South West Metro Pirates v Townsville Heat, Sat 4:45pm @ Rockhampton-  Historically the Heat have the better head-to-head record against the Pirates.  Since 2005, the Heat are 5 and 1 against the Pirates as follows-

2008- In Round 2 the Pirates won 96-89
2007- The Heat won the only time they met (122-104)
2006- The Heat won both clashes (112-85) followed by (104-97)
2005- The Heat won both clashes (116-105) and (122-78)

With that said, you are only as good as your last performance giving the Pirates the slight advantage here from their Round 2 win this season.  Both teams have arrived here after playing in tough regular season pools (Pirates battled with the Goannas, Thunder and Mountaineers, while the Heat took on the Marlins and Rockets).  The Pirates are made up of a mix of youth and experience, and are essentially a very local team who have probably even exceeded their own expectations so far this year.  They were bumped out the competition in 2007 by the Goannas in the Semi Finals, so a win is all it will take to go one better in 2008.  Meanwhile, this is very much uncharted territory for the Heat who have dipped out on finals opportunities in recent year.  The team arrives having won 12 of their last 13 games and in position to strike while the iron is hot.  Finishing the year at 15 and 3, the Pirates have the firepower to bring this one home but need to remain focused (the Gladstone Power took advantage of this in Round 13 with a 107-101 win) if they wish to stop the Heat in their tracks. 

Rockhampton Rockets v Brisbane Capitals, Sat 7:00pm @ Rockhampton-  The minor premier Rockets take on one of the top two teams in the south in the Brisbane Capitals, in what can only be described as an explosive Semi Final that will unfold at a sold-out Hegvold Stadium.  The Rockets have the mental battle already won in that they beat the Capitals in a recent Round 14 game where they were on the road, playing game number two of a double header, and still managed a 107-83 victory.  It was the teams 51% from the field that got them over the line, with the core strikers Weigh, Thompson, Martin and McDade producing results for Coach Tweedy.  Prior to that, the only time they met in 2007 saw the Rockets get up 90-80, so recent history puts the home team as favourites.  The Capitals however, are coming off the back of a huge win over the Wizards (106-103) in the Quarter Finals, and this high will see them arrive and ready to get to work.  Coach Palmer will earn his money in this game, with the team carrying long odds and they’ll be at the beck and call of the Rocky supporters.  Despite all this, the Capitals will make for a tough opponent and will hit this game on a run of 4 wins and ready to create the biggest upset of the season.  The Capitals Rychart will be up against his ’09 NBL team mate in the Rockets Martin, in a game where all is forgotten bar obtaining the win and securing a Grand Final berth.