Central Recap | First Nations Round Saturday

By Tristan Prentice for NBL1.com.au

Feature images supplied via NBL1.com.au /  Melissa Belanic | @justbphotoau

Round 13 of the Mitsubishi Motors NBL1 Central continued with four key matches in the makeup of the final five as teams at the top grabbed wins to secure their positions further heading into the tumultuous Sunday group of fixtures - but one men’s game has thrown things out heading into the rest of the weekend… 

Here are the results of Saturday’s games:

Simons soars again as Eagles swoop over Tigers             

Another strong individual performance from Sam Simons saw the Forestville Eagles swoop over the Southern Tigers 82-58 at the Nest at the State Basketball Centre. 

The Tigers kept toe-to-toe early as all players shared the points around to make it 17-17 a piece but a quick mini-run of 8-0 led by Sam Simons had the Eagles up 25-17 as she beat the buzzer for quarter time off an offensive rebound. 

The Eagles took control with a 6-0 run to start the second but some nice moves from the likes of McKenzie Johnston (Seven points and rebounds with six assists) and Iva Belosevic (14 points and 11 rebounds) kept the Tigers in touch.

They clawed their way back further through Tara Dodman (10 points, eight rebounds and three assists) bullocking her way in the block and Annie Bartsch (19 points and three rebounds) stealing and scoring in transition to make it 38-31.

The pair of Simons sizzled at the back end of the second however to give the Eagles the lead 51-32 - Sam Simons doing her damage with 21 in the first half. 

Returning with a vengeance in her first game back from injury Maddy Freer (Eight points) returned to the fold with some handy points in the third to keep the lead in her teams favour 66-48 with one to play. 

The Tigers stayed in contact with their opponents through their import duo feeding each other but the Eagles as a flying unit flew away in the finish to secure another win to retake top of the table for now.

Sam Simons did a majority of her damage in the first half but led the flock with 28 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and steals.

       

FORESTVILLE EAGLES 82 (S Simons 28, King 15, M Freer 8)

SOUTHERN TIGERS 58 (Bartsch 19, Belosevic 14, Dodman 10)

 

Levicki leads Bearcats to double take of weekend over Lions             

The West Adelaide Bearcats secured the double header weekend and kept their top of the table chances alive with a comprehensive 94-61 win over the Central Districts Lions at the Bearcat Cave. 

The Lions looked locked in early thanks to some scintillating scoring from Sydney Wright (21 points and three assists) as she grabbed 12 for the opening term but right from the start Olivia Levicki once again proved a match up too difficult to contain. The Lions hung in 23-26 taking the lead through some Tiahna Sears (17 points and 11 rebounds) cuts through the key and some Claire Maree-Hunt magic to keep things interesting. 

The Bearcats however really opened things up from there first of all pouncing on all loose balls through Krystal Thompson (Nine points, ten rebounds, four assists and steals) and Ashlee Strawbridge (Nine points and three rebounds) to open up a 21-8 quarter and take the lead by 10 at the half 44-34. 

They were never headed from there with Levicki (26 points and 12 rebounds with two blocks) and a highly efficient Sienna Lehmann (17 points at 70 percent in 19 minutes) keeping points ticking over as with a double header this weekend the Lions shelved their weapons as the Bearcats took control and the double for their two nights of action.

A ladder leading deciding match and split against the Sturt Sabres awaits the Red and Black - find out who will finish where and be in the box seat for home advantage next Saturday 6:00pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.    

WEST ADELAIDE BEARCATS 94 (Levicki 26, Lehmann 17, Chloe Hodges 11)

CENTRAL DISTRICTS LIONS 61 (Wright 21, Sears 17, Lucas 11)

Double trouble DJ detaches Eagles from Tigers in third             

The DJ’s combined to detach the Forestville Eagles from the Southern Tigers in the third term in rhythmic fashion 105-71 at the Nest at the State Basketball Centre. 

The Eagles took the mini-lead midway through the term as Dejan Vasiljevic regained some touch after being overseas before their previous match feeding the other DJ and Mays to give the homeside the double digit lead. Sunday Bol (Nine points, six rebounds and four assists) for the Tigers had other ideas as he cruised twice in breakneck speed down the floor with ball in hand to get it back to single digits with two high class finishes. The Eagles restored a double figure lead 29-19 at the first change. 

An 8-2 start to the second saw the Eagles get out further but Nic Logan (23 points with five triples and four rebounds with three steals) back in form and firing lifted the Tigers from outside the perimeter. The effort dropping from the homeside was discombobulating as the Tigers saved a ball from out of bounds by Jarvis Doles who found Jarvis Summers with the no look then found an empty keyway with Harry Morris (10 points and five assists) for the monster two handed slam 39-28.

Adam Doyle (10 points and nine assists) got control back quickly for the Eagles, feeding everyone and taking the point duties to regain composure 47-30. DJ continued to wreak havoc in the paint in his mismatches to help the homeside take the handy lead with Owen Hulland beating the halftime hooter 56-32. 

The Eagles flew even higher from there as they showed their class finding each other in transition with DJ dropping his 22 points for the match and Vasiljevic (19 points and six assists) finding a flying Starling for the and1 of the glass 71-35. The 15-3 run killed off any chance of the Tigers making a swing at the top of the table team. 

With the margin getting out to an unassailable lead the Tigers took pride for the remaining fifteen minutes as the Eagles rested their stars for their top of the table clash Sunday at the Den.

   

We’ve waited for one versus two with both coming off very different results - it all starts today at 3:15pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.  

FORESTVILLE EAGLES 105 (D Johnson 22, Vasiljevic 19, Mays 16)

SOUTHERN TIGERS 71 (Logan 23, Morris 10, Bol 9)

 

Bearcats bear claws to down Lions in bounce back win              

The West Adelaide Bearcats split their weekend 1-1 bearing their claws at their best as they downed the Central Districts Lions 81-68 at the Bearcat Cave.  

A game historically promised a high scoring affair between the two but after a fast paced start the Lions lead 17-24 at the first change thanks to the duo of Koen Sapwell (22 points) and Jack Stanwix (13 points, six assists and four rebounds) causing the homeside all sorts of problems.

Many wondered if the Bearcats were capable of grinding a game rather than relying on its lifeblood of the three point line and with a point to prove - stopped the Lions in their tracks while finding enough points themselves. The game turned into a finals like contest as things slowed down in pace and the only one hitting the scoreboard was “the one” himself in Keanu Rasmussen. 

The Bearcats making their point pulled off a 19-4 quarter keeping the Lions to their lowest quarter score since 2023 against the Sturt Sabres early in the season. It resulted in a slender lead of 36-28 at the main change. 

Both teams went head to head putting their head down and driving at each other's defence as the game turned physical but every time the Lions made a mini-run - the Bearcats desperate to make up for a disappointing loss the previous night answered. Jacob Tryon (12 points, five rebounds, three blocks and two assists) was deterring anything coming into the paint and Rasmussen did as he pleased, breaking open lanes and making the toughest of shots as he sparkled in the spotlight finishing again with a slam off the crossover on Kalani.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by NBL1 (@nbl1)

In the final term after making some pushes at the lead - the Lions eventually conceded to the insatiably hungry West Adelaide led by Rasmussen and their Captain Hamish Staude (Three points, 10 rebounds and three assists) team to bring victory to the red and black and give them outright fifth place on the ladder for now.

Rasmussen from start to finish dominated all with 29 points, 16 rebounds, three assists and two steals putting on one of the season’s best all-round performances either end of the floor.

        

The Bearcats now hold fifth by one game from the rest - Find out if they can hold their current position when they take on contenders for their position on the leaderboard next Saturday 8:00pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.    

WEST ADELAIDE BEARCATS 81 (Rasmussen 29, Huefner 21, Mayen 12)

CENTRAL DISTRICTS LIONS 68 (Koen Sapwell 22, Stanwix 13, Abogidi, Jewell, M Manyang 8)        

Watch the NBL1 Live & Free on NBL1.com.au, NBL1 App and Kayo Sports Freebies.