came into the clash having won five straight including on Friday night away to Kilsyth Cobras while the Tigers lost to the Casey Cavaliers which meant to stay in the top eight, they had to beat the Falcons.

It was a strong start from the Falcons with the Tigers still just trying to find a way to compete in the absence of Sara Blicavs, Izzy Borlase and even Sienna Harvey.

The Falcons were leading 25-19 by the end of the first quarter before opening up a 12-point lead in the second term, and then going into half-time in control at 50-38.

It was more of the same in the third quarter with 27 points to 12 with the Waverley lead getting out to 27 points and even with Melbourne outscoring them 28-19 in the last term, the Falcons still cruised to the 18-point victory.

Waverley now finishes the regular season with a 16-6 record with six straight wins and that will be enough for a top four finish after they won last year's NBL1 South championship from seventh before backing it up winning the Nationals Finals crown too.

Bec Cole was once again outstanding in the win for the Falcons with 29 points and four assists with 10/16 field goal shooting, 4/5 three-point shooting and going 5/5 at the free-throw line.

Jenna Batsch added 15 points and two rebounds, Carley Ernst 14 points, eight boards and four assists, Sophia Locandro 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and Katelyn Shumate nine points and five boards.

The Tigers will now miss the playoffs finishing with a 12-10 record and having lost four of their last five matches.

Indiah Bowyer ended up with 32 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals with 4/14 three-point shooting.

Eva Braslis added 26 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals, and Tylah Hooper seven points, four boards and two assists.

WAVERLEY FALCONS 96 (Cole 19, Batsch 15, Ernst 14)

MELBOURNE TIGERS 78 (Bowyer 32, Braslis 26, Hooper 7)

 

Knox Raiders (98) defeated Ballarat Miners (55)

The Knox Raiders will enter the finals on an 11-game winning streak and in second position in the NBL1 South after a dominant 98-55 home victory against the out of contention Ballarat Miners.

The Raiders came into their last game of the regular season already locked into second position two games ahead of Keilor Thunder and three behind Geelong United, but they did want to ensure they went into finals with winning momentum.

They were hosting a Miners team who had slipped out of playoff contention having lost nine of their past 13 matches, and Knox outscored Ballarat 25 points to 18 in the opening term even with both teams knocking down four three-pointers each.

The Raiders continued to build on their advantage with 28 points to 20 in the second term to open up an 18-point lead before going into the main break leading 53-38.

That lead continued to blow out in the second half getting to as much as 31 points in the third period, and 43 in the fourth before Knox outscored Ballarat 45 points to 17 with shooting 19/43 from the field to 6/31 even with both teams combining to shoot 3/26 from behind the three-point line.

The Raiders now finish the regular season in second position with a 19-3 record and having won their last 11 matches with Alicia Froling finishing with 18 points and 12 rebounds.

Katelyn Young added 18 points and four rebounds, Agnes Emma-Nnopu 15 points, 11 boards, three steals, three blocks and two assists, Rachel Bell nine points, four assists and three rebounds, and Paige Burrows nine points, four assists and three boards.

Ballarat's season still has a game to go on Sunday when they are away to the also out of contention Casey Cavaliers.

Laura Taylor finished with 18 points and five rebounds with 5/7 shooting from behind the three-point line with Kaleena Lewis adding 10 points, five boards and two blocked shots, and Eliza Ashby eight points and four rebounds.

KNOX RAIDERS 96 (Froling 18, Young 18, Emma-Nnopu 15)

BALLARAT MINERS 55 (Taylor 18, Lewis 10, Ashby 8, Simpson 8)

 

Launceston Tornadoes (70) lost to Dandenong Rangers (92)

Georgia Booth had another standout showing with 30 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three steals as the Dandenong Rangers guaranteed a top four finish with the 92-70 road win over the Launceston Tornadoes.

The Rangers started their road double in Tasmania beating the Hobart Chargers on Friday night and then backed up against the Tornadoes at Harcourts Stadium.

Launceston were playing their last game of the season and looking for a fifth victory, but Dandenong needed the win to maintain a top four position.

However, the Tornadoes came out strongly and the scores were all level at 25-25 by the end of the first quarter but there was too much for the Rangers to play for and they outscored Launceston 25 points to 11 in the second term.

That saw Dandenong head into the half-time break leading 50-36 before that advantage continued to grow through the second half with the lead getting out to 20 points in the third quarter, and 22 in the fourth.

The Rangers secured the 22-point victory from there to improve to a 16-6 record with three consecutive wins to guarantee a top four finish.

Georgia Booth might like to play in Tasmania more often given the weekend she had backing up a huge game on Friday night against Hobart by producing another 30 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three steals on 4/9 three-point shooting.

Nyadiew Puoch also had 22 points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists, Clare Camac nine points, four boards and two steals, Amber Smith eight points, six rebounds and two steals, and Lara Edmanson seven points and seven boards.

The season is now over for Launceston with a 4-18 record with Sarah O'Neill finishing with 19 points, three steals and two assists on 3/5 three-point shooting.

Megan Mullings added 18 points and four rebounds, Keely Froling 16 points, eight boards and four assists, Shelby Rayner eight points, four rebounds and two assists, and Ava McDonald seven points.

LAUNCESTON TORNADOES 70 (O'Neill 19, Mullings 18, Froling 16)

DANDENONG RANGERS 92 (Booth 30, Puoch 22, Camac 9)

 

Nunawading Spectres (75) defeated Keilor Thunder (69)

Keilor Thunder continue to struggle without their two guns and Nunawading Spectres took full advantage to finish their season on a high with the 75-69 victory.

The Spectres were back home at Nunawading Basketball Centre looking for a winning finish to their season while Keilor are still going to play finals, but had lost three straight and were continuing to battle in the absence of Maddy Rocci and Issie Bourne.

A win for Keilor would have guaranteed them a top four finish so there was still plenty at stake and the Thunder did start well with 20 points to 16.

Keilor then maintained a 39-37 lead by half-time before the Thunder blew the game open in the third term opening up a 13-point lead thanks to scoring 13 consecutive points, and that top four finish looked set to be locked away.

However, Keilor just couldn’t keep it going for 40 minutes and Nunawading took control from there including 20 points to seven in the last quarter with 7/16 shooting to the 2/15 from the Thunder to come from behind to score the six-point win.

The win means that Nunawading finishes the season outside of the top eight with a 10-12 record with Kate Tanner top-scoring with 16 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists

Rachel Brewster added 15 points, three rebounds and two blocked shots, Shaneice Swain 15 points, five boards and five assists, and Jordan Pyle 10 points and four rebounds.

Keilor have now lost their last four games of the season to finish with a 16-6 record and depending on other results this weekend to see if they stay in the top four or not.

Penina Davidson continued to battle against the odds for Keilor with another 25 points, 16 rebounds and two assists with Jasmine Dickey adding 19 points, 10 boards and four assists, and Isobelle Wightman 15 points and five rebounds.

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 75 (Tanner 16, Brewster 15, Swain 15)

KEILOR THUNDER 69 (Davidson 25, Dickey 19, Wightman 15)

 

MEN

Geelong United (61) lost to Eltham Wildcats (85)

The championship defence of the Eltham Wildcats continues to gather steam and they will enter the playoffs on a six-game winning streak after the 85-61 road win against Geelong United.

United might have slipped out of playoff contention having lost their past three matches including on Friday night at home to the Keilor Thunder, but they were attempting to finish on a high at The Geelong Arena.

It was never going to be an easy task, though, up against the defending champion Wildcats who have only continued to improve the longer the season has gone with a decidedly different line-up than last year's title winning team.

Eltham came into the match up still a chance of a top four finish with a win and if the Melbourne Tigers slipped up at the same time, and the Wildcats started strongly with 26 points to 18 in the first quarter.

Eltham then were still leading 45-35 by the half-time break before the lead continued to blowout through the second half growing to as much as 24 points in the third quarter, and 29 in the fourth on the way to the eventual 24-point victory.

Eltham ended up shooting 51 per cent from the field 34 per cent from Geelong with the Wildcats improving to a 14-8 record with seven straight wins to close the regular season and ahead of their finals campaign.

Sam Whelan top-scored for Eltham in the win with 21 points on 6/9 three-point shooting with Mitch McCarron adding 16 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and two steals, Xavier Bledson 12 points and two assists, and Mitch Blackburn eight points and three rebounds.

Geelong finishes their season with a 7-15 record and having lost their last four matches with Tristan Forsyth finishing with 17 points and nine rebounds.

George Blagojevic added 11 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots.

GEELONG UNITED 61 (Forsyth 17, Blagojevic 11, Herbert 6, Marach 6)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 85 (Whelan 21, McCarron 16, Bledson 12)

 

Waverley Falcons (99) lost to Melbourne Tigers (102)

A second straight thrilling win in the space of 24 hours for the Melbourne Tigers maintains a top four chance for them after their 102-99 road win on Saturday night against the Waverley Falcons.

Coming into the Saturday night match up at Waverley Basketball Centre and the Falcons were just looking to finish their season on a winning note while the Tigers needed to win if they wanted to hold on to their top four position.

That set the stage for a fascinating match up with the home team getting off to the flying start with Waverley outscoring Melbourne 29 points to 21 in the opening term with six extra shot attempts.

The Tigers turned the tide in the second term with 28 points to 20 while themselves ending up with five extra shot attempts for the quarter.

That had scores all tied up at 49-49 by half-time and there would be no more than seven points separating the two teams for the entire second half.

The Tigers held a two-point lead by the end of the third quarter and then they had managed to lead by seven a couple of times through the last frame including still with two minutes to play when Tom Wilson scored.

It was still a six-point lead with 45 seconds to go when Michael Wearne knocked down a pair of free throws, but Waverley weren’t going away starting with a three-pointer to Malik Meunier.

Bennie Lewis then made two free throws and it was back to a one-point ball game but Melbourne made sure of the win thanks to Wearne making another two free throws and then Lewis missing his shot to force overtime up the other end.

It was a crucial result for the Tigers as well as they finish the regular season with a 14-8 record and three straight wins but whether they finish top four or not still won't be decided until Sunday.

Tom Wilson continues to ensure he will be returning to the NBL at Melbourne United in the form of his life with another 32 points, seven assists and four rebounds on 11/18 shooting for the Tigers.

Michael Wearne added 17 points, three assists, two rebounds and two steals, Harry Froling 16 points and 10 boards, Jack Purchase 13 points, four rebounds and four assists, and Mason Gaze seven points, six assists, four boards and two steals.

The season for Waverley is now over with a 9-13 record and losing their last five matches with Malik Meunier top scoring with 28 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and five steals.

Mason Forbes added 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, Matthew McCarthy 18 points, five assists, three boards and two steals, and Bennie Lewis 16 points, three rebounds and two assists.

WAVERLEY FALCONS 99 (Meunier 28, Forbes 26, McCarthy 18)

MELBOURNE TIGERS 102 (Wilson 32, Wearne 17, Froling 16)

 

Knox Raiders (92) lost to Ballarat Miners (95)

The Ballarat Miners continued to ensure they will enter another finals series in some impressive former after knocking off the regular season champion Knox Raiders 95-92 on the road on Saturday night.

With the Raiders already locked into top spot no matter what happened to them over the weekend it was always going to be fascinating how the winners of the past two NBL1 National Finals came into the match up with Ballarat at the State Basketball Centre.

Knox then did end up with just the seven players hitting the court against Ballarat with Perth Wildcats NBL guard Sunday Dech among those not suiting up for the league-leaders.

Ballarat might not have been able to break into the top four with a win but could still try and finish as high up as possible with a couple of wins across the weekend.

Knox then made a fast start on their home floor with 30 points to 22 in the first quarter with 7/12 three-point shooting.

The Raiders kept that going too with another 33 points to 24 in the second term to be leading 63-46 by half-time on the back of shooting 24/45 from the field opposed to the 15/38 from Ballarat.

The Miners impressively turned it around in the second half, though, starting with 27 points to 11 in the third term, and another 22 to 18 in the fourth.

Ballarat scored the last three points of the third quarter and the first eight of the fourth with that 11-0 seeing the leading by six, but the Raiders still wouldn’t go away even if there was nothing on the line for them.

Knox were able to get back within a point with three minutes to go after Keli Leaulepe hit a three-pointer and Brody Nunn scored, but Nick Stoddart answered with two free throws for Ballarat and then Dayne Prim added a jumper in what was the last score of the game.

The win improves Ballarat to a 13-8 record with three consecutive victories ahead of taking on the Casey Cavaliers also in Melbourne on Sunday.

Dayne Prim delivered 26 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals for Ballarat with 5/10 shooting from behind the three-point arc.

Luke Rosendale added 21 points and four assists with 5/9 three-point shooting, Zac Dunmore 18 points with making all four of his three-point attempts, Nick Stoddart 15 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals, and Majok Majok 10 points and 10 boards.

Knox finishes the season still in first place with a 17-5 record with Keli Leaulepe continuing his hot form with 31 points and 10 rebounds with 11/17 shooting from the field and going 5/6 from three-point territory.

Brayon Blake added 21 points, three rebounds and three assists, Tad Dufelmeier 16 points, 10 boards, five assists and four steals, and Brody Nunn 13 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

KNOX RAIDERS 92 (Leaulepe 31, Blake 21, Dufelmeier 16)

BALLARAT MINERS 95 (Prim 26, Rosendale 21, Dunmore 18)

 

North West Tasmania Thunder (103) lost to Dandenong Rangers (112)

The two teams might not have been in finals contention but that didn’t stop them putting on a spectacular show with the Dandenong Rangers ending up beating the North West Tasmania Thunder 112-103.

The Rangers might not have been able to play finals coming into the last weekend but they did start it off by beating the Hobart Chargers to open their Tasmanian double in the last round.

North West arrived having lost their past five matches including by 40 points last Sunday to close their last road trip to the Eltham Wildcats.

They were back home on Saturday night at Harcourts Stadium needing a win to ensure they won't finish last should the Diamond Valley Eagles get a win on Sunday.

Dandenong got off to a flying start with 31 points to 16 in the first quarter thanks to knocking down 7/8 from three-point range.

The Thunder did put up 28 points to 27 in the second term but it was the Rangers leading still 58-44 by the half-time interval.

Dandenong then produced 31 points to 27 in the third period to open up a 22-point advantage and then the Rangers ended up securing the nine-point win with North West finishing strongly with 32 points in the last stanza including 10 in-a-row.

The win means that the Rangers end their season with the pair of road wins in Tasmania to end up with an 8-14 record with Sam Davidson delivering 28 points and four assists with 5/9 three-point shooting.

Justin Bieker also had 20 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals, Ryan Rapp 19 points, six assists and five boards, Mason Peatling 18 points and six rebounds, Ruot Monyyong 14 points, seven boards and three assists, and Jack Roberts 10 points and three rebounds.

North West have now lost their past six matches to end the season on a 5-16 record with Tre Armstrong finishing his season with a tremendous performance made up of 30 points with 8/14 three-point shooting.

Anok Magot added 20 points with 3/6 three-point shooting as well for the Thunder while Lachlan Barker delivered 16 points, nine assists and five rebounds, and Logan Gibson 14 points, four boards and three assists.

NORTH WEST TASMANIA THUNDER 103 (Armstrong 30, Magot 20, Barker 16)

DANDENONG RANGERS 112 (Davidson 28, Bieker 20, Rapp 19)

 

Nunawading Spectres (89) defeated Keilor Thunder (78)

With both teams looking for a winning end to their seasons, it was the Nunawading Spectres who got their wish with the 89-78 win over Keilor Thunder on their home floor.

The Spectres came into the match up at Nunawading Basketball Centre coming off a Friday night victory against the Diamond Valley Eagles while Keilor also scored a win at home over Geelong United.

So while both teams were out of the finals race, they did come into the Saturday match up in winning form ahead of what was the final appearance of the season for each of them.

It was a strong start from Keilor with 23 points to 16 in the first quarter and then the Thunder were still leading 39-32 by the half-time break.

The Spectres turned that around in the third period with 29 points to 21 thanks to knocking down 5/8 of their three-point attempts before Nunawading kept that momentum going with another 28 points to 18.

The Spectres ended up outscoring the Thunder 57-39 in the second half on the back of shooting 21/28 from the field to the 16/37 from Keilor on the way to the 11-point victory.

Nunawading finishes the season with a 11-11 record following the victory with Tristan Devers producing 19 points, four rebounds and two assists.

Brian Mack II added 16 points, 12 rebounds and two assists, Christian D'Angelo 14 points, three assists and two boards, Jack Gandolfo 13 points, three assists and two rebounds, and Joe Mutimer 10 points, four assists and two boards.

Keilor finishes their season at 8-14 following the defeat with Jayce Beasley delivering 20 points and three rebound while South East Melbourne Phoenix development player Daniel Foster had another 16 points and five rebounds.

Patrick Ryan also had nine points and four rebounds, Daniel Poelsma eight points and an assist, and Adetomi Ayilara eight points and five rebounds.

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 89 (Devers 19, Mack II 16, D'Angelo 14)

KEILOR THUNDER 78 (Beasley 20, Foster 16, Ryan 9)