14 August 2011

Photo:  Sam White from Eagles League Men

Darwin Airport Resort League Results from Saturday 13 August 2011

League Women –Tracy Village Jets v Ansett

Tracy Village Jets took sole possession of first place on the ladder with an impressive 63-51 win against Ansett in a battle of the top two teams in the DBA Championship Season. The Round 3 clash had all the earmarks of a classic matchup between a team with the league leading scorer (Sam Drescher from Ansett) and a side built on a ‘team’ philosophy (the Jets). After one quarter of play the Jets held a 17-16 advantage after Demi Cubillo netted three straight baskets to end the quarter. The second quarter proved to be the turning point as the Bombers tightened the screws defensively during a 16-5 run that gave them the buffer they needed to win the game, finishing the half with a 33-21 lead. The teams played even during the second half with Ansett failing to make any headway into the 12 point gap the Jets had put between them. Drescher finished with a game high 19 with Lauren Flanegan hitting 14. The Jets were led by new recruit Kylie Duggan with 14, Georgii Howlett 13 and Cubillo with 9.

Uni Rebels v Lightning

The Uni Rebels pulled the rabbit out of the hat with a nail biting 56-55 win against Lightning. The Rebels looked like dropping the game to Lightning when they trailed 44-38 heading into the last quarter. The Rebels led 27-23 at the half time break. Lightning had set up a winning position with a big third quarter attack led by Kelli Sealy and the Carbone sisters (Sarah & Emma). Lightning out gunned the Rebels 21-11 in the third quarter with Sealy (17) nailing back to back treys to finish off the quarter, giving Lightning the momentum heading into the last stanza. However, the Rebels didn’t just roll over. Veteran Chantelle Lee (9), Delsey Ah Wang (11) and Justine Schmidt (18) dug deep and came up with the goods in the dying seconds to win as time ran out. Lightning’s Chelsea Cook shared game scoring honours with Schmidt on 18 points.

Warriors v Eagles

The Eagles won the battle of the bottom dwellers as they picked up win number one against the Warriors 44-36. Andrea Bellamy and Rachel Watchorn combined for 28 points (14ea) to lead the Eagles to their first win of the season with Lillian Williams chipping in with 9 points. After level pegging in the first quarter (10-10) the Eagles finished off the first half with a 17-15 lead thanks to a late basket by Sarah Palmer. Warrior newcomer Eloise Bruekers (13) and Jennifer Kinsella (9) tried to rally the troops in the second half, but the Eagles slowly but surely pulled away for the win, outscoring the Warriors 27-21 in the second half.

Ladder:       Tracy Village 3-0, Ansett & Uni Rebels 2-0, Lightning & Eagles 1-2 & Warriors 0-3

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

League MEN –Ansett v Tracy Village Jets

Ansett caused the first upset of the season with a close fought 77-72 win against the Tracy Village Jets. The Jets were alone in first place before the Blues stopped their undefeated run through the efforts of Daniel Florance and Matt Hunt who hit 26 and 20 points respectively. The sides traded baskets throughout the first half with the Blues coming out on top to lead by a slim 27-25 margin at the main break. Jet Travis Ellis lifted his work rate in the second half, scoring 21 of his game high 31, but it wasn’t enough to counter the output from Florance, Hunt & Jake Feeney who also hit double figures with 12. Jet captain Michael MacLean was the only other Jet to hit double figures with 22.

Warriors v Eagles

The Eagles flew past the Warriors with a convincing 95-68 victory with six players hitting double digits during the scoring spree. Buster Perkins led the way with 25 points, including 5 treys in his haul. He was followed closely by Louis Ilton with 21, Henry Bui & Joseph Johnson (13 ea), Sam White on 11 and Shane Harrison with 10. Warrior John Culbertson who has been leading from the front since the season began once again led the Warriors with 18 followed by Rohan Cropley with 15. No other Warriors hit double figures. The Eagles had built up a slim lead of 44-36 in the first half, but opened up in the second half to outscore the Maroons 51-32 with a big 28-14 fourth quarter run that well and truly put the game away.

Lightning v Uni Rebels

The Uni Rebels broke a few records in handing the undermanned Lightning a 152-42 thrashing. The winning margin of 110 points was 10 more than the old record of 100 set by Mitsubishi in 1997 when they beat South Darwin 130-30 and the total of 152 by the Rebels is also a record for most points scored by a team. The 80 points scored by Andre’ Moss is a new scoring record, breaking the old mark of 67 set by Ethan Kennedy a Uni Rebel in last year’s Championship campaign. Moss had 32 in the first half and 48 in the second and about 20 of the points came from dunks. Lightning struggled to put a team on the floor with Coach Jason Ivinson having to suit up to make the numbers and avoid a forfeit. Ivinson & Dean Peachey hit 11 each while Brodie Hertel had 10. Steven Waudby & Jamie Hamill added more points to the Rebel cause with 25 and 15.  

Ladder:       Ansett, Tracy Village Jets, Uni Rebels, Eagles 2-1, Warriors 1-2 & Lightning 0-3

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