16 October 2012

Photo:  Ansett's Daniel Florance helped the Blues to a close 75-70 win against the Eagles.

Championship Season

Darwin Airport Resort League Results from Tuesday 16 October 2012

League Women –Lightning v Tracy Village Jets

Tracy Village Jets won the clash between the top two teams in the competition when they held off a late challenge from Lightning to clinch a close 51-47 win that put them out in front on the ladder with a three game cushion. The Bombers led by one point after one quarter of play, two points at the half time break and by six heading into the last quarter. The Lightning made their run at the league leaders and grabbed the lead with 5:22 remaining after Jade Lambert hit a shot for a 43-41 lead. Half a minute later Kylie Duggan tied it up at 43 all. At the 4:41 mark Kelli Sealy gave the Lightning their last lead after sinking a pair of free throws for a 45-43 advantage. The lead was short lived as first Danielle Totham then Tara Maxwell hit shots to give the Bombers the lead for good at 47-45 with 4 minutes to play. Tracy Village guard Sam Rioli led all scorers with 13 points and 6 assists while Duggan added 12 and 11 rebounds. Lambert led Lightning with 11 and Sealy finished with 10.

Ansett v Uni Rebels

Ansett claimed the scalp of the Uni Rebels 61-49 for their ninth win of the season as they maintained pace with the league leaders by solidifying their third placed position on the ladder. Sam Drescher and new recruit Nicole Silmon hit 18 points each along with 14 and 15 rebounds respectively as the Blues used a 21-8 run in the third quarter to pull away from the Rebels who again put in a good first half only to see their efforts slip away for the second game in a row. The Rebels led by a narrow 26-22 margin at half time thanks to the good shooting of Jaylene Bonson and Tamara Sheppard, but the well dried up after the half as the Blues went on a rampage in the third quarter to take control of the game. Bonson finished with 18 and Sheppard 11. Last year’s champions chances of even finishing in the playoffs is now becoming a reality as they struggle to find form.  

Eagles v Palmerston

Eagles 59 Palmerston 33

Ladder:                               Tracy Village Jets 13-1, Lightning 10-5, Ansett 9-6, Eagles 7-8, Uni Rebels 4-11, & Palmerston 1-13

Next Week Round 16:       Lightning v Ansett 6:15pm, Eagles v Tracy Village Jets 7:45pm & Uni Rebels v Palmerston 9:15pm 

League Men –Uni Rebels v Razzle

Razzle dumped the fading Uni Rebels 50-47 in a real cliff hanger. Phil Collins from the green and gold hit the game winner in the closing seconds of the game to give Razzle its first win of the competition. The Rebels had pushed forward to a 47-44 lead in the last quarter after Marcus Ch’ng hit Lachlan Headlam with an assist leading to a basket with just 35 seconds left in the game. But on the ensuing play Rebel Justin Eckhardt fouled Razzle’s Henry Bui and was hit with a technical foul putting the league’s leading free throw shooter on the line with just 17 seconds left in the game for four shots! Bui hit three of them to tie the game up setting the stage for Collins to win it with a three pointer as time ran out for the Rebels. A huge win for Razzle and a devastating loss for the defending champ’s who are still outside the final four with only five games remaining in the regular season. Collins finished with 10 and 14 boards while team mate Cameron McKenzie hit 14. Headlam led the Rebels with 19 points and 10 boards. Eckhardt hit 10.

Ansett v Eagles

Not much separated Ansett and the Eagles in their clash at the DBA Stadium, but the Blues came out victorious in the closing minutes of the contest to record a 75-70 win. The win puts the Blues into a tie for second place with the Tracy Village Jets. The game was a classic no holds barred affair where neither team gained advantage, until the last two minutes of the game when the Blues finally nudged in front after John King hit a basket with 2:21 left for a narrow 68-67 lead. That was as close as the Eagles got for the remainder of the game. The tale of the tape…Ansett hit 21 of 40 attempts from the charity stripe to just 10 of 21 for the Eagles. Otherwise the two teams were pretty much even. Ansett had four players in double figures with John King leading the way with 18 & 11 rebs, Daniel Florance 17 & 14 rebs, Matt Hunt 13pts and Tom Blake with 10. For the Eagles Buster Perkins hit a game high 26 with 14 boards, Shonsdale Robinson had 20 and Joseph Johnson 13.

Tracy Village Jets v Palmerston

Tracy Village Jets 62 Palmerston 55

Ladder:                               Tracy Village Jets 10-4, Lightning 10-3, Ansett 9-4, Eagles 7-7, Uni Rebels 6-8, Palmerston 4-8 & Razzle 1-13

Next Week Round 17:           Razzle v Eagles 6:15pm, Uni Rebels v Palmerston 7:45pm & Ansett v Lightning 9:15pm, bye: Tracy Village Jets