Redbacks romp to first win
Ararat showed it will remain a finals threat in the Country Basketball League south-west conference this season with a firstup win against Millicent on Saturday night.
The Redbacks were surrounded by question marks after dealing with the loss of star guard and leading scorer Zac Dunmore from last season.
But the team responded with a strong performance against the South Australian visitors at Ararat Fitness Centre, running its offence through DJ Woods and Josh Fiegert on the way to an 8985 win.
Woods and Fiegert were lights out from three-point range, combining for 10 made triples and 58 points.
Centre Andrew Cameron was also handy, chipping in with 13.
The Redbacks led by 21 points at the start of the fourth quarter, but a fierce comeback from the Magic nearly brought them undone.
The visitors, led by Luke Black and Jordan Robertson, slashed the margin to three points with 14 seconds left, but Fiegert split a pair of free throws to put the game out of reach.
It was a heartening first-up win for the Redbacks, who were eliminated in the first week of finals last season.
Hornets buzzing
It was also an encouraging return to the court for the Horsham Hornets, who had little difficulty dispatching Millicent 107-76 at Horsham Basketball Stadium on Sunday.
All 10 Hornets scored in the game, with young swingman Jeremiah Mckenzie, 25 points, and coach Tim Pickert, 23, leading the way.
Big men Austin Mckenzie, 17 points, and Damien Skurrie, 12, were also prominent in the wire-to-wire win.
The Hornets’ outside shooting was particularly noteworthy, with the team outscoring Millicent 48-3 from long distance.
The early percentage boost saw Horsham end the round in fourth place on the south-west conference men’s ladder, with Ararat just behind in fifth.
Women fire up
Horsham Lady Hornets completed a trio of wins for the Wimmera-grampians region with a dominant 69-37 win against Millicent in the women’s division. Forward Faith Mckenzie was a standout with 26 points, but there was no shortage of contributors.
Centre Caitlin Story and guard Georgia Hiscock scored 13 and 11 respectively, Olivia Jones made a successful return from injury with nine points and youngsters Kara Shuttleworth, Imogen Worthy and Jayde Ellis all gained valuable court time.
The performance was an encouraging one for new coach Tony Sleep; the Magic won last season’s south-west conference championship, eliminating the Lady Hornets in a semi-final along the way.
Next-up
A highlight of round two will be the official return of the Stawell Wildcats to men’s competition with a road game against Mount Gambier at 7pm on Saturday.
The Wildcats have been absent from the competition for the past two seasons after withdrawing due to a lack of player numbers and are eager to test themselves against the powerful Lakers.
Horsham’s men’s and women’s teams will also be in action with road games against Bellarine, with the Lady Hornets playing at 6pm on Saturday before the men take the court at 8pm.