South Recap | Round 6 Saturday

Image credit: Shane Panther | @shanejpg.sport

Tom Wilson landed seven three-pointers to lead Melbourne Tigers to an NBL1 South Saturday win with Robbie Heath for Waverley Falcons, Charles Matthews for Bendigo Braves and Akech Aliir for Mount Gambier Pioneers were the heroes.

SOUTH RECAP | ROUND 6 FRIDAY

WOMEN

Geelong United (95) defeated Dandenong Rangers (66)

Jaz Shelley and Gemma Potter combined for another 45 points as Geelong United kept on winning to start the NBL1 South season beating the Dandenong Rangers 95-66.

United put their perfect record to start the season on the line at The Geelong Arena hosting the Rangers on Saturday night who had won five of seven games themselves, but did arrive without the services of Nyadiew Puoch.

Geelong made a flying start with 27 points to 16 in the first quarter while leading by as much as 13 on 10-19 shooting from the floor with Dandenong managing just the 5/16.

It was another 19 points to 12 in the second frame as well for United with the lead growing to 19 points and they were leading 46-28 at the half-time break.

The Rangers were able to limit the damage in the third quarter, but then Geelong pulled away once more with 29 points to 17 in the last term on the way to the eventual 29-point victory.

The win improves Geelong to a perfect 8-0 record to start the season with 12/26 three-point shooting opposed to the 1/11 from Dandenong.

Jaz Shelley was a standout once more for Geelong with another 26 points, five steals and four assists with Gemma Potter adding 19 points, six boards, five assists and four steals.

Hannah Hank also provided 15 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and three steals, Annika Stewart 13 points, three boards and two assists, and Poppy Stevens 11 points on 3/4 three-point shooting.

The Rangers are now 5-3 on the season with Dallas Loughridge top-scoring with 16 points on 12/12 free-throw shooting despite going 2/13 from the field.

Amber Smith added 12 points, three rebounds and two steals, Clare Camac 10 points, five boards, three assists and three steals, and Georgia Booth nine points and nine rebounds.

GEELONG UNITED 95 (Shelley 26, Potter 19, Hank 15)

DANDENONG RANGERS 66 (Loughridge 16, Smith 12, Camac 10)

Knox Raiders (85) defeated Keilor Thunder (58)

The Knox Raiders continued their hot start to the 2025 season snapping the Keilor Thunder winning streak with them without Maddy Rocci in the eventual 85-58 victory.

The Raiders were back on their home floor at the State Basketball Centre putting their three-game winning streak on the line up against last year's runners up with Keilor having won four in-a-row themselves.

The Thunder, however, were without Rocci who is with the Australian Opals this week for the Trans-Tasman Throwdown with Knox holding a slender 19-16 lead by quarter-time.

It was in the second frame when the Raiders began to take control knocking down 4/6 from three-point range to end up leading by as much as 15 points, and still being up 41-32 at the half-time break.

It was another 21 points to eight in the third term from the Raiders with the Thunder managing just 4/15 shooting before Knox closed the deal to lead by as much as 28 and to end up winning by 27.

The win improves Knox to a 7-1 record on the season having won four in-a-row with Alicia Froling delivering 20 points and four rebounds on 8/12 shooting.

Leah Santomaggio added 17 points on 5/10 three-point shooting with Rachel Bell contributing 15 points, seven rebounds and two steals, and Paige Bradley 14 points, five assists and four rebounds.

The Thunder are now 7-2 on the season with both losses coming with Maddy Rocci not in the line-up.

Issie Bourne did all she could to try and keep Keilor in the contest with 23 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks, two assists and two steals.

Lily Carmody also had 10 points and five rebounds, and Tayah Burrows seven points, seven boards and five assists.

KNOX RAIDERS 85 (Froling 20, Santomaggio 17, Bell 15)

KEILOR THUNDER 58 (Bourne 23, Carmody 10, Burrows 7)

Launceston Tornadoes (69) lost to Nunawading Spectres (78)

The Nunawading Spectres completed the perfect weekend in Tasmania with the 78-69 Saturday night win over the Launceston Tornadoes.

The Spectres started the weekend in the Apple Isle with the Friday night win over the Hobart Chargers ahead of taking on the winless Tornadoes on Saturday at Elphin Sports Stadium.

Launceston were hunting that elusive first win of 2025 but were still without Keely Froling who is with the Australian Opals during this week's Trans-Tasman Throwdown.

Nunawading did race out to an early 11-point lead but Launceston had pulled that back to just a two-point deficit by quarter-time and then at half-time the Spectres were only clinging to a 41-38 lead.

The Tornadoes remained right in the contest for most of the second half too and even got scores back level on a couple of occasions before Nunawading went on a 9-0 run in the fourth quarter to secure the eventual nine-point victory.

The win improves the Spectres to a 5-4 record on the season having won both games this weekend with all five starters ending up scoring in double-figures.

That included Rachel Antoniadou finishing with 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals while Isabel Feller contributed 15 points, three boards and two steals, and Laina Snyder 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Faith Dut also had 13 points, three rebounds and two assists, and Rachel Brewster 13 points, four steals and three boards.

The Tornadoes are now 0-10 for the season with six of those losses now coming at home with Sarah O'Neill producing 22 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Taya Webb added 19 points and eight rebounds while making 5/8 from downtown with Ava McDonald scoring eight points on 4/9 shooting.

LAUNCESTON TORNADOES 69 (O'Neill 22, Webb 19, McDonald 8)

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 78 (Antoniadou 16, Feller 15, Snyder 14)

Ballarat Miners (49) lost to Melbourne Tigers (82)

The Melbourne Tigers might have been without their stars participating in the Trans-Tasman Throwdown, but they couldn’t be denied going on to beat the Ballarat Miners 82-49.

While the Tigers were missing Izzy Borlase, Sara Blicavs and Ella Tofaeono who are part of this week's three-game Trans-Tasman Throwdown series, but the Miners were also without Abbey Wehrung and Micah Simpson.

That meant it was a match up at Selkirk Stadium all about who had the depth to be able to cover the absence of their stars and it was Melbourne who started the better to be leading 29-21 by quarter-time.

It was another 13 points to six in the second quarter with Ballarat missing all 11 of their shot attempts and their six points all coming at the foul line.

That saw the Tigers leading 42-27 at half-time with the Miners then only managing seven points again in the third period while going 2/15 from the field with Melbourne extending the lead further with another 21 points.

That lead for the Tigers got out to 33 points in the second half too before they secured the eventual 33-point victory to improve to a 4-3 record on the season with the back-to-back wins.

Sienna Harvey came up big in the absence of her more senior teammates with 21 points, six rebounds and five assists with 7/14 shooting from the floor and 7/10 at the foul line.

Eve Braslis added 18 points and four rebounds, Indiah Bowyer 16 points, six boards, three steals and two assists, and Genna Ogier seven points, six rebounds and three assists.

The Miners are now sitting on a 3-5 record and have to try and back up on Sunday against the Diamond Valley Eagles with Julia Gladkova finishing with 18 points and eight rebounds.

Opal Bird added nine points and 11 rebounds, Laura Taylor eight points, five boards and three assists, and Ally Knights four points, four rebounds and seven assists.

BALLARAT MINERS 49 (Gladkova 18, Bird 9, Taylor 8)

MELBOURNE TIGERS 82 (Harvey 21, Braslis 18, Bowyer 16)

Kilsyth Cobras (84) defeated Eltham Wildcats (73)

Nikita Young knocked down six three-pointers for 28 points to lead the Kilsyth Cobras to the 84-73 home win over the Eltham Wildcats.

The Cobras were back on their home floor at Kilsyth Sports Centre attempting to snap a three-game losing slide against a Wildcats team also having lost their previous three matches.

It was an impressive start from the home team as they scored 12 straight points in the first quarter on the way to the 25-16 lead by quarter-time.

That lead got out to 11 by half-time for Kilsyth before they continued to build on that advantage with it growing to as much as 23 points in the fourth quarter.

That was when Eltham fired back and did go on a 12-0 scoring run but Kilsyth still held on to score the 11-point victory to return to the winner's list and improve to a 3-6 record.

Nikita Young came up huge for Kilsyth producing 28 points, seven assists and six rebounds on the back of knocking down 6/10 from three-point territory.

Anamaria Virjoghe was also a strong contributor with 22 points, five rebounds and two blocks on 10/14 shooting with Abby O'Connor adding 12 points, eight boards and five assists, and Shannon Dufficy 10 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Eltham have now lost four straight for a 2-6 record on the season with Bec Pizzey putting up 15 points, eight rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals.

Kennedy Dickie also had 15 points and eight rebounds, Taylah Short 13 points and two boards, Lil Dart 12 points and two rebounds, and Julia Drop 11 points, seven assists and five boards.

KILSYTH COBRAS 84 (Young 28, Virjoghe 22, O'Connor 12)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 73 (Dickie 15, Pizzey 15, Short 13)

Bendigo Braves (59) lost to Ringwood Hawks (81)

Sarah Elsworthy was on fire for 28 points and the Ringwood Hawks squared their season ledger at 4-4 with the 81-59 road win on Saturday night against the Bendigo Braves.

Bendigo were back home at Red Energy Arena trying to stop a five-game losing slide as they hosted a Hawks team also fresh off a loss to the Mount Gambier Pioneers last Saturday.

It was Ringwood clinging to a 20-16 lead by the end of the first quarter having made all of their four three-point attempts but missing all nine shots inside the arc.

It was another 17 points to nine in the second quarter as well from the Hawks as they went into half-time leading 37-25 with the home team shooting 1/13 from behind the three-point line.

Ringwood then ensured the big win with another 25 points to 13 in the fourth quarter to prevail by 22 on the back of knocking down 11/24 from three-point range to 5/27, and shooting overall 44 per cent to 31 from the Braves.

The Hawks improve to a 4-4 record with the win with Sarah Elsworthy the star with 28 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals on shooting 10/14 from the field and a perfect 4/4 from downtown.

Camille Hobby added 18 points and 13 rebounds, Annabel Deerbon 16 points, three boards, three assists and two steals, and Alex Wittinger 11 points, eight rebounds and two assists.

The Braves have now lost six straight to slip to a 2-7 record on the season with Mikayla Pivec producing 18 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Mia Harvey added 12 points, Taisheka Porchia 11 points, 13 rebounds, three steals and two blocks, and Cassidy McLean seven points, four boards, four assists, three steals and two blocked shots.

Bendigo Braves 59 (Pivec 18, Harvey 12, Porchia 11)

Ringwood Hawks 81 (Elsworthy 28, Hobby 18, Deerbon 16)

Casey Cavaliers (54) lost to Mount Gambier Pioneers (79)

Haliegh Reinoehl and Isa Brancatisano combined for 53 points and 31 rebounds as the Mount Gambier Pioneers took full advantage of the shorthanded Casey Cavaliers for the 79-54 road win.

The Cavaliers had won four of their first seven games of the season but came into the match up at Casey Stadium without New Zealand Tall Ferns pair Sharne Robati and Esra McGoldrick who are playing in the Trans-Tasman Throwdown series this week.

That opened the door for the Pioneers to try and start building some momentum this season and the visitors did manage to open up a 23-18 lead by quarter-time despite only shooting 2/11 from downtown.

The two teams then both managed just 12 points in the second quarter while shooting an identical 5/16 from the floor with Mount Gambier ending up leading 35-30 going into the half-time break.

The Pioneers were able to take complete control of the contest in the third quarter completing a 10-0 scoring run and building a 22-point lead which was enough to set up the eventual win.

From there Mount Gambier ended up winning by 25 points while holding Casey to 54 points and shooting 29 per cent from the field while shooting 41 themselves.

The Pioneers improve to a 3-6 record with the win with Haliegh Reinoehl delivering 33 points and 13 rebounds on 11/17 shooting from the floor, 3/4 from downtown and 8/10 at the foul line.

Isa Brancatisano led admirably too with 20 points, 18 rebounds, three assists and three steals with Chloe Hildebrand contributing 11 points, five boards and two assists, and Cat MacGregor 10 points, three rebounds and two assists.

The Cavaliers slip to a 4-4 record with the loss on their home floor with Sabrina Haines finishing with 16 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals.

Ahlise Hurst added 12 points, three rebounds and two steals, Hailey Wynd 10 points and eight boards, and Jaden Owens nine points and four rebounds.

CASEY CAVALIERS 54 (Haines 16, Hurst 12, Wynd 10)

MOUNT GAMBIER PIONEERS 79 (Reinoehl 33, Brancatisano 20, Hildebrand 11)

Sandringham Sabres (79) lost to Waverley Falcons (88)

Carley Ernst sent a reminder of what a match winner she could be putting the Waverley Falcons on her back as the reigning champions kept on winning beating the Sandringham Sabres 88-79.

The Falcons arrived at Southern Basketball Stadium having strung together three straight wins having welcomed back Bec Cole into the line-up as they took on a Sabres team trying to avoid a third consecutive defeat.

It was an entertaining start to the contest with the two teams combining for 49 points with Sandringham leading 25-24 by quarter-time but Waverley then began to take over in the second frame.

Waverley outscored Sandringham 19 points to 12 while limiting the Sabres to 0/7 three-point shooting and that saw the reigning champs going into the half-time break on top 43-37.

The Falcons went on with the job from there and were up double-figures most of the second half including leading by as much as 14 before securing the nine-point win.

The result means that Waverley have now won four straight to sit at 6-2 with their championship defence building momentum and National Finals MVP Carley Ernst came up big with 21 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and two assists with 4/9 three-point shooting.

Katelyn Shumate added 16 points, nine rebounds and three steals on 3/4 shooting from downtown, Bec Cole 12 points and nine assists, Sophia Locandro 11 points and seven rebounds, and Amelia Todhunter 10 points, three boards and three assists.

Sandringham have now lost three in-a-row at 5-4 with Funda Nakkasoglu producing another 22 points on 7/14 shooting from the field and 5/5 at the foul line.

Klara Wischer added 14 points, six assists and four rebounds, Haylee Andrews 13 points, two boards and two assists, Lucy Cochrane 11 points and eight rebounds, and Isis Lopes 11 points, six rebounds, six assists and two steals.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 79 (Nakkasoglu 22, Wischer 14, Andrews 13)

WAVERLEY FALCONS 88 (Ernst 21, Shumate 16, Cole 12)

MEN

Geelong United (88) defeated Dandenong Rangers (76)

Tristan Forsyth continued his run of career-best form with another dominant showing with 29 points and nine rebounds as Geelong United defeated the Dandenong Rangers 88-76.

United were back home at The Geelong Arena looking to return to the winner's list up against a Rangers team with just the one win so far for 2025.

Scores were all level by quarter-time at 24-24 with Geelong shooting 9/18 and Dandenong 9/17 before it was all United in the second frame with 22 points to 14 to take a 46-38 advantage into the half-time interval.

Geelong built on that lead further with another 16 points to 11 in the third quarter with the lead getting out to 18 points and from there it was United securing the 12-point victory.

Geelong scored the win on the back of shooting 46 per cent from the field to 35, and knocking down 9/19 from three-point land to 7/25.

Tristan Forsyth continues to show he is one of the form big men across the country right now and finished with another 29 points and nine rebounds in the win for Geelong while even knocking down 3/6 three-point range.

DeMarcus Gatlin knocked down his first three-pointer of the season on his way to 19 points, 12 rebounds and five assists with Liam Herbert contributing 14 points, seven boards and four assists, and Marach Marach 13 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Dandenong remain anchored to bottom place as the only team still without multiple victories this season with Jack Roberts top-scoring with 23 points and eight rebounds.

Ruot Monyyong also had 12 points, five rebounds and three steals, Justin Bieker 11 points, five boards and three assists, and Bryton Hobbs 10 points despite 3/12 shooting.

GEELONG UNITED 88 (Forsyth 29, Gatlin 19, Herbert 14)

DANDENONG RANGERS 76 (Roberts 23, Monyyong 12, Bieker 11)

Knox Raiders (75) defeated Keilor Thunder (69)

Even without Keli Leaulepe, Knox Raiders continued their hold on top spot in the NBL1 South with the 75-69 win against Keilor Thunder.

Knox were back at home at the State Basketball Centre as the only team in the league to not lose more than one match this season, but it was always going to be tricky against the Thunder with Leaulepe on duty with the Australian Boomers in the Trans-Tasman Throwdown.

Keilor did manage to open up a six-point lead in the first quarter but by quarter-time the scores were all tied up at 19-19.

Knox began to pull away in the second term with 25 points to 16 on an efficient 11-14 shooting from the floor and as a result the Raiders were leading 44-35 at the half-time interval.

Keilor were able to respond in the third quarter and held the Raiders to just nine points on 4/20 shooting including Knox missing all seven of their three-point attempts.

As a result the Thunder were up by as much as five points early in the fourth quarter, but then the Raiders took over once again and this time it was enough to secure the eventual six-point victory.

As a result, Knox has now won three straight and remains in top place in the standings with a 7-1 record with Kobe Williamson top-scoring with 18 points to go with 14 rebounds and two assists.

Ade Murkey also contributed 15 points and two rebounds, Sunday Dech 12 points and seven boards, Brody Nunn 11 points and four assists, and Norvel Pelle eight points and 10 rebounds.

Keilor now sits on a 3-6 record unable to make it back-to-back victories for the first time this season despite Adetomi Ayilara finishing with 16 points and two rebounds.

Chris Harris added 13 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots, South East Melbourne Phoenix development player Daniel Foster 13 points, nine boards and nine assists, and Deng Dut 11 points and four assists.

KNOX RAIDERS 75 (Williamson 18, Murkey 15, Dech 12)

KEILOR THUNDER 69 (Ayilara 16, Foster 13, Harris 13)

North West Tasmania Thunder (71) lost to Nunawading Spectres (84)

The Nunawading Spectres made it the perfect weekend in Tasmania by completing the double on Saturday night with the 84-71 victory against the North West Tasmania Thunder.

Nunawading opened their trip to Tasmania on Friday night with the one-point win against the Hobart Chargers as the Thunder played host to them on Saturday at Elphin Sports Stadium.

North West Tasmania came into the match up trying to avoid a third consecutive defeat but Nunawading were the team that came out firing with 29 points to 13 in the opening quarter.

The lead for the Spectres got out to 19 points in the second quarter too and by half-time it was the visitors in control leading 48-33.

North West did try and mount a fightback in the third quarter but it wasn’t to be with Nunawading maintaining a double-digit lead most of the rest of the way on the way to the eventual 13-point victory.

The win gives the Spectres a pair of wins on the Apple Isle this weekend to improve them to a 5-4 record on the season with Brian Mack II delivering 22 points, eight rebounds and three assists.

Christian D'Angelo contributed 19 points, seven rebounds and three steals, Jack Gandolfo 14 points, two boards and two assists, Daniel Baxter nine points, 11 rebounds, two assists and two steals, and Joe Mutimer nine points, four boards, two assists and two steals.

North West now slip to a 3-6 record having lost their past three matches with Lachlan Barker finishing with 20 points and five rebounds while knocking down 4/5 from three-point territory.

Tyler Harris added 12 points and five rebounds, Kye Savage 10 points and two steals, and Archie Woodhill six points and 10 rebounds.

NORTH WEST TASMANIA THUNDER 71 (Barker 20, Harris 12, Savage 10)

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 84 (Mack II 22, D'Angelo 19, Gandolfo 14)

Ballarat Miners (78) lost to Melbourne Tigers (103)

Jack Purchase might have scored 32 points fewer than last Sunday but this time it was a winning outing for the Melbourne Tigers as they won 103-78 on the road to the Ballarat Miners.

Purchase scored a new single game scoring record last Sunday when he put up 55 points with 11 three-pointers but that was in a narrow loss for the Tigers away to the defending champion Eltham Wildcats.

They remained on the road on Saturday night taking on the losing grand finalists from last year, the Miners. Who were on their home floor at Selkirk Stadium.

Scores were all square by quarter-time at 24-24 with both teams combining to shoot 9/18 from behind the three-point line but in the second term the Tigers outscored the Miners 22 points to 16.

That was with Melbourne going 5/9 from downtown and Ballarat missing all five of their attempts and as a result the Tigers were leading 46-40 by half-time.

Melbourne then blew the game wide open in the third quarter with another 29 points to 12 on shooting 10/16 once again including making for 4/7 from behind the arc.

The Tigers then completed a 13-0 scoring run into the fourth quarter with their lead getting out to as much as 27 points before they scored the 25-point win.

The victory improves Melbourne to a 4-3 record on the season before taking on Frankston on Sunday with Tom Wilson delivering 29 points and four assists with 7/8 shooting from downtown.

Jack Purchase also had 23 points, nine rebounds and four blocks with 4/8 three-point shooting with Mason Gaze contributing 22 points, eight boards and four assists, and Michael Wearne 12 points and three assists.

The Miners are now 5-3 following the defeat and ahead of now hosting the Diamond Valley Eagles on Sunday.

Luke Rosendale top-scored for Ballarat with 22 points, six rebounds and two assists on 6/11 three-point shooting but the rest of his team only went 5/24 from long-range.

Ethan Fiegert contributed 15 points and two rebounds, Majok Majok 13 points and 12 boards, and Aiden Krause eight points, seven rebounds and four assists.

BALLARAT MINERS 78 (Rosendale 22, Fiegert 15, Majok 13)

MELBOURNE TIGERS 103 (Wilson 29, Purchase 23, Gaze 22)

Kilsyth Cobras (104) defeated Eltham Wildcats (75)

The Kilsyth Cobras shut down the big guns of the Eltham Wildcats even with Xavier Bledson scoring 34 points as they had too many weapons of their own for the 104-75 win.

The Cobras were back home at Kilsyth Sports Centre looking to bounce back from last Saturday's loss to the Casey Cavaliers while the defending champion Wildcats arrived having won three in-a-row.

It was a stunning start from Kilsyth with the home team outscoring Eltham 34 points to 15 in the first quarter on the back of shooting 11/19 from the floor with 4/6 from deep while the Wildcats managed to shoot just 4/19.

Even with Eltham outscoring Kilsyth by one in the second term, the Cobras were still leading 57-39 at half-time before they were able to push that lead out to as much as 27 in the third quarter, and 30 in the fourth.

Kilsyth went on to score the 29-point victory to improve to a 5-4 record on the season having shot 53 per cent from the floor and going 14/28 from three-point land while the Wildcats went 41 per cent overall and made 2/21 of their three-point attempts.

Khadim Sy finished with 25 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in the win for Kilsyth on 10/15 shooting from the field and 3/5 from deep while Corey Jeffs contributed 23 points, four assists and three rebounds.

Adrian Tomada added 15 points, six assists and four rebounds, Dillon Stith 15 points and seven boards, and Hamish McDonald eight points and seven rebounds.

Eltham are now 4-4 in their championship defence following the loss with Sam Whelan, Gabe Hadley and Zahn Agosta combining to shoot 0/14 from three-point range.

Xavier Bledson was the shining light for the Wildcats with 34 points, six rebounds and two steals on 14/25 shooting.

KILSYTH COBRAS 104 (Sy 25, Jeffs 23, Tomada 15, Stith 15)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 75 (Bledson 34, Agosta 10, McCarron 7, Hadley 7, Sykes 7)

Bendigo Braves (101) defeated Ringwood Hawks (100)

Harry Sealey scored to get the Ringwood Hawks to overtime but it was Charles Matthews with the winning shot in the extra period as the Bendigo Braves prevailed 101-100.

The Braves were back home at Red Energy Arena looking to win a fourth straight match as they hosted a Hawks team trying to get to a .500 record but doing it without Angus Glover.

Glover is with the Australian Boomers this week for the Trans-Tasman Throwdown but despite his absence it was Ringwood leading 21-17 by the end of the first quarter even with the teams combining to shoot 1/13 from downtown.

Ringwood again got out to a 13-point lead in the second quarter while still leading 52-46 at half-time before that lead was out to 11 once more in the third term before Bendigo were able to hit back with seven straight points.

The Hawks remained in control, though, still leading by eight in the fourth term until the Braves fired back with an 8-0 run to set up a thrilling finish.

Bendigo had got out to a four-point lead with two minutes remaining before Tom Carroll and Harry Sealey scored important buckets late for the Hawks to send the game into overtime when Charles Matthews attempted game winner for the Braves wouldn’t go.

Then in the extra five minutes, Tanner Krebs hit two crucial late free throws to give Ringwood a one-point lead with Bendigo having a timeout and one last chance to snatch the win.

That's exactly what they did when Matthews made up for missing at the end of regulation to make the walk off game winner for Bendigo as the home team secured the one-point win.

The Braves make it four straight wins as a result to improve to a 6-3 record with Matthews not only hitting the game winning shot, but he also produced 26 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals for the night.

Lual Diing added 22 points, 13 rebounds, two assists and two steals, Billy Smythe 15 points and four boards, and Justin Johnson 15 points, five rebounds and five assists.

Ringwood slip to a 3-5 record on the season as a result of the overtime defeat with Harry Sealey producing 23 points and six rebounds with Tom Carroll adding 19 points and five boards, and Jonathan Lawton 19 points, nine rebounds, six assists and five steals.

Tanner Krebs also ended up with 17 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, and Josh Tomasi 14 points, nine boards and two assists on 6/8 shooting from the floor.

Bendigo Braves 101 (Matthews 26, Diing 22, Smythe 15, Johnson 15)

Ringwood Hawks 100 (Sealey 23, Carroll 19, Lawton 19)

Casey Cavaliers (91) lost to Mount Gambier Pioneers (93)

The Casey Cavaliers came all the way back from 17 points down in the fourth quarter but the Mount Gambier Pioneers escaped with a 93-91 win thanks to an Akech Aliir offensive rebound and putback.

The Cavs were back home at Casey Stadium looking to maintain pace at the top of the standings as they hosted a Pioneers team looking to snap a two-game losing slide.

The scores were all square at 23-23 by the end of the first quarter before Mount Gambier were able to open up a narrow 51-45 lead by the half-time break.

The Pioneers then kept that momentum going with another 30 points to 21 in the third term and their lead got out to as much as 19 points when they completed a 12-0 scoring run.

It was still a 17-point lead early in the fourth period for the Pioneers, but the Cavaliers then threw everything at a fightback and they got all the way back level.

It was a Nate Roberts putbacks with just over a minute to play that saw Casey able to tie scores up before Akech Aliir drained a three-pointer to restore Mount Gambier to the three-point lead.

Hunter Marks responded with a triple of his own to bring Casey back level before Austin Shelley missed a layup for the Pioneers only for Aliir to grab the offensive rebound and put the ball back to put the visitors up two.

A prayer at the death from Tyler Robertson wouldn’t fall and in the end it was Mount Gambier securing the two-point victory to improve to a 6-3 record to avoid a third straight defeat.

On top of hitting the game winner, Aliir ended up with 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Pioneers with Austin Shelley adding 19 points, six boards and two assists.

Titus Robinson also had 19 points and six rebounds, Alex Mudronja 14 points, four assists and three rebounds, and Joe Palmer 12 points and three boards.

The Cavaliers are now 5-3 on the season following the defeat while Nate Roberts finished with 23 points, nine rebounds and two assists on 10/13 shooting from the floor.

Hunter Marks added 17 points and seven rebounds, Trendon Hankerson 16 points, seven boards and four assists, and Tyler Robertson 16 points, five rebounds, four assists and two blocks.

CASEY CAVALIERS 91 (Roberts 23, Marks 17, Hankerson 16, Robertson 16)

MOUNT GAMBIER PIONEERS 93 (Shelley 19, Aliir 19, Robinson 19)

Sandringham Sabres (103) lost to Waverley Falcons (104)

Robbie Heath delivered his best NBL1 South performance to lead the Waverley Falcons to the 104-103 win over the Sandringham Sabres in a high-scoring thriller.

The Sabres played host to the Falcons at Southern Basketball Stadium looking for a third consecutive win having started the season losing six straight as they hosted a Waverley outfit looking to snap a three-match losing skid.

Waverley started the better for a 10-point lead in the opening quarter but by quarter-time Sandringham had done well to get back within juts four points.

The Sabres then put up 34 points to 29 in the second term in a high quality affair with both teams combining to shoot 8/11 from behind the three-point arc.

By half-time it was Sandringham with the narrowest of leads at 55-54 before it was 27 points to 25 in the third frame again for the Sabres with them holding on to the 82-79 lead by three quarter-time.

No more than three points separated the teams throughout the fourth term either and with Elliott Brown giving Sandringham the three-point lead with two minutes to play, Robbie Heath stepped up with a huge three-pointer to level scores up.

Malik Meunier then also scored going to the basket for the Falcons to put them up two and they would eventually win by a point when Malith Machar was only able to go 1/2 at the foul line for Sandringham.

Waverley's win improves them to a 4-4 record on the season as they avoided a fourth straight defeat on the back of shooting 48 per cent from the floor and going 13/29 from the land of plenty.

Robbie Heath has made the move from the Central Coast Crusaders last year in the NBL1 East to return to the South where he previously played with the Ringwood Hawks, and he delivered 30 points, five rebounds and five assists on 4/8 three-point shooting and 10/12 at the stripe for Waverley.

Malik Meunier also had 17 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for the Falcons, Mason Forbes 17 points and 11 boards, Madut Akec 22 points and four rebounds, and Bennie Lewis 12 points, three boards and three steals.

Sandringham are now 2-7 on the season as a result of the loss where they shot 52 per cent from the field but went just 6/23 from behind the three-point line.

Despite missing that late foul shot, Malith Machar finished with 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Sabres with CJ Asuncion-Byrd adding 20 points and three steals, Tom Koppens 16 points and 11 rebounds, Elliott Brown 15 points and three boards, and Kaylan Kitto 11 points and three rebounds.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 103 (Machar 23, Asuncion-Byrd 20, Koppens 16)

WAVERLEY FALCONS 104 (Heath 30, Akec 22, Forbes 17, Meunier 17)