February 16, 2013

Photo:  Eagle Michelle Friel led the Eagle women with 11pts, 9rebs and 3 steals in a loss to Lightning.

Challenge Season

Darwin Airport Resort League Results from Friday 15 February 2013

League Women –Tracy Village Jets v Palmerston

Tracy Village continued on from last year’s championship run with an opening demolition of Palmerston 81-19. The Jets blasted away in the first quarter with a 21-1 run that left no doubt in anyone’s mind about the final outcome. Five players hit double figures for the Bombers with Sam Rioli leading the way with a team and game high 18. At half time the score was 44-5 and the second half produced more of the same. Christine Cooper hit a team high 7 for Palmerston. The Jets shot close to 50% from the field for the game and are now on a 10 game winning streak that carries over from the Championship Season of 2012.

Lightning v Eagles

Lightning beat the Eagles 30-23 in a very low scoring affair in which neither team managed to hit over 18% from the field! Lucy Murray led the Lightning with 13 points while Ashleigh Houghton pulled down 10 rebounds in support. Michelle Friel hit a team high 11 for the Eagles with Nerrida Cooper grabbing 12 rebounds. The Eagles actually led 19-17 heading into the last quarter but failed to finish off the game. Lightning on the other hand persevered and with Murray leading the charge took advantage of a momentum shift to outscore the Birds 13-4 in the last quarter for the win.

Ansett v Uni Rebels

Ansett dumped the Uni Rebels 60-42 to kick start their Challenge Season campaign. Sam Drescher (19), Amelia Shanahan (18) and Lauren Flanagan (10) combined for 47 points to lead the team. After setting up the game with a strong 31-14 half time effort the Blues cruised to the win despite a third quarter 17-10 run by the Rebels. During that run Jaylene Bonson took control for the Rebels hitting 12 of her game high 20 points, but although the Rebels closed the gap to 10 it was as close as they were going to get. Ansett regained control in the last quarter and Flanagan closed it out in style with a three pointer as time wound down. Ansett dominate the boards with a huge 64-32 advantage.

Ladder:       Tracy Village Jets, Lightning & Ansett 1-0, Eagles, Uni Rebels, & Palmerston 0-1

League Men –Ansett v Uni Rebels

Reigning dry season champs, Ansett, lit up the scoreboard against the Uni Rebels to the tune of 95-52 for an opening Challenge Season victory led by Tom Blake. Blake (20) led a group of four who hit double figures while the team pulled down an impressive 73 rebounds to the Rebels 32. The Blues also tallied 29 team assists to just 6 for the Rebels. Daniel Florance had a solid double with 16pts and 14rebs to start his season and newcomer Nathan Appleby put up 13pts along with 10 boards. The Blues launched themselves in the first quarter to lead 28-13 and pushed that out to a 55-24 half time advantage that the Rebels never looked like getting close to. The always steady Marcus Ch’ng hit a game high 22 for the Rebels with stalwart Jamie Hamill adding 16, but that was about it for scoring from the Rebel camp. Matt Hunt chipped in with 17pts along with 9 assists for the Blues who hit 40% from the field.

Tracy Village Jets v Razzle

Last Championship Season runner-up Tracy Village Jets took no pity on an undermanned Razzle outfit running out winners 107-43. The Bombers hit 45% from the field with Travis Ellis leading the way with a team and game high 28 and 18 boards. Jett Sukcharoen added 18, Liam MacLachlan 17 and Phil Collins 14. An overabundance of turnovers by Razzle (34) didn’t help their cause as the Bombers racked up 41 points from those errors. An opening salvo of 21-9 set the stage for the Bombers and they never looked back. James Panton led the Razzle with 14 and Billy-Ray Roberts added 12.

Lightning v Eagles

The Eagles bumped off Lightning 89-58 to open their account for this season. Shonsdale Robinson hit a game high 25 for the Birds along with 15 boards and 4 steals. Robinson was backed up by 20pts and 11 boards from Buster Perkins and 17pts and 10 boards from Joseph Johnson. The Eagles dominated the boards with a 73-47 advantage, more than half of them offensive, giving the Birds more possession and extra shots on goal. Lightning trailed by one after a quarter of play 20-19, but began to fall by the wayside during the second quarter, letting the Birds get away on a 28-14 run that gave them a very hefty 48-33 lead. The second half was a similar scenario as the Eagle outscored Lightning 41-25. Cameron Bailey led Lightning with 18pts and 14rebs. He had support from Justin Rualo (14) and Dylan de Santis (12).

Ladder:           Ansett, Tracy Village Jets & Eagles 1-0, Lightning, Rebels & Razzle 0-1 & Palmerston 0-0