Bombers in record run
TRACY Village Jets knocked off Ansett 67-51 to equal a DBA record 27 straight wins at Marrara on Friday night.
The Bombers will carry an undefeated 20-game winning streak for this season into the semi- finals starting next Friday.
With a number of players unavailable, a few veterans from the division one competition filled in and did so quite admirably.
Captain Sam Rioli led the Bombers from the front with a team-high 20 points (including four threes) followed by 13 from Danielle Totham and 10 from Keisha Tinley.
The Jets powered out with a 22-10 run in the first quarter and never looked back.
Sam Drescher and Carla Jones kept the Blues’ hopes alive after the first quarter, but they could not overcome the 12- point buffer the Bombers had set up.
Drescher finished with a game high 22 and Jones added 11.
The Uni Rebels staged a second-half revival to over- haul the Lightning for a hard-fought 54-49 win.
The Rebels had trailed 23-20 at half-time after the Lightning set off on a 12-4 run in the second quarter to grab the lead at the break.
The teams played it even in the third quarter and then the Rebels grabbed the momentum in the last quarter, putting together an 18-10 run for the win.
Jaylene Bonson played particularly well in the second half, racking up all of her 17 points to lead the Rebels.
Tamara Sheppard and Dana Rommel tallied 12 each in support. Starkitsha Higgins led the Lightning with 17.
Both teams are playoff bound, the Rebels take on the undefeated Jets in the major semi-final while Lightning play Ansett in the knock-out.
The Eagles flew up off of the bottom of the ladder with a comprehensive 63-31 defeat of Palmerston for just their fourth win of the season.
The Birds all but blew away the Power in the first quarter with a 24-8 run led by Kymira Woodberry who posted 36 points which is, so far, the highest total for Women’s League this season.
Lillian Williams chipped in with 14, while Tessa Hart was the lone standout for the Power with 10.
In the men’s competition, Ansett defeated the Tracy Village Jets 82-64 with a solid team effort that put them into second place on the ladder and a double chance in the playoffs.
They will now meet the Eagles in the major semifinal next Friday.
John King and Daniel Florance hit 18 points apiece to lead the Blues with Matthew Barrett also reaching double figures with 17.
The Blues jump- started this game with a 23-12 run and led at half time 40-33.
However, the Blues charged away again after the break to push the lead out to 63-50 at the end of three quarters of play and wrapped it all up with a 19-14 run in the last quarter led by Jake Feeney.
Travis Ellis led the Bombers with 21 and Michael MacLean hit 10.
Palmerston slammed the Razzle 104-71 to finish off the regular season on a high with a definite chance to take home some silver in the playoffs.
The Power just missed out on the double chance on percentage points, but they are a solid contender in the final four.
They will take on the Tracy Village Jets next Friday’s knock out semi-final.
The Power took the first quarter behind the shooting of ace scorer Jesse Bell who hit 12 of his game high 41 points during a 26-14 run.
The Razzle didn’t roll over though and hit back with a 27-22 run to close the gap to just seven points. After the break the Power hit the after burners and took control of the game to outscore the green and gold 56-30 to claim the points.
Shaquilee Hohipa-Wilson hit 20 and Aaron Simpson 16 in support of Bell, while stalwart Robert Oliver once again led the Razzle with 28, James Panton had 15 and William McClay 14.
Lucci Cornelius led the Uni Rebels to a nail-biting 65-64 win over the Lightning to finish the season with a victory even though they will not be in the playoffs.
Local lad Lance Schmidt hit the last basket for the Rebels as they hung on for their eighth win of the season.
The Rebels looked on their way to an easy win after a 19-8 run in the first quarter, but Lightning hit back with a 23-17 run to cut the margin to just 5 at the half at 36-31.
The Rebels took the third quarter 16-15 and then had to withstand a challenge from the Lightning as they outscored the Rebels 18-13 in the last quarter to just fall short at the end.
Cameron Bailey led the Lightning with 17 with Tom Godwin and Lemuel Jones getting 10 each. Rebel Cornelius had 20, getting help from Mat Van Pelt with 18 and Jacob Toome with 10.