South Recap | Round 10 Sunday

Image credit: Mitchell Barlow

Knox Raiders prevailed over Mount Gambier Pioneers in an NBL1 South top-of-the-table men's clash for the ages while Ben Ayre had 30 to keep Sandringham Sabres winning, and Lauren Scherf had an impressive triple-double for Frankston Blues.

SOUTH RECAP | ROUND 10 SATURDAY

WOMEN

Geelong United (80) defeated Launceston Tornadoes (69)

Geelong United kept their undefeated record this season going but they were made to earn the 80-69 victory to beat a Launceston Tornadoes who had won their past couple of games.

Both teams came into the match up at The Geelong Arena fresh off playing the night before where Geelong scored the 21-point win away to the Ringwood Hawks and Launceston started their road double by making it consecutive wins defeating the Casey Cavaliers by 13 points.

Geelong made the fast start on their home floor with 23 points to 13 in the first quarter on shooting 4/10 from downtown to Launceston's 1/6.

That lead for Geelong got out to 15 points in the second quarter and continued to grow the rest of the afternoon getting out to 16 in the third frame, and 21 in the fourth before they ended up scoring the 11-point victory after the Tornadoes finished strongly.

Both teams struggled shooting with Geelong going at just 34 per cent from the field to the Tornadoes' 37, but United hit 10/37 from three to 3/15 from the visitors while also attempting 14 extra shots having forced the Tornadoes into 26 turnovers.

Jaz Shelley finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, five steals and three assists in the win for Geelong with Taylor Mole adding 17 points on 5/9 three-point shooting.

Hannah Hank also had 12 points and two rebounds with Gemma Potter adding nine points, four boards and four steals, Lilly Rotunno nine points, 11 rebounds and five assists, and Dakota Crichton seven points, four assists, three boards and two steals.

Launceston head home having split their road double with Megan Mullings finishing with 21 points, 11 rebounds and four steals with Keely Froling adding 19 points, nine boards and three assists, and Ava McDonald 10 points, three rebounds and three assists.

GEELONG UNITED 80 (Shelley 21, Mole 17, Hank 12)

LAUNCESTON TORNADOES 69 (Mullings 21, Froling 19, O'Neill 8)

Knox Raiders (81) defeated Mount Gambier Pioneers (51)

The Knox Raiders made it five straight victories to be knocking on the door of the top two with the 81-51 win at home against the Mount Gambier Pioneers.

Both teams had played on Saturday night with Knox keeping on their winnings ways beating the Melbourne Tigers in a tight one while Mount Gambier also scored the 15-point win over the Kilsyth Cobras to start their road double.

The Pioneers are still in finals contention and with the Raiders still trying to break into the top two there was plenty at stake for both teams, and it was Mount Gambier with the better of the start to be leading 18-15 at quarter-time.

Things dried up for the Pioneers in the second term with them scoring just seven points on 1/13 shooting while Knox worked on top with 23 points on 9/19 shooting.

That saw the Raiders leading 38-25 by half-time and then that lead continued to go through the second half getting out to as much as 25 points in the third quarter, and 30 in the fourth.

Knox went on to secure the 30-point win to make it five on the trot to remain third with a 12-3 record with Rachel Bell finishing with 15 points and five assists but they had all 12 players hitting the court and ever single one of them scored.

Alicia Froling contributed 13 points and eight rebounds, Paige Burrows eight points, five assists, three boards and two steals, Paige Bradley eight points, three assists and two steals, and Kristy Wallace eight points and two assists.

Mount Gambier remain outside the top eight now sitting with a 6-9 record with Isa Brancatisano top-scoring with 15 points and nine rebounds but that was on 4/18 field goal shooting.

Haliegh Reinoehl ended up with eight points and eight rebounds, Chloe Hildebrand seven points and three boards, and Jayda Jansen six points, two rebounds and two assists.

KNOX RAIDERS 81 (Bell 15, Froling 13, Burrows 8, Bradley 8, Wallace 8)

MOUNT GAMBIER PIONEERS 51 (Brancatisano 15, Reinoehl 8, Hildebrand 7)

Sandringham Sabres (73) defeated Eltham Wildcats (65)

The Sandringham Sabres kept in touch with a playoff position with a hard fought 73-65 Sunday home victory against the Eltham Wildcats.

The Sabres were back home at Southern Basketball Stadium having lost the previous night by 33 points to the Diamond Valley Eagles while the Wildcats were coming off a thrilling one-point win at home to the Bendigo Braves.

They backed up for the Sunday afternoon match up and only combined for the 30 points between them in the first quarter with the Sabres leading 16-14 by quarter-time.

Sandringham then pushed that out to an 11-point lead in the second term before they were on top 40-32 by the half-time interval.

Eltham hit back impressively in the third quarter outscoring the Sabres 25 points to 13 including getting to the foul line nine times to one to turn that eight-point deficit into their own four-point three quarter-time.

The swings continued with Sandringham then getting back on top with 20 points to eight in the fourth term with 10 free-throw attempts to zero on the way to securing the eight-point victory.

The win improves the Sabres to a 7-7 record to have them sitting in ninth position and knocking on the door of the top eight with Klara Wischer having led the way with 15 points, 13 rebounds, four steals and two assists.

Isis Lopes added 13 points, five rebounds and three assists, Lucy Cochrane 12 points, nine boards and two blocked shots, Haylee Andrews 12 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals, and Keeley Frawley eight points, six rebounds and four assists.

Eltham finish the weekend with a 3-11 record in 17th place with Bec Pizzey top-scoring once again with 18 points, 10 rebounds and four assists on 9/10 foul shooting.

Kennedy Dickie also had 12 points and seven rebounds, Julia Drop 10 points, four steals, three boards and two assists, and Lil Dart 10 points, four rebounds, thee assists and three steals.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 73 (Wischer 15, Lopes 13, Andrews 12, Cochrane 12)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 65 (Pizzey 18, Dickie 12, Drop 10, Dart 10)

Melbourne Tigers (104) defeated Hobart Chargers (74)

The big guns of the Melbourne all fired together including Izzy Borlase and Sara Blicavs combining for 48 points as they beat the Hobart Chargers 104-74 to consolidate a place in the top eight.

The Tigers were coming off a loss the previous night against the Knox Raiders while the Chargers also started their road double the previous evening wit a loss to the Dandenong Rangers.

The teams backed it up on Sunday at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre and it was a solid start from the home team with the Tigers on top 21-16 by quarter-time.

But the Chargers kept things close with Melbourne only leading 41-38 by half-time and then 71-65 by three quarter-time, but then the Tigers dominated the final 10 minutes of the contest.

Melbourne scored 33 points to nine in the final quarter while shooting 14/21 from the floor opposed to the 2/17 from the Chargers end up securing the 30-point victory.

As a result, the Tigers improve to an 8-6 record to sit in eighth position by the end of the round with Izzy Borlase finishing with 25 points and five rebounds on 4/6 three-point shooting.

Sara Blicavs also produced 23 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals with Sienna Harvey contributing 16 points and three assists with 3/4 three-point shooting, and Eve Braslis 16 points, seven boards and two assists.

Hobart have now lost four straight to slip to 4-11 with Tayla Roberts top-scoring with 26 points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots with Ellie Collins adding 14 points, seven assists and four rebounds.

Sharna Thompson also had 14 points, three assists and two steals, Chelsea D'Angelo 14 points, five rebounds and five assists, and Ellie Collins 14 points, seven assists and four boards.

MELBOURNE TIGERS 104 (Borlase 25, Blicavs 23, Braslis 16, Harvey 16)

HOBART CHARGERS 74 (Roberts 26, D'Angelo 14, Collins 14, Thompson 14)

Nunawading Spectres (75) lost to Ballarat Miners (87)

The Ballarat Miners kept their slim playoff hopes alive with the 87-75 win against the Nunawading Spectres with Kaleena Lewis delivering 33 points and eight three-pointers.

Both teams played on Saturday night with the Spectres losing to the Dandenong Rangers by 21 points while the Miners also went down to Keilor Thunder to start their road double by 23 points.

Ballarat were clinging to the 24-23 lead by quarter-time and then that got out to eight in the second term before the Miners were on top 49-41 by the half-time interval.

That lead continued to grow for Ballarat throughout the second half with it growing to 13 points in the third quarter and 15 in the fourth before they ended up securing the 12-point victory.

The victory improves Ballarat to a 5-9 record on the season and while they will need to go on a running, they are within touching distance still of the Melbourne Tigers who sit eighth at 8-6.

Kaleena Davis produced a big afternoon for the Miners in the win with 33 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals on 8/15 three-point shooting.

Georgia Woolley also had 15 points, six rebounds and four assists, Micah Simpson 11 points, 10 assists and six rebounds, Julia Gladkova 10 points, four boards and three assists.

The Spectres have now lost their past three matches for a 6-8 record with Shaneice Swain top-scoring with 18 points, six rebounds and four assists despite shooting 3/14 from three-point range.

Faith Dut added 15 points and seven rebounds, Isabel Feller 14 points, two assists and two steals, Rachel Antoniadou nine points, five boards and four assists, and Laina Snyder seven points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots.

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 75 (Swain 18, Dut 15, Feller 14)

BALLARAT MINERS 87 (Lewis 33, Woolley 15, Simpson 11)

Frankston Blues (106) defeated Ringwood Hawks (80)

The big three of Marta Hermida, Lauren Scherf and Lou Brown combined for 70 points as the Frankston Blues consolidated their playoff spot with the 106-80 win over the Ringwood Hawks.

The Blues remained at home at Dreamstreet Lending Arena coming off a loss to the Waverley Falcons the previous night even with Scherf returning to the line-up following her suspension.

The Hawks arrived having also lost to Geelong United the previous night but it was Frankston who started the better with 24 points to 14 in the first quarter.

The lead for the Blues continued to grow thanks to another 28 points to 14 in the second term which meant that Frankston went into half-time leading 52-28 on the back of shooting 20/36 from the floor and 7/14 deep while the Hawks went 10/32 and 2/10 from downtown.

Fro there Frankston ended up leading by as much as 27 points in the second half and then securing the 26-point victory having shot 54 per cent from the field to 40 and then knocking down 13/28 from three-point range to 6/22.

As a result of the win Frankston improves to a 9-6 record to remain inside the top eight with Marta Hermida top-scoring with 26 points, eight assists, six rebounds and four steals on 5/9 three-point shooting.

Lauren Scherf also landed 4/6 from deep for 22 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds for a terrific triple-double while Lou Brown contributed 22 points, 10 boards and six assists, Jacqui Trotto 12 points, three rebounds and three steals, and Tori Jackson 11 points and three boards.

Ringwood are now 7-8 on the season having lost three straight to be outside of a playoff position with Nyaduoth Lok top-scoring with 16 points, three rebounds and three assists.

Sarah Elsworthy also had 15 points, seven assists and three rebounds, Annabel Deerbon 15 points and two boards, Camille Hobby 12 points and six rebounds, and Aneta Bandilovska 10 points, six assists and five boards.

FRANKSTON BLUES 106 (Hermida 26, Scherf 22, Brown 22)

RINGWOOD HAWKS 80 (Lok 16, Elsworthy 15, Deerbon 15)

MEN

Geelong United (80) defeated North West Tasmania Thunder (69)

The North West Tasmania Thunder completed their road double with the 80-69 win on the back of 29 points from Lachlan Barker as they overcame 36 points from Tristan Forsyth for Geelong United.

North West Tasmania had slumped to a seventh straight defeat on Saturday night to start the road double with the loss to the Casey Cavaliers while Geelong also suffered a 28-point loss at the hands of Ringwood Hawks.

Both teams were only just clinging to faint hope of still being in the playoff hunt as well but it was the visiting Thunder who produced an enterprising first quarter with 30 points to 16 on shooting 11/20 from the field with 3/5 from three-point land.

Even with Geelong outscoring North West 21 points to 19 in the second term, it was still a 49-37 lead at half-time for the Thunder.

North West Tasmania then maintained a double-figure lead through most of the second half on the way to securing the eventual 12-point victory to snap their losing slide and improve to a 4-10 record.

Geelong had a tough weekend with the pair of losses to now sit on a 5-9 record with Tristan Forsyth continuing the best season of his career with 36 points, 11 rebounds and three steals on 7/10 from three-point territory.

DeMarcus Gatlin added 19 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals with Marach Malach contributing 10 points and two boards, and Liam Herbert nine points, two rebounds and two steals.

GEELONG UNITED 85 (Forsyth 36, Gatlin 19, Marach 10)

NORTH WEST TASMANIA THUNDER 97 (Barker 29, Armstrong 19, Harris 16, Savage 16)

Knox Raiders (106) defeated Mount Gambier Pioneers (105)

Sometimes a top-of-the-table clash doesn’t live up to expectations but that was anything but the case when the Knox Raiders beat the Mount Gambier Pioneers 106-105 in overtime in what is going to take some beating as the NBL1 game of the year.

Coming into the Sunday match up at the State Basketball Centre and the Raiders were in top spot at 12-2 and the Pioneers were 10-4 with the result having the possibility of having a big say in who ends up with the regular season championship.

Knox were also coming off a loss the previous night to the Melbourne Tigers while the Pioneers arrived fresh off a one-point victory also on Saturday against the Kilsyth Cobras.

So the stage was set for the match up and the two teams couldn’t be split by the end of the first quarter with scores tied at 20-20 even with Knox attempted six extra field goals.

The Raiders were able to push out to a 10-point lead in the second term and were still up by six at the half before again pulling away and even leading by as much as 18 in the third frame.

Mount Gambier had done well to pull it back to a nine-point game by three quarter-time thanks to a 12-0 scoring run and that set up a big finish.

The Pioneers were still playing catch up throughout the fourth quarter but it was a Titus Robinson three-pointer with just under a minute to play that saw them grab the lead by two.

Henry Sewell would bring Knox back level at the charity stripe and that's where scores stayed at 89-89 with the game going to overtime.

In the extra period, the first big blows came from beyond the arc for Knox from Brody Nunn and Sunday Dech even though Mount Gambier stayed close with a three-point play from Akech Aliir.

The Pioneers then found themselves back in front when Nunn was called for an unsportsmanlike where Aliir hit both at the line and then on the subsequent extra possession Amarco Doyle scored.

Mount Gambier were still leading until Nunn made up for that unsportsmanlike with a three-point play before Tad Dufelmeier scored too and Knox were back up three in the final minute.

Doyle responded with a mid-range jumper, but that kept the Raiders in the lead by one and that's where they would stay at the final buzzer after a couple of turnovers from each team at the death.

Raiders import Brayon Blake had his most significant impact of the season coming back from the injury that ended his 2024 early and finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds and two assists with 4/7 three-point shooting.

Tad Dufelmeier also had 24 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals on 3/4 shooting from downtown with Brody Nunn adding 19 points, four steals, three boards and two assists, Sunday Dech 19 points and four rebounds, and Henry Sewell 15 points, nine rebounds, four assists and two blocks.

Mount Gambier are now 10-5 but remain second albeit three games behind the 13-2 Raiders with Titus Robinson providing them with 18 points and eight rebounds on 8/12 field goal shooting.

Amarco Doyle backed up representing the Indigenous All Stars on Wednesday night on the very same court with 18 points and eight rebounds with Dylan Marshall contributing 17 points and two boards, Akech Aliir 15 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks, and Joe Palmer 12 points and seven boards.

KNOX RAIDERS 106 (Blake 29, Dufelmeier 24, Nunn 19)

MOUNT GAMBIER PIONEERS 105 (Robinson 22, Doyle 18, Marshall 17)

Sandringham Sabres (99) defeated Eltham Wildcats (87)

Fabijan Krslovic was on board and Ben Ayre put up 30 points as the Sandringham Sabres made it five straight wins to close in on a finals spot with the 99-87 win over the defending champion Eltham Wildcats.

The Sabres added new Melbourne United signing and Tasmania JackJumpers championship winner Fabijan Krslovic to a team already including Dane Pineau, Dash Daniels, Ben Ayre, Malith Machar, Tom Koppens, CJ Asuncion-Byrd and coached by Dave Barlow who still hits the floor.

That as talented and experienced a squad as there is in the NBL1 South but still the Sabres came into Sunday's match up at Southern Basketball Stadium outside a playoff position.

They had won a fourth straight game the previous night against the Diamond Valley Eagles while the Wildcats arrived as defending champions also fresh off a defeat to the Bendigo Braves.

That set up the Sunday match up nicely with both teams locked in the fight for a spot in the bottom part of the top eight and Eltham had the better of the start to be leading 23-19 by quarter-time.

Eltham was then still clinging to the 39-38 lead by half-time but then it was in the third period when the Sabres made their move and scored 35 points to just the 19 from the Wildcats.

That saw Sandringham open up a 15-point lead on the back of shooting 10/16 from the field and 11/12 at the foul line for the quarter.

From there the Sabres completed the deal for the 12-point win on their home floor to improve to a 7-7 record to have won five straight to be knocking on the door of the top eight.

Ben Ayre ended up top-scoring in the win for Sandringham with 30 points and six assists with 13/14 shooting from the free-throw line.

Malith Machar added 22 points on 4/9 three-point shooting while CJ Asuncion-Byrd had 12 points, Tom Koppens 12 points, 15 rebounds, three assists and three blocks, and Dash Daniels 11 points and two assists with 3/6 shooting from downtown.

Eltham are below the Sabres now also with a 7-7 record with Josh Sykes putting up another 23 points, nine rebounds and three assists on 10/16 field goal shooting.

Sam Short added 13 points, four assists and three rebounds, Gabe Hadley nine points, six boards and two assists, Mitch McCarron nine points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals, Xavier Bledson nine points and five boards, and Zak Cunningham nine points and four rebounds.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 99 (Ayre 30, Machar 22, Koppens 12, Asuncion-Byrd 12)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 87 (Sykes 23, Short 13, Cunningham 9, Bledson 9, McCarron 9, Hadley 9)

Melbourne Tigers (79) lost to Hobart Chargers (91)

The Hobart Chargers made it four straight wins to break into the NBL1 South top four with Jacob Richards producing 26 points to complete their road trip with the 91-79 win over the Melbourne Tigers.

The Chargers started their double-header on the road beating the Dandenong Rangers on Saturday night while the Tigers also scored an impressive win against the league-leading Knox Raiders.

That set the stage nicely for the Sunday match up with a place in the top four going on the line and Melbourne made a blistering start with hitting seven three-pointers in the first quarter to be leading 31-22 by quarter-time.

Hobart totally turned things around in the second quarter and outscored the Tigers 27 points to 15 while shooting 11/19 themselves while Melbourne only went 3/9 while getting to the foul line 13 times.

The Chargers went into half-time narrowly leading 49-46 and then things remained tight in the third quarter, but then in the final 10 minutes it all the visitors.

Hobart outscored Melbourne 20 points to 11 on the back of shooting 7/15 to 4/14 and that saw the Chargers record the crucial 12-point victory to complete the perfect road weekend.

The Chargers have now won their last four games to improve to a 9-5 record to be sitting in fourth place with Jacob Richards continuing his standout form with 26 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

Ole Angerstein also had 17 points and six rebounds, Vincent DeAngelo 14 points, four boards and three steals, Joe Chilcott 13 points, two rebounds and two steals, and Will Cranston-Lown 12 points, six boards, six assists and five steals.

The Tigers missed the chance to go fourth to now be 8-6 and in fifth place with Tom Wilson continuing his standout form ahead of an NBL return at Melbourne United.

He finished with 20 points, eight rebounds and two assists on 4/6 three-point shooting with Jack Purchase contributing 19 points and six boards, Mason Gaze 11 points and five rebounds, Harry Froling 11 points and 13 boards, and Michael Wearne 10 points and five assists.

MELBOURNE TIGERS 79 (Wilson 20, Purchase 19, Froling 11, Gaze 11)

HOBART CHARGERS 91 (Richards 26, Angerstein 17, DeAngelo 14)

Nunawading Spectres (83) lost to Ballarat Miners (96)

Ballarat and Nunawading are two teams stuck in the battle over playoff spots in the logjam and it was the Miners who came away with the 96-83 road victory over the Spectres.

The two teams had played on Saturday night as well with Nunawading winning a thriller over the Dandenong Rangers while the Miners went down to Keilor Thunder.

Both teams backed up on Sunday at Nunawading Basketball Centre and it was the Spectres on their home floor who started well with 34 points to 24 in the first quarter while hitting 7/13 from three-point range.

That lead for Nunawading grew to 16 points in the second quarter as well before they went into the half-time break in control 55-46 having made 10/19 of their three-point attempts opposed to the 1/8 from the Miners.

Ballarat, though turned the game on its head in the third quarter with 25 points to 12 including making 3/5 from downtown to grab the lead, and then go on with the job in the fourth term for the 13-point road victory.

The win improves Ballarat to an 8-6 record to remain solid in the top eight in sixth position with Majok Majok a strong force inside with 26 points, 10 rebounds and two steals.

Luke Rosendale added 23 points, four rebounds and two assists, Nick Stoddart 16 points and four assists, Dayne Prim 13 points, five rebounds and two assists, and Mackuei Puondak 12 points on 5/7 field goal shooting.

Nunawading remain outside the playoffs in 110th position with a 7-7 record so they are certainly still right in the mix with Christian D'Angelo top-scoring with 26 points and five rebounds.

Tristan Devers added 16 points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals, Jack Gandolfo 12 points and two assists, and Brian Mack II nine points, 12 rebounds and two assists.

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 83 (D'Angelo 26, Devers 16, Gandolfo 12)

BALLARAT MINERS 96 (Majok 26, Rosendale 23, Stoddart 16)

Frankston Blues (88) lost to Ringwood Hawks (91)

The Ringwood Hawks had six players scoring in double figures on the way to securing the 91-88 thrilling win over the Frankston Blues to keep their playoff hopes alive.

The two teams did battle at Dreamstreet Lending Arena with Frankston back home having lost in a high-scoring affair to Waverley the previous night while Ringwood were fresh off a 28-point win at home to Geelong United.

With the Blues trying to consolidate a playoff spot and stay in top four contention, and the Hawks just trying to stay in touch of the playoffs, and there was plenty on the line in the contest too.

Both teams shot 4/12 from three-point range in the first quarter but by quarter-time it was Frankton leading 31-22 and then the Blues were able to turn that into a 12-point lead early in the second period.

Ringwood were able to work back into the contest from there and cut the Frankston lead to 47-42 by half-time.

The Hawks kept that momentum going in the third term with 27 points to 19 on the way to building their own seven-point lead, but the game was always destined for a thrilling finish.

After playing catch up the whole last quarter, Lucas Barker drew Frankston back level when he scored with 40 seconds to go before Angus Glover responded with a three ball for Ringwood.

Taane Samuel then kept the Blues within a point before two free throws from Tom Carroll pushed the Hawks back out by three before Michael Harris had the chance with a three ball to force the game to overtime.

It wouldn’t fall and he finished the game going 3/15 from beyond the arc and Ringwood got the win that keeps their season alive with the 7-8 record and four straight victories.

Angus Glover produced 16 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals for Ringwood, Tom Carroll 16 points and four boards on 4/9 three-point shooting, and Tanner Krebs 14 points and five rebounds.

Lawson Eales added 14 points and six rebounds, Harry Sealey 14 points, and Jonathan Lawton 12 points, seven boards, five assists and two steals.

Frankston suffered two losses in less than 24 hours to slip to an 8-7 record to be just clinging to a spot in the top eight with Harris still putting up 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists despite the rough shooting night.

Kingsley Box added 14 points and 18 rebounds, Taane Samuel 13 points and three boards, Igor Hadziomerovic 11 points and five rebounds, and Henry Peirce eight points, five boards and two assists.

FRANKSTON BLUES 88 (Harris 25, Box 14, Samuel 13)

RINGWOOD HAWKS 91 (Carroll 16, Glover 16, Sealey 14, Eales 14)