NBL1 South Recap | Saturday Men's Round 13

Sydney Kings NBL championship winning hero DJ Vasiljevic put his superhero cape back on to hit the game winner as time expired for the Diamond Valley Eagles upon his return from NBA Summer League on Saturday night.

That was part of the NBL1 South Saturday night action for Round 13 of the 2022 season which included wins as well for the Dandenong Rangers, Frankston Blues, Hobart Chargers, Kilsyth Cobras, North West Tasmania Thunder, Bendigo Braves and Sandringham Sabres.

The Hobart Chargers kept their hold on top spot with a strong start and finish to beat the Geelong Supercats on the road 94-73 on Saturday night.

AJ Harris delivered 25 points with four three-pointers for Hobart with Harry Froling adding 22 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists. Gabe Hadley scored 16 points for Geelong, Isaac Turner 15 and Demarcus Gatlin 13.

Shea Ili put together a commanding performance to lead the Sandringham Sabres to a 93-85 victory against the Casey Cavaliers.

Ili finished with 33 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals while Nick Gabsch put up 26 points with six triples. Jordan Bell top-scored for Casey with 25 points to go with 15 rebounds.

Igor Hadziomerovic produced a terrific all-round performance to lead the Frankston Blues to a hard earned 86-82 win at home to the Knox Raiders.

Hadziomerovic finished the night with 25 points, five rebounds and three steals with Lachlan Barker adding 21 points, six rebounds and three assists. Alex Robinson put up 26 points, eight rebounds and six steals for the Raiders.

The Bendigo Braves hit the road and were able to continue their impressive run of form beating the Nunawading Spectres 92-79.

Kuany Kuany finished with 26 points in the win for the Braves with Sidy Djitte adding 16 points and 11 rebounds. CJ Asuncion-Byrd top-scored for Nunawading with 21 points.

The Dandenong Rangers held out the fast finishing Ringwood Hawks for a 100-95 Saturday night victory also in the NBL1 South.

Deng Puoch put up 26 points for Dandenong, Jacob Davison 21 and Lawson Eales 18. Tim Guers finished with 30 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals for Ringwood.

It was then time for DJ Vasiljevic to mark his return from NBA Summer League in a fashion that only he could. 

With 0.8 seconds left on the clock and his Diamond Valley Eagles level with the Keilor Thunder away from home, Vasiljevic broke free of his defender, caught the inbounds pass and immediately got the shot off and it never looked like missing to give Diamond Valley the 79-76 win.

Vasiljevic ended up with 37 points and 14 rebounds with five three-pointers on the night. Jacob Lampkin finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds for Keilor.

The Kilsyth Cobras were more emphatic with the way they delivered an 88-62 win against the Eltham Wildcats at home on Saturday night.

Corey Jeffs finished with 21 points for Kilsyth, Deng Deng 11 and Ben Ursich 11. Owen Foxwell still had 25 points, six rebounds and four steals despite the loss for Eltham.

It was another tight tussle at The Ice House and the North West Tasmania Thunder shocked the Mount Gambier Pioneers with the 89-86 victory.

Sean Macdonald finished with 19 points for North West, Matt Kenyon 18, Jacob Furphy 18 and Fabijan Krslovic 15. Michael Harris did all he could to lift the Pioneers with 37 points.

Round 13 in the NBL1 South will wrap up on Sunday afternoon with the Ballarat Miners at home to the North West Tasmania Thunder while the Bendigo Braves take on the Hobart Chargers, Diamond Valley Eagles battle the Dandenong Rangers, and the Melbourne Tigers face the Geelong Supercats.

The Ringwood Hawks also play host to the Sandringham Sabres and the Waverley Falcons are at home to the Casey Cavaliers.

NBL1 SOUTH – 2022 MEN'S SEASON
ROUND 13 – SATURDAY NIGHT

DANDENONG RANGERS 100 defeated RINGWOOD HAWKS 95

The Dandenong Rangers started on fire and then held out the Ringwood Hawks late for the five-point home win on Saturday night.

The Rangers played host to the Hawks at Dandenong Basketball Stadium in Round 13 of the NBL1 South with Dandenong delivering a scorching start to race out to an 18-point lead, and to be up 28-12 by the end of one.

Ringwood was able to work back into the contest in the second quarter with a 10-0 run and to end up outscoring Dandenong 32 points to 24 to go into half-time only trailing by eight points.

The Rangers were able to pull away again in the third quarter to lead by 18 points but the Hawks fired back and by three quarter-time it was just a nine-point ball game.

Dandenong again went up double-figures for much of the fourth quarter and even though Ringwood kept fighting to make things interesting, the Rangers held on for the five-point win.

As a result of the victory, the Rangers now sit on a 5-12 record ahead of a road game with the Diamond Valley Eagles on Sunday. The Hawks are 9-8 following the loss before hosting the Sandringham Sabres on Sunday.

Deng Puoch finished the night with 26 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals on 9/18 shooting with Jacob Davison contributing 21 points and three boards.

Lawson Eales contributed 18 points and six rebounds while Mason Perry added 10 points and four boards, Calvin Enge nine points and three rebounds, and Ellis Biggar six points, four boards, three blocks, two assists and two steals.

Tim Guers did all he could try and lift Ringwood with 30 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals on 4/9 shooting from downtown.

Jack Roberts added 22 points and six rebounds, Emmett Naar 17 points, four rebounds, four steals and three assists, and Kyle Daggett 14 points.

 

FRANKSTON BLUES 86 defeated KNOX RAIDERS 82

The Knox Raiders started strongly but the Frankston Blues ended up overrunning them for the eventual four-point win on their home court on Saturday night.

The Blues were back home at Frankston Basketball Stadium as part of Round 13 in the NBL1 South but it was the Raiders who started well with 31 points to 23 in the opening term.

Knox continued on with that momentum with the lead getting out to 14 points during the second quarter as well and still by half-time the visitors were leading 49-42.

However, Frankston were able to turn things around in the third period with 23 points to 14 to grab the lead, and then to lead by as much as 10 before holding off the late Knox charge to win 86-82.

As a result of the win, the Blues improve to an 11-7 record on the season. The Raiders are now 9-9 following the loss.

Former NBL guard Igor Hadziomerovic was the star of the evening for Frankston with 25 points, five rebounds and three assists while shooting an efficient 9/13 from the floor.

Lachlan Barker added 21 points, six rebounds and three assists, Adrio Bailey 17 points and eight boards, and Dillon Stith eight points and 10 rebounds.

Alex Robinson did all he could to try and lift the Raiders with 26 points, eight rebounds, six steals and three assists with Deng Acouth contributing 15 points, 17 boards, four blocks and two assists.

Reuben Te Rangi also contributed 13 points, five rebounds and four assists, Jacob Foy seven points and two assists, and Austin Shelley seven points.

 

GEELONG SUPERCATS 73 lost to HOBART CHARGERS 94

The Hobart Chargers maintained their hold on top spot in the NBL1 South with a strong 21-point road victory against the Geelong Supercats on Saturday night.

The Geelong Arena is never an easy place for an opposition team to go in and come away with the win, but the league-leading Chargers were able to achieve that in impressive fashion as part of Round 13 in the NBL1 South.

Hobart started the game on fire and were able to go on a 9-0 run during the first quarter to end up being on top 31-18 by the end of the one.

Geelong were able to stem the tide in the second quarter and outscored Hobart 19 points to 16, but still the Chargers were in control 47-37 at the major break.

Things remained tight through the third period with Hobart putting up 23 points to Geelong's 22, but then the Chargers rammed home their dominance again in the last term with 24 points to 14.

That saw Hobart lead by as much as 24 points before going on to win 94-73 to improve to 15-3 on the season ahead of playing the Bendigo Braves on Sunday. The Supercats are now 10-7 before playing away to the Melbourne Tigers also on Sunday.

The Chargers racked up 51 rebounds to 33 for the game while shooting 50.0 per cent from the field and 41.7 from deep opposed to 35.8 for the Supercats from the floor and 31.4 from beyond the arc.

AJ Harris delivered 25 points, three assists and three steals for Hobart while knocking down 4/6 from three-point territory.

Harry Froling had another standout performance made up of 22 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists with Jamar Sandifer contributing 15 points, five boards, three assists and two steals, and Ole Angerstein 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Gabe Hadley ended up top-scoring for Geelong with 16 points, four rebounds and two assists while Isaac Turner finished with 15 points and two assists, Demarcus Gatlin 13 points and five assists, and Jack Terrill nine points, four boards and three assists.

 

KEILOR THUNDER 76 lost to DIAMOND VALLEY EAGLES 79

DJ Vasiljevic sure doesn’t like slowly settling back in as he grabbed the spotlight once more on Saturday night by hitting a stunning game winner for the Diamond Valley Eagles against the Keilor Thunder.

After starring in the NBL championship with the Sydney Kings, Vasiljevic has returned to Diamond Valley this season but he recently played at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas before coming back for Saturday night's clash.

The Eagles took on the Thunder at Keilor Stadium and it was a tight tussle most of the way.

Keilor led early by five points before Diamond Valley turned the tide with a 7-0 run to end up leading 26-18 by quarter-time.

The Eagles stretched that lead to double-figures in the second quarter but the Thunder were able to work back into the contest and by half-time they only trailed by three points.

Diamond Valley grabbed the momentum for most of the second half and even led by as much as 12 points in the fourth quarter, but Keilor wasn’t going away and in the end scores were all square with 0.8 seconds left on the clock.

Coming out of a timeout, Diamond Valley had possession and the chance to break the 76-76 deadlock.

Ngor Manyang took the inbounds pass and Vasiljevic was able to break free of his defender, run to the corner, grab the pass from Manyang, rise up and immediately release the shot and it never once looked like missing.

It was all net and Vasiljevic delivered the type of big shot in the big moment that is becoming his trademark and Diamond Valley claimed the 79-76 victory.

As a result of the win, Diamond Valley improves to an 8-10 record on the season before hosting the Dandenong Rangers on Sunday. Keilor is now 6-12 following the loss.

It was a standout return performance for Diamond Valley from DJ Vasiljevic as he finished with 37 points, 14 rebounds, three steals and two assists while nailing 5/9 from downtown.

Matt Reynolds added 11 points and four assists, Ben Allen nine points and four assists, BJ Symons seven points and six rebounds, and Joel Capetola seven points and three boards.

Jacob Lampkin ended up top-scoring for Keilor with 19 points and 12 rebounds while Tyler Kidd contributed 17 points, three assists and three steals, Rhyss Lewis 15 points and four blocks, and Kian Dennis eight points, four boards and four assists.

 

KILSYTH COBRAS 88 defeated ELTHAM WILDCATS 62

The Kilsyth Cobras delivered an emphatic performance to beat the Eltham Wildcats by 26 points at home on Saturday night.

The Cobras were at home to the Wildcats at Kilsyth Sports Centre as part of Round 13 in the NBL1 South with the home team starting impressively to lead 25-10 already by quarter-time.

Kilsyth continued on with that momentum in the second quarter by opening up a lead as big as 28 points before they went into the half-time break on top 51-24.

That set up the eventual 88-62 win for the Cobras which saw them improve to a 12-6 record on the season while Eltham is now 4-13 following the loss.

Kilsyth racked up 45 rebounds to 35 for the night while the shooting of the Cobras was tremendous as they went 52.3 per cent from the field and knocked down 15/29 at 51.7 per cent from three-point territory.

In contrast, Eltham went at 34.8 per cent from the floor and 4/28 at 14.3 per cent from long-range.

Corey Jeffs put up 21 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals while knocking down 4/7 from three-point land.

Deng Deng added 11 points and five rebounds for Eltham, Ben Ursich 11 points, five boards and four steals, Mitchell Dielemans nine points and two assists, and Jamie Ahale nine points and three rebounds.

Despite the heavy defeat, Owen Foxwell had a good night for Eltham delivering 25 points, six rebounds, four steals and two assists.

Mitch Dance added 15 points and five rebounds for the Wildcats, Sam Short seven points and seven boards, and Tom O'Connor six points and three rebounds.

 

MOUNT GAMBIER PIONEERS 86 lost to NORTH WEST TASMANIA THUNDER 89 

The dramatic night of NBL1 South action continued on Saturday night at The Ice House.

The Mount Gambier Pioneers played host to the North West Tasmania Thunder and the two teams put on a show from the outset combining for 57 opening quarter points, with the visitors leading 30-27.

North West built on that momentum during the second period to end up leading by as much as 14 points and still by half-time they were on top 54-44.

However, Mount Gambier shot their way back into the contest during the third quarter going on a 9-0 run and by three quarter-time it was just a two-point ball game in favour of the Thunder.

North West were then able to take back control in the fourth term with a 7-0 run to lead by nine and end up holding out the Pioneers on their home court to win 89-86.

It was the biggest win of the season for the Thunder who improve to a 9-9 record as a result ahead of Sunday's clash with the Ballarat Miners. The Pioneers are now 12-5 following the loss.

Sean Macdonald ended the evening with 19 points, three steals, two assists and two rebounds for North West while connecting on 4/8 from three-point land.

Matt Kenyon also had 18 points, 11 rebounds and four assists for the Thunder while Fabijan Krslovic contributed 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists, and Jacob Furphy 18 points, three boards, two assists and two steals.

Michael Harris had a huge performance for Mount Gambier despite the loss with 37 points and five rebounds while draining 9/15 from beyond the arc.

Tom Kubank added 14 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, Jordan Rawls 12 points and seven boards, and Nick Marshall 11 points, five rebounds and four assists.

 

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 79 lost to BENDIGO BRAVES 92

The Bendigo Braves continued to build some significant momentum heading towards the end of the NBL1 South season with a 13-point win against the Nunawading Spectres.

The Spectres played host to the Braves on Saturday night at Nunawading Basketball Centre and it was the home team who got the better of the opening with an 11-0 run in the first quarter to end up leading 25-19 by quarter-time.

Nunawading was able to stretch that lead out to nine points in the second term but Bendigo was able to work their way on top with nine straight points of their own to grab the one-point advantage by the half-time break.

Bendigo really rammed home their advantage during the third quarter by going on a 12-0 run and their lead was out to as much as 24 points as they set up the match-winning advantage.

From there the Braves went on to win 92-79 to improve to an 11-6 record on the season ahead of being at home to the Hobart Chargers on Sunday. The Spectres fall to 6-11 following the defeat.

Bendigo pulled down 40 rebounds to 26 for the night while shooting a phenomenal 56.1 per cent from the floor opposed to 45.7 from Nunawading.

Kuany Kuany finished the night with 26 points, four rebounds and three assists for Bendigo on 10/16 shooting from the field with Sidy Djitte contributing 16 points and 11 boards.

Luke Rosendale added 12 points and five rebounds, Isaac Murphy 10 points, and Jake Lloyd 10 points and eight boards.

CJ Asuncion-Byrd top-scored for Nunawading with 21 points and five rebounds with Jack Gandolfo adding 12 points and four assists, Daniel Baxter nine points and seven rebounds, Kingsley Box eight points and four boards, and Remo Simankevicius eight points and three rebounds.

 

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 93 defeated CASEY CAVALIERS 85

Shea Ili was the inspiration for Sandringham Sabres' eight-point win at home against the Casey Cavaliers on Saturday night.

Sandringham were back home at Southern Basketball Stadium as part of Round 13 in the NBL1 South but it was the Cavaliers who made a flying start on the road to put up 29 points to 16 in a standout opening quarter.

The lead for the Cavs blew out to as much as 16 points in the second quarter as well but the Sabres were able to turn the tide and put together a run of 14 straight points to grab the lead, and head into half-time on top 45-42.

It remained a tight game for most of the second half until Sandringham were able to finish strongly late with eight straight points to end up winning by that margin, 93-85.

The victory improves the Sabres to an 11-6 record on the season ahead of a road clash with the Ringwood Hawks on Sunday while the Cavaliers are now 5-12 before also playing away to the Waverley Falcons on Sunday.

Fresh off his brilliant NBL season with Melbourne United, Shea Ili is gearing up for another big campaign in #NBL23 by putting together a performance made up of 33 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals in the win for the Sabres.

Nick Gabsch added 26 points with six three-pointers for Sandringham while Dave Barlow finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks, three steals and two assists.

Jordan Bell put up 25 points and 15 rebounds for Casey with Michael McInnes adding 12 points, Davo Hickey 12 points and nine rebounds, Matt Donlan 11 points and three boards, Mitchell Riggs nine points and two assists, and Nathan Frost eight points and six rebounds.