BIG V DIVISION 2 MEN

LTU 95 d BLACKBURN 91 - SATURDAY MARCH 24, 2007 @ VENETO CLUB

It's a new look Division 2 in 2007 with the bottom 5 2006 Division 1 teams merging with the top 3 2006 Division 2 teams. The Eagles were keen to show that they were up to the challenge of the stronger Division 2 and rose to the occasion. Battling a young and athletic Vikings squad, the Eagles went to their talls in reigning MVP, Tim Sturrock and young gun, Neville Chivhanganye. The two towers of power established their prescence immediately, Sturrock nailing open shots and getting to the rack and Neville playing above the rim on both ends of the court. Not to be outdone, Blackburn stalwart, Darrin Maslin drained 4 big 3's in the first quarter to keep the scores level at the first break.

The next 2 quarters were definitely a tale of two quarters. The second belonged to LTU with Peter Leimonitis lighting up from long range and enabling the Eagles to go in to half time with a handy 13 point buffer. However, the Vikings came out inspired in the second half and clawed their way back in to the game with some handy shooting from Jon Otten. Otten's shooting and Blackburn's pressure got the game back to 4 points at the final change.

Relying on a healthy Dean Sutton to look after the ball, LTU were able to get scores from their big 3 in Sturrock, Leimonitis and Chivhanganye when they needed to. Neill McCormack and Bryn Philpott-Evans worked hard to shut down Maslin but still found it difficult to contain the hot hand of Otten. However, it was not to be for Blackburn as the steady heads of LTU were able to keep the scoring level in the final quarter, enough for LTU to secure a 4 point victory.

STAT LINE OF THE GAME

Chivhanganye 22pts 10/13 FG  12Rebounds  2 blocks

Leimonitis 24points 9/12FG  3/5 3PT

FULL MATCH STATISTICS

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS

• Chivhanganye going up for a monster dunk, remembering midair that the refs asked him to go easy on the rings and then putting in a very "quiet" dunk. Thing was, the broken ring was up the other end of the court!!!
• Big Nev again with 2 massive blocks. One he pinned to the backboard and the other, his arm kept growing as he caught a jump shot from out of nowhere. Nice one Ticket.
• Dean Sutton airballing a freethrow - in clutch time. Sutton was heard to exclaim, "It slipped!". That line doesn't work on the basketball court Sutto. Nice to see that there is still abit of Cannanball in the team.
• Mr Fitness-Triathlete-Buffboy-Humphrey Neill McCormack cramping up halfway through the game. He walked to the bench much alike the bad Terminator in T2 when he began freezing and his legs started breaking off.

THE WEEK AHEAD

LTU @ CHELSEA SAT 31/3  8PM

LTU V SHEPPARTON @ DAREBIN SUN 1/4 2PM

A tough double header against two of the tougher opponents in Div 2. Chelsea are a guard oriented team that run and run and run. Shep rely on perrenial scorer, Jared Swanson who just happens to be coming off a 45 point game against Chelsea.

BIG V DIVISION 1 WOMEN

DIAMOND VALLEY 75 d LTU 42 - SUNDAY MARCH 25, 2007 @ DIAMOND VALLEY

The start to the LTU women's team's season didn't quite go according to plan when they copped a bit of a shallacking at the hands of Diamond Valley. Going in to the match with out All Star centre, Stephanie Cortese, LTU was still confident of getting a win after recruiting well and putting in a solid preseason. Unfortunately the basketball gods were not smiling on LTU as they shot a woeful 22% from the field and 29% from the line. To their credit, the girls were actually taking good shots but the shots just kept rimming out. Combining the shooting woes with 34 turnovers caused largely by DV's pressure allowed the match to blow out in the final quarter.

The big positive for LTU was the promising showing of the 3 rookies in Jarvis, Glennie and Grieve who showed signs of things to come. They had some great opportunities but nerves probably got the best of them and they are sure to be better off for the experience.

STAT LINE OF THE GAME

LTU  42 POINTS 15/68 FG  8/27 FT    34TO     OUCH!

FULL MATCH STATISTICS

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS

• Kylie Rogers suited up for LTU which got a few tongues wagging. She maintains she is just here to help if someone gets injured, however, maybe a little bit of subtle pressure from her friends may encourage her to suit up more regularly.
• LTU had one of their biggest away support group for some time. It was great to see and will be even better when the girls reward them with their first win

THE WEEK AHEAD

LTU v WARRANDYTE @ DAREBIN SUNDAY 1/4 12PM

LTU's first home game of the season comes against league newcomer, Warrandyte Venom. The Venom are coming off 2 wins and boast a star studded line up. The Eagles are coming off a tough loss and are keen to get back on the winner's list.