April 30, 2017

Photo:  Anthony Golden hit 31 points for Birds in first loss of season.

Challenge Season

DBA League Results – 27 & 28 April 2017

Round 12

League Women -  Eagles v Ansett

Ansett upset the Eagles 69-61 to boost their chances of making the final four in the first week in June. The Blues have now won three of their last four games putting them into playoff contention. The addition of Carolyn Nyhouse six games ago has had a definite effect on the team’s hopes. Nyhouse is averaging 15.5 points per game and the rest of the team has responded positively with a more determined attitude to winning. In the first seven games of the competition the team averaged 49pts per game. In the last four it is up to 67. The Blues trailed in this one at half time 30-23, but hit back in the second half to outscore the Birds 46-31 to claim the victory. Nyhouse had help from Ruta Valiulyte with 17, Tamiyah Perkins 15 and Alison Fleming 9. The Eagles were led by Ieasha Friel with 33 her sister Michelle with 15 and Alysha-Marie Williams with 9.

Lightning v Uni Rebels      

The Uni Rebels ran over the Lightning 90-61 for their sixth win of the season. The winless Lightning battled it out in the first half, hanging with the Rebels, but trailing 36-34 at the major break. The second half, however, was another matter as the Rebels charged off into the win column by outscoring the Lightning 54-29. Four players hit double figures for the Rebels with Tiayana Sing leading the way with 18, Danielle Ponter 17, Jaylene Bonson 16 and Jasmyn Hewett 15. Dominique Carbone hit 20, Rebecca Thorne had 12 and Samantha Wilson 9 for the Lightning.

Tracy Village Jets v Razzle Storm

The Tracy Village Jets zoomed past the Razzle Storm 67-40 by using a third quarter blitz that opened up a rather close encounter. The Bombers led 27-23 at half time, but stepped up a couple of levels in the third quarter to fly away from the Storm with a 24-8 run that put the Jets in the driver’s seat. Tikesa Docherty-Cole, Kylie Duggan and Tania Dhu led the Jets with 18, 15 & 10 points while the Storm’s Lailani Triffitt was the lone double point scorer with 11. With the win the Jets have taken over sole possession of first place on the ladder following the loss by the Eagles to Ansett.

Ladder:                   Tracy Village Jets 10-1, Eagles 9-2, Rebels 6-5, Razzle Storm & Ansett 4-7 & Lightning 0-11

Rd 13 May 4&5:      Thursday – Lightning v Ansett 6:30pm, Razzle Storm v Eagles 8:00pm. Friday – Tracy Village Jets v Uni Rebels 7:00pm

Men

League Men – Lightning v HPP

The Lightning men fared much better than their female counterparts as they got passed the HPP 80-69. Lightning put the HPP in a huge hole to start the game when they outscored them 21-5 in the first quarter. But the youthful HPP responded big time with an explosive 32-21 run in the second quarter to trail by just 5 at half time. The closest the HPP got after that was eight points. Austin Kisselev was on fire, hitting over 30 points for the third time this season. Kisselev hit 32 & Craig Martin & Brodie Hertel had 14 each as the Lightning try to stay within reach of a possible playoff spot. Freddy Webb led the HPP with 23, Jordan Sing added 12 and Fisto Bizima hit 10.

Razzle Storm v Palmerston Power

Jesse Bell hit a season high 26 to lead the Palmerston Power to a 75-61 victory over the winless Razzle Storm. The Power led 17-12 after one quarter of play and steadily built on that lead for the remainder of the game. The Storm stayed in touch but never put in a big enough run to overhaul the Power…that first win still eluding them. Bell got help from Fisto Bizima who put up 13 points and Caleb Pannell added 8. Chris Mahlstedt led the Storm with 21 and Brendan Dell hit 19.

Eagles v Uni Rebels

Travis Ellis hits milestone 10,000^th point as the Uni Rebels hand the Eagles their first loss of the season, an 86-64 thrashing that sends a message to the rest of the opposition…the Rebels are charging home. Ellis has played 458 games at a 21ppg clip during his League career. No other player has reached this lofty point and it may be sometime before any others get close. Five players hit double figures for the Rebels with Tim Morris leading the way with 26, Jake Eyles 20, Ellis 16, Spencer Coleman 13 and Marcus Ch’ng with 11. The Rebels led 46-37 at half time and the Eagles never got closer than 8 points for the remainder of the game. Anthony Golden hit a game high 31 Jordan Sing had 12 and Steven Sing 10, but more will be needed from the rest of the team to compensate for the loss of Dirk Steenbergen and Lachlan Shipway who are out for the season. The Rebels on the other hand are well positioned to make a serious run on the championship.

Ansett v Tracy Village Jets

Ansett pipped the Tracy Village Jets at the post in a close fought match that wasn’t decided until the last minute of play. The Blues won the game 73-68. The two sides traded the lead numerous times throughout the game before the Blues got in front at 66-64 after a basket by Max Davies. The Bombers never had the lead again although they had the opportunities. Jake Geer hit a two pointer with a minute to go to get the Jets within 1 point at 69-68, but Davies replied with a basket and Jake Toohey iced it with a pair from the free throw line with 24 seconds left. Mitch O’Donoghue hit 18 for the Blues with Brad Davis adding 16 while Alex Weetra from the Jets led all scorers with 20. Geer finished with 15 and Liam Maclachlan 12.

Ladder:                   Eagles 10-1, Ansett 9-2, Uni Rebels 8-3, Palmerston Power 6-5, Lightning 5-6, Tracy Village Jets 4-7, HPP 2- 9 & Razzle Storm 0-11

Rd 13 May 4&5:     Thursday –HPP v Razzle Storm 8:00pm. Friday – Uni Rebels v Tracy Village Jets, Lightning v Ansett 7:00pm & Palmerston Power v Eagles 8:30pm