NBL1 South Round 3 Saturday Men’s Recap

Catch all the action from Saturday night's full slate of games in the NBL1 Men's competition right here.

Geelong Supercats 81 dev Waverley Falcons 79
The Geelong Supercats have kept its unbeaten start to the season intact, beating the Waverley Falcons in front of their home fans.
The Falcons got out to an early lead, opening up a six-point advantage in the first quarter.
Durrell Mcdonald was aggressive, scoring 18 points for Waverley, however the tide of the game began to shift Geelong’s way in the second term.
The Supercats closed the gap to one point heading into the main break thanks in part to some outside shooting and strong work on the glass.
Geelong’s persistence would ultimately pay off in the second half, as the Supercats took the lead late in the third term and held onto it for the remainder of the game.
Issac Turner continued his strong start to the season for Geelong, scoring 17 points, while his teammate Gabriel Hadley scorched the net from the outside, connecting on five three-pointers in the Supercats’ victory.

Frankston Blues 78 def by North West Tasmania Thunder 86
The North West Tasmania Thunder have gotten back in the win column, beating the Frankston Blues on the road on Saturday evening.
Frankston were seldom able to take or hold onto the lead, with turnovers a major issue for the Blues (17 on the evening).
Frankston didn’t ever give up despite trailing for much of the contest, with the likes of Dillon Stith (18 points, 11 rebounds), Lachlan Barker (18 points, seven rebounds) and David Anderson (15 points, nine rebounds) keeping the side in the game.
However, no matter how hard the Blues pushed, the Thunder held strong, maintaining its lead for the entire second half and leading by as many as 18 points in the fourth quarter.
Joseph Chilcott led North West Tasmania in scoring, tallying 19 points.
Chilcott was one of five Thunder players who scored in double digits.

Knox Raiders 78 def Albury Wodonga Bandits 73
The Knox Raiders have displayed some terrific resilience and a strong ability to get to the free-throw line in its come-from-behind victory over the Albury Wodonga Bandits.
The Bandits led for much of the game and had a hot start to thank for it.
Albury Wodonga stretched its lead to 12 points in the first term thanks in part to some aggressive play inside the arc.
Knox were able to close the gap, taking the leading heading into halftime as the Bandits' struggles from behind the three-point line were on full display.
Albury Wodonga connected on only a pair of its 23 long-range shots for the evening.
Despite these struggles, the Bandits re-took the lead in the third term and held it until mid-way through the final quarter.
It was then that the disparity at the free-throw line reared its head.
Knox’s continued attack on the inside led to a parade towards the free-throw line all game, which would ultimately lead to the Raiders victory.
Knox connected on 23 of its 30 attempts from the foul line, which was equal to the amount of makes the Raiders had from the field all game.
Benjamin Ayre top scored for the Raiders, finishing the contest with 20 points, 10 of which came from the charity stripe.

Ballarat Miners 80 def by Bendigo Braves 85
In one of the wildest games so far this NBL1 season, the Bendigo Braves have outlasted the Ballarat Miners on the road in overtime.
It was a back and forth opening term of action before Bendigo but together a near perfect second quarter.
Led by a dominant interior performance from Ray Turner (27 points, 10 rebounds), the Braves outscored the Miners 30-8 leading into the main break.
Bendigo led by as many as 24 points in the contest before Ballarat slowly started to chip away at the lead.
The Miners reduced the deficit to 14 points going into the final term before charging towards the final whistle.
William Hickey impressed for Ballarat, scoring 27 points and pulling in 13 rebounds, while Sam Short hit a pair of clutch three-pointers in his Miners season debut to tie the game in the closing seconds.
Ballarat would have one final chance to win in regulation, however Hickey’s three pointer was off-line and the game headed into overtime.
It was in overtime that the Braves were able to regain control of the contest, locking down Ballarat’s weapons to secure the five-point victory.   

Diamond Valley Eagles 97 def Melbourne Tigers 73
The Diamond Valley Eagles have secured a comfortable win in front of its home fans against the Melbourne Tigers.
The Eagles never trailed, opening up a 20-14 first quarter advantage.
Blacio Owili was dominant on the interior for Diamond Valley, scoring 23 points while hitting on 10 of his 11 attempts.
The Eagles lead stretched out to 19 points going into halftime, however the Tigers kept fighting, chipping away at the margin in the third term.
Anthony Karabatsos led Melbourne in scoring with 18 points while Felix von Hofe put up 17 points, however it was not enough to overcome the Eagles, as they erased all doubt of the result in the final term, outscoring the Tigers 29-18.

Eltham Wildcats 74 def Nunawading Spectres 69
The Eltham Wildcats have won its first game of the season, beating the undefeated Nunawading Spectres at home on Saturday evening.
The game was close from the opening tip, with both sides trading leads across the first two terms.
Nunawading were able to pull ahead in the third quarter thanks to a well-rounded offensive contribution from the whole team.
The lead would however not last the length of the contest, as Eltham stormed home to take the victory.
The Wildcats were led by Adam Doyle, who finished with 26 points.
Kilsyth Cobras 86 def Hobart Chargers 76
The Kilsyth Cobras have held on to win in front of its home fans, beating the Hobart Chargers in an entertaining contest.
The Cobras were able to get on top early thanks to some sweet outside shooting, however the Chargers refused to back down.
Led by Elijah Pawson (20 points, four three-pointers), Hobart took back the lead going into half time.
It was after the main break that Kilsyth took its shooting to another level, overtaking the Chargers and leading by as many as 17 points.
The Cobras connected on 14 of its 28 attempts from behind the arc, with nine of which coming from Ben Ursich and Corey Jeffs (three and six respectively).
While Hobart were able to chip away at the lead in the final term, it was too little, too late.

Mt Gambier Pioneers 97 def Ringwood Hawks 93
The Mt Gambier Pioneers have handed the Ringwood Hawks its second consecutive loss at home on Saturday evening.
It was a high-scoring, neck-in-neck contest, with both sides showing their hunger to secure the victory.
After a close first half, it looked as though the Pioneers were going to run away with the game in the third term, which saw the side extend its lead to 14 points.
The Hawks however had other ideas.
Led by a pair of massive scoring games from Jack Barry (32 points) and Mattew Fennell (28 points) the Hawks closed the gap, tying the scores in the final minute of the contest.
Matthew Snow had an opportunity to give Ringwood its first lead of the second half with only second remaining, however missed the second of his two free-throws, which opened the door for Mt Gambier’s Nick Marshall, who scored to give the Pioneers the lead back, ultimately leading to the victory.