Lakeside Lightning have cemented their position on top of the State Basketball League ladder with a 60 point win over Southlands Boulevarde Wiletton Tigers in an exciting rematch of last year’s grand final.

Despite coming up short in last year's Grand Final, and their encounter earlier this season, the Friday night rematch saw Lakeside take out the game 128-68.

Lakeside’s dominance was evident from early on in the game, with import Ben Beran putting up the first points for the Lightning with two free-throws.

Wildcat and Tigers big man Matt Knight responded with a couple of early points but suffered a calf injury which is expected to rule him out for two weeks early in the first half.

The second half saw the Lightning maintain an intense defence, and with the pressure on the Tigers limiting their scoring opportunities, the side managed to score just 30 points in the last half of the game.

Tigers forward Rob Kampman attempted to narrow the gap by putting up a three-pointer late in the third quarter, but even his 15-point contribution could not put his team in front.

Before the match Lakeside’s Jarrad Prue was recognised for being the best rebounder in the league, having tallied up a huge 3300 rebounds in 200 games.

Prue continued his fine form during the match, taking 23 rebounds and putting up eight points for the Lightning.

Luke Payne gave the packed Lakeside grandstand something to cheer about with his contribution to the scoreboard, making nine of fifteen field goals and notching up 26 points.

Lakeside coach Andy Stewart said the 60-point win was unexpected but he was extremely pleased with the result.

“We wanted to get the win, we didn’t think we’d get it by 60 but we knew we were in pretty good form and we wanted to go after them pretty hard... [Lakeside] is just a great team and a pleasure to coach,” he said.

In the women’s match, Lakeside Lightning toppled number one side Willetton Tigers by four points, with the final score at 82-78.

The Tigers were up early in the game, taking out the second quarter with the help of guard Melissa Marsh, who scored 26 points overall, and Kate Malpass, who notched up 16 points.

Lakeside’s Jessica Van Schie scored twice in the dying minutes of the third quarter to take the lead 62-61 for the Lightning, and ended up scoring 25 points for her team overall.

The final quarter saw the two sides battle it out point-for-point until Lakeside broke away with some impressive shooting from Courtney Byrnes (14 points) and claimed a win over the number one side.

Article by Hannah Jenkins at Lakeside Recreation Centre
Photo by Mick Cronin