NBL1 South Round 6 Saturday Men’s Recap

Catch up on all the action from a big night of basketball in the NBL1 South Men's competition.

Geelong Supercats 72 def by Frankston Blues 91
In a battle of top four teams, the Frankston Blues have gone on the road to defeat the Geelong Supercats.
It was Geelong which started the game hot, racing out to an early 14-4 lead after some hot shooting.
Supercats duo Isaac Turner and Gabriel Hadley each hit a pair of three-pointers in the opening minutes to set the tone for the game, however that did not rattle the Blues, which quickly pushed its way back into the game.
Frankston closed the quarter on a 13-1 run to take a six point lead into the first break.
The Blues would lead for the remainder of the game, answering every question put to it by Geelong.
Lachlan Barker led the way for Frankston, scoring 26 points, while Dillon Stit made his presence felt on the inside, tallying 21 points and 13 rebounds.
Geelong would not come within 10 points of the lead for the entire second half as Frankston snapped the Supercats' four game winning streak.

Nunawading Spectres 95 def Knox Raiders 66
The Nunawading Spectres have got its plans for a title defence back on track after securing a comfortable victory against Knox at home.
Returning leader Simon Conn made his presence felt immediately, scoring the first basket of the game and setting the tone for the Spectres’ interior attack.
After a close first quarter, Nunawading blew out the Raiders in the second term, outscoring Knox 32-11.
From that point on, it was smooth sailing for the Spectres, which led by as many as 38 points in the third quarter on its way to a 29-point win.
Conn showed no signs of rust, leading all scorers with 26 points, while five of his teammates scored in double figures. 
Nunawading will next face Melbourne on Sunday, while Knox will have to wait until next week to try and get back in the win column against Eltham.

Diamond Valley Eagles 94 def Kilsyth Cobras 66
The Diamond Valley Eagles have pulled off an impressive victory at home over a Kilsyth Cobras side looking to break into the top four.
Diamond Valley led from the opening whistle, thanks to a strong, team-orientated approach.
All 11 Eagles players scored in the contest as the side whipped the ball around the court looking for the best shot.
Diamond Valley recorded 19 assists on 32 made baskets, while only committing 11 turnovers in the eye-opening performance.
As the contest progressed, the Eagles lead continued to grow, reaching as high as 37 points at the start of the final quarter before the side settled for the 28-point win.
Darcy Harding led Diamond Valley in scoring with 17 points, while Matt Reynolds put together an impressive outing, tallying 13 points, seven assists and three steals.

Dandenong Rangers 105 def Hobart Chargers 86
After losing its first six games of the season, the Dandenong Rangers are starting to look dangerous, winning its second straight game, this time against Hobart at home.
There was barely anything between the two sides across the opening term as both teams looked to take control.
The Rangers would push ahead in the second, leading by as many as nine points, however Hobart showed that it would not be an easy side to put away.
To start the third quarter, the Chargers, led by Jonathon Mines, went on a 10-0 run to take the lead, however that lead would be short lived.
While Mines was terrific for Hobart (34 points), Dandenong’s team play was just better.
The Rangers regained the lead shortly after the Chargers run and never looked back, outscoring Hobart 31-16 in the final quarter to come away with the win.
Sean Macdonald was amongst the best for Dandenong, scoring 23 points, while Oliver Hayes-Brown tallied 19 points, 16 rebounds and five assists. 

Eltham Wildcats 68 def by NW Tasmania Thunder 94
The NW Tasmania Thunder have ensured it will remain on top of the NBL1 South Men’s ladder after a comfortable win over Eltham on the Road.
Despite trailing early, NW Tasmania took the lead back to close the first term before holding onto the advantage for the remainder of the game.
In front by just six points at the main break, the Thunder came out of half time with guns blazing, outscoring the Wildcats 33-14 in the quarter.
Taran Armstrong led the way for NW Tasmania in scoring, registering 19 points in just 20 minutes of action.
The loss is Eltham’s sixth this season and will make it challenging to turn its form around and make a run towards finals contention.

Mt Gambier Pioneers 86 def by Ballarat Miners 88
In perhaps the most exciting game of the season so far, Ballarat have outlasted the Mt Gambier Pioneers in double overtime on the road.
It was a tight, hard fought game from the outset at the Ice House, with neither team backing down over the first two quarters.
Trailing by seven points at the main break, Ballarat made it’s run, outscoring the Pioneers 25-12 in the quarter to take control of the game going into the final term.
Mt Gambier were not about to give up, fighting back and tying the game with 18 seconds remaining through a Tom Kubank three-pointer.
After some strong defence stifled Ballarat’s final attempt at a game winning basket, the contest headed to overtime.
Again, the period just went back and forth, with neither team able to pull away.
With the scores tied and only seconds remaining, it was Miners center Deng Acouth who came up huge, blocking Mt Gambier's Duom Dawam to send the game into a second overtime.
After another hard fought period, it would all come down to the final few seconds, where Ballarat forward Jock Perry would prove to be the hero.
With three seconds left on the clock, Perry took a pass from William Hickey and calmly sunk a three-pointer that would ultimately prove to be the winner for Ballarat.
Perry finished with 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Hickey (31 points, 14 rebounds) and Sam Short (27 points, nine rebounds) also put up huge numbers.
On the other side, it was a tough loss for Mt Gambier. Titus Robrinson did all he could, scoring a season-high 40 points, however it was not enough.

Ringwood Hawks 96 def Albury Wodonga 76
The Ringwood Hawks have put together an impressive showing in front of its home fans, beating the Albury Wodonga Bandits at home.
Apart from the opening basket, a Mitchell Dance jumper for the Bandits, Ringwood led for the entire contest.
The Hawks raced out to a 31-15 lead to close the first term and were able to keep Albury Wodonga at bay for the rest of the game.
After the first quarter, the closest the Bandits came to regaining the lead came in the third term, when the side closed the gap to eight points, however the Hawks proved to be too good, pulling ahead and running away with the victory.
CJ Asuncion-Byrd led Ringwood in scoring, registering 20 points; his fourth straight game scoring 20 points or more.

Picture: Lauri Jean Photography