Redbacks poised

Ararat teams are poised to make their move in Country Basketball League at Ararat Fitness Centre on Saturday night when they take on Terang Tornadoes.

The Redbacks, with their first double-header men’s and women’s fixture at home, are on the hunt for winning points in the league’s south-west conference.

The Ararat women’s team has already tasted success and experienced noisy home-town support this season.

But the men’s team remains on the hunt for winning points and will make its home-court debut.

Redbacks men’s coach Steve Cronin said the injection of Josh Fiegert, Zac Dunmore and point guard Jesse Poulton would make a significant difference to the team that went down to Colac a fortnight ago.

“We’ll pretty much have a full list with most players available, which means I will be able to put the strongest team on the court,” he said.

“There is plenty of enthusiasm there. After this week it will give us a better idea of where we’re at. It is hard to gauge at this stage.

“The hardest part at the moment is developing team cohesion with people often unavailable with shift work and other commitments and others playing and training in Ballarat.

“When we played Colac their offence and defensive intensity was high and I think our boys got a bit of a shock.

“But it’s all looking positive and we’re expecting a big crowd for the boys’ first home game.”

The women’s clash is at 6pm and the men’s game 8pm.

In north-west conference competition, Horsham Hornets face a road trip fresh from a crushing win over Bendigo Braves in Horsham. The unbeaten top-of-the-table Hornets take on fifth-placed Castlemaine Cannons at Castlemaine’s War Memorial Stadium at 8pm on Saturday, then slip over to Kyneton Sports and Aquatic Centre for a 2pm Sunday encounter with winless Kyneton Tigers.

Horsham beat the Braves 94-42 in a show of strength on Saturday night, on-court leader Tim Pickert, 20 points, and Matt Lovel, 17, continuing top form.

Matty Lloyd points.

The Lady Hornets also meet Castlemaine and Kyneton, at 6pm on Saturday and noon, Sunday, respectively, in a road trip. They were also on top against the Braves last weekend.

The Lady Hornets, also leading their competition, won 71-53, Georgia Hiscock top-scoring with 17 points and Olivia Jones, 11, and Caitlin Story, 10, also doing well. also shone with 15