5 September 2012

Photo:  Donna Peters from Eagles played her 600th League game Tuesday night...Congratulations.

Championship Season

Darwin Airport Resort League Results from Tuesday 4 September 2012

League Women –Ansett v Eagles

Eagle Donna Peters celebrated her 600^th League game with a 69-59 win against Ansett as the Birds put it all together to make the occasion one to remember. Peters has played for three clubs beginning with South Darwin in 1992. Most of the games Donna played were with the Waratahs/Warriors before she made the move to the Eagles in last year’s Challenge Season. This game proved to be a tussle with Ansett who have been bolstered by the return of Sam Drescher to the line-up. The Birds jumped out to a narrow 14-12 first quarter lead only to see it slip away early in the second quarter when Kia Bond nailed a three pointer to give the Blues a one point lead after just a minute and a half of play which they turned into a slim half time lead of 22-21. The third quarter proved to be the turning point for the Eagles as they charged into the lead after just two minutes of play when Trish Graham (17) put them up 35-34 which was the beginning of a 17-10 run that put the Eagles out in front 48-42 with one quarter to play. The last quarter was tight, but the Eagles managed to extend their lead out to 12 at one point before running out winners. Biggest margin in the stats was the differential at the free throw line where the Eagles hit 17 to just 2 for the Blues. Graham had support from Katherine Hollis (15) and Michelle Friel (14) while Drescher played the lone hand with a game hith 20 to go with 13 rebounds. Leonie Snowdon from Eagles also had 13 boards.

Lightning v Uni Rebels

Lightning bolted past the Uni Rebels 64-38 in a huge morale boosting win that shocked the Rebels and all who watched. The usually never say die Rebels failed to respond to the challenge by Lightning who thundered away in the first quarter to a 15-0 lead. Lightning kept up the pressure in the second quarter during a 21-6 run that virtually put the game on ice as they held a half time lead of 36-6. The Rebels did respond eventually in the second half as they out pointed Lightning 32-28, but they still suffered their worst defeat in the past few years. Lightning hit 34% from the field to just 18% for the Rebels. Jacinda Lambert & Brittany Ward had double-doubles with Lambert hitting 16pts and grabbing 19 boards while Ward had a game high 23pts to go with 13 boards. Sarah Hagen also had 12 boards and 3 blocked shots. Justine Schmidt hit a team high 13 for the Rebels.

Palmerston v Tracy Village Jets

Georgie Howlett hit eight of her 16 points in the first quarter as the Tracy Village Jets raced to a 18-7 lead that ended in a convincing 82-26 victory…the Bombers seventh in a row. The harassing defense by the Bombers led to 35 turnovers by Palmerson which converted into 25 points for the League favourites. Keisha Tinley enjoyed her best game of the season with 17pts, 4rebs, 3 assists and 5/6 shooting from the free throw line (43% from the field). Sam Rioli also hit 17pts on 50% shooting from the field. Nat Johnston pulled down 11 boards for Palmerston and Nyssa Curwen led the team with 17pts, 9rebs and a couple of assists, but Palmerson was never in the hunt after the tip off.

Ladder:                   Tracy Village Jets 7-0, Lightning 7-1, Eagles & Rebels 3-4, Ansett 2-5 & Palmerston 0-8

Saturday:               Eagles v Uni Rebels 5:30pm & Tracy Village Jets v Ansett 7:00pm

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

League Men –Ansett v Eagles

Ansett dumped the Eagles 95-58 behind the hot handed shooting of Daniel Florance and Matt Hunt who combined for 54 of the Blues total points. Florance (56% shooting) tallied a team and game high 29 along with 18 rebounds and a couple of steals, while Hunt (50% from the field) had 25 points, 4 assists and 5 steals. Tom Hunt added 14 points and 6 boards. The Blues jumped out to a handy 29-15 first quarter lead that turned into a 42-29 half time advantage as the Eagles tried to claw their way back into the contest. Fouls plagued the Birds as they were assessed a total of 32 for the game, leading to 23pts from the charity stripe, whereas the Eagles only hit 8. The Blues also shot 45% from the field to the Eagles 32%. The second half was much the same with the Blues pushing home the advantage during an Eagle demoralizing 25-8 run in the last quarter. Buster Perkins again led the Eagles with 20 points, 11 boards and 4 assists while Joseph Johnson had 17 and Anthony Dennien 10.  

Palmerston v Tracy Village Jets

Tracy Village Jets and Palmerston played out a real ding dong battle that came right down to the wire with the Bombers winning 74-72. Nothing separated the two sides as the clock wound down in the last quarter. It took a pair of free throws by the League’s leading scorer, Travis Ellis, with 26 seconds remaining to give the Bombers a 74-70 lead and a bit of breathing space. Robbie Wilson, however, knocked down a shot with 13 seconds left to put the margin at just two. The Bombers called a time out and just managed to hang on as the siren sounded at the end. Tracy Village had put a bit of distance between the sides at half time when they held a 35-28 lead, but that fell apart in the third quarter when Palmerston went on a 24-18 run that left the sides just one point apart heading into the last quarter. The game was up for grabs during the see-sawing battle, but the Bombers held on for their fifth win of the season. Ellis (33.4ppg) finished up with a game high 26 points and 10 rebounds, Michael MacLean had 16 plus 9 assists and Luke O’Hea had 11 points. Shaquille Hohipa-Wilson topped Palmerston with 25 points 10 rebounds and 3 steals while Tom Hemsley and Aaron Simpson hit 14 each. Turnovers: Palmerston 27, Jets 17.

Razzle v Uni Rebels

The Uni Rebels set the stage early in their game against Razzle as they steamrolled the green and gold 88-53 to catapult over the Eagles into sole possession of fourth place on the ladder. The Rebels seem to be putting together a cohesive unit that may provide a strong challenge to the frontrunners come playoff time. Justin Eckhardt pulled off a double-double with 26 points and 11 rebounds with Jarrod Sheppard (21.4ppg) hitting 24 (including 6 treys) Rohan cropley 11 and Jake Kirby 10 while Henry Bui and Izaak Reinbott from Razzle had 18 and 12. The Rebels charged out to a 17-5 lead after just five minutes of play and were never headed, taking a 28-13 first quarter lead that blossomed out to 42-27 at the half. The Rebels hit 51% from the field, 54% from outside the arc and 50% from the free throw line. Razzle hit 35% from the field and charity stripe…0% from outside the arc 0/9.

Ladder:                   Lightning 5-0, Tracy Village 5-1, Ansett 4-2, Uni Rebels 3-3, Eagles & Palmerston 2-5 & Razzle 0-7

Saturday:                Lightning v Uni Rebels 5:30pm & Tracy Village Jets v Ansett 7:00pm

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