Jack out of the box on debut
JACK White impressed in his Geelong Supercats debut on Friday night, leading his side to a 83-82 victory away to the Mt Gambier Pioneers.
White finished the game with 20 points and 10 rebounds, including sinking the three-point shot that put Geelong in front deep in the final quarter and saw it leapfrog the Pioneers into top spot on the NBL1 South ladder.
It was a close game from the tip, with neither team leading by more than 10 points throughout the match.
Geelong was down by five with three minutes left before back-to-back threepointers from Gabe Hadley and White saw the Supercats take a one-point lead with two minutes left to play.
Neither team was able to find the basket again, with shot after shot missing the target at both ends of the floor.
A technical foul on Mt Gambier coach Richard Hill even sent Hadley to the free throw line, but he was unable to capitalise on the opportunity.
Hadley was impressive from beyond the three-point line throughout the game, coming up with some big shots down the stretch and scoring all 15 of his match points from beyond the arc.
George Blagojevic notched another double-double for the visitors with 10 points and 14 rebounds, while Demarcus Gatlin finished with 17 points.
The Supercats will be looking to tighten their grip on top place on the ladder when they host the thirdplaced Frankston Blues at the Geelong Arena on Saturday night.