NBL1 South Round 15 Sunday Men’s Recap

Catch up on all the excitement from a gameday filled with ladder-altering action in the NBL1 South men's competition.

Bendigo Braves 84 def Ballarat Miners 71
The Braves have snapped Ballarat’s five game winning streak, beating the Miners in Bendigo.
The Braves led for all 40 minutes, taking control of the game after a strong first half defensively.
Bendigo limited the visitors to just 32 points across the first 20 minutes of action, while scoring 51 points of its own.
Although Ballarat put together a better showing in the second half, Ray Turner (32 points, 19 rebounds) ensured the Braves would be coming away from the game with the win.
Turner dominated a Miners front line missing shot-blocking force Deng Acouth.
Jock Perry (19 points, seven rebounds) did his best to take Turner away from the hoop on defense, connecting on five of his seven three-point attempts, however Bendigo ultimately proved too good.
Ballarat and Bendigo will remain in eighth and ninth respectively on the ladder following the contest.

Waverley Falcons 89 def Ringwood Hawks 82
The Ringwood Hawks have dropped its second game of the weekend, this time going down in a hard fought game against Waverley.
Ringwood closed a back-and-forth first term with a six point lead thanks to a buzzer-beating triple from CJ Asuncian-Byrd (29 points).
That would prove to be the largest lead of the game for the Hawks, as Waverley turned the tables on the visitors late in the second quarter, going on a 16-3 run to take an eight-point lead into half-time.
Led by a steady performance from Dexter Kernich-Drew (23 points, six assists, five rebounds), the Falcons never trailed in the second half, leading by as many as 12 points before having to fight off a spirited comeback effort from Ringwood.
The Hawks cut the lead to a single point late multiple times in the final term, however Waverley held firm, pushing its lead back out to a comfortable margin time and time again before ending the game with the seven-point victory.
The win propels the Falcons into the top four of the competition ladder.

Sandringham Sabres 73 def by Frankston Blues 91
Sandringham’s league-worst 11-game losing streak rose to 12 on Sunday afternoon following the side’s loss to Frankston.
While the game remained close for much of the contest, the Sabres never really looked threatening, lacking a third scoring option without Kuany Kuany.
Sam McDaniel (25 points, 11 rebounds) and Preston Bungei (19 points, nine rebounds) did their best to keep Sandringham within reach of taking the lead, however the Blues composure was good enough to hold the home side at bay.
Dillon Stith (22 points, 11 rebounds) led Franskton in scoring, while Igor Hadziomerovic (18 points), David Andersen (15 points) and Alister MacDonald (13 points) all helped keep the Sabres guessing on offense.
After trailing by double-digits for most of the second half, Sandringham drew within seven points of the Blues in the final term, causing some thoughts that there could be an upset on the cards, however it was not to be.
The Blues closed the game on a 21-10 run to secure the win and move into a top-two spot on the ladder.

Nunawading Spectres 85 def Geelong Supercats 83
In perhaps the most exciting game of the round, the Nunawading Spectres have won a crucial game for their finals prospects, overcoming a game Geelong side at The Graveyard.
The Supercats held the advantage for the majority of the first half thanks to the hot hand of Isaac Turner (22 points).
Turner scored 17 points, including a quartet of three-pointers, in the first half, helping Geelong take a five-point lead into the main break.
It was in the second half however that Nunawading kicked into gear, scoring efficiently and playing tough defense.
Five Spectres scored in double-figures, led by Tom Wright (22 points, six assists), who stepped up to make the biggest basket of the game.
With just under one minute remaining and the scores tied thanks to a Shea Ili (10 points) three-pointer, Wright took it upon himself to win the game for Nunawading.
Taking a hand-off on the left wing, Wright slashed into the paint, shook his defender with a fake spin, before connecting with a soft layup to take a two-point lead.
The Supercats had a pair of opportunities to answer Wright’s heroics, however Ili failed to connect on his layup, before George Blagojevic (10 points, nine rebounds) threw up a final wayward three-point attempt, sealing the win for the Spectres.
The win keeps Nunawading’s hopes of a finals berth alive.

Picture: Rachel Louise Photography