Round 4 Wrap Up!

Round 4 is done so, let's wrap up the weekend and review the standout games from each division. Have a read below:

 

CM

Wyndham 100 def. McKinnon 95

A Saturday night special for all those that tuned in when McKinnon headed to Eagle Stadium to take on the highly fancied Wyndham. It was Kavione Green and Maurice Howard who got the scoreboard ticking over early for Wyndham whilst McKinnon was able to spread the load, it went basket for basket all quarter to open the game. Across the middle two quarters, it was the Cougars who had control with some sharp play from Jayce Beasley (17pts, 9rbs) and Nathan Davis (31pts, 7rbs) while captain Mitch Barry was getting everyone involved with his 6 assists. A big last quarter was always on the cards and Wyndham rose to the occasion led by Maurice Howard (25pts, 2stls). The recent additions of Manel Ayol (17pts, 7rbs) and Aaron Dolny (8pts) who came up big down the stretch proved to be the difference as Wyndham got their depth back. 

Wyndham		Stat	McKinnon
Maurice Howard	25	Points	31	Nathan Davis
Manel Ayol	7	Rebounds	10	Joe Lubarksy
Green, Ayol	3	Assists	6	Mitch Barry
Emmanwiel Deng	3	Steals	2	Davis, Agoth

 

CW

Camberwell 69 def. Sunbury 60

A tough game played out at Balwyn High School on Saturday as the Dragons hosted the Jets in what was tipped to be a tough encounter. It turned out to be exactly that, with a tightly contested game the entire way. Camberwell’s offensive rebounding proved to be the difference in this one as they worked towards 18 offensive boards, led by centre Victoria Sumskas with 4. This gave them the extra opportunity and additional 21-shot attempts for the game. Whilst Dimitra Gkizani battled hard for the Jets with 13 points and 6 rebounds, poor shooting from the 3-point line ultimately hurt them in the end. For the Dragons, it was Samantha Labros with 16 points and 4 steals off the bench who lead the charge, however, she was well supported by an even spread of scoring across the rest of the team.

Camberwell		Stat	Sunbury
Samantha Labros	16	Points	13	Dimitra Gkizani
Eilish Feehan	11	Rebounds	6	Ida Andersson
Gemma Fyffe	5	Assists	4	Chloe Hildebrand
Victoria Sumskas	4	Off. Rebounds	3	Dimitra Gkizani

 

D1M

Pakenham 80 def. Warrandyte 74        

It was the Warriors who jumped out of the blocks quickly as they welcomed the Warrandyte Venom to Cardinia Life on Sunday afternoon. It was Kasseka Mpota (13pts, 5rbs) who started the game strong for the Warriors, scoring the ball well after subbing in early. It was Michael Birt and Matthew Scammell who started to get things moving for the Venom, with the dynamic guards starting to breakthrough a strong Pakenham defensive unit. Birt was enormous for Warrandyte, finishing with 32 points to go with his 6 rebounds and 3 steals – he is going to keep Warrandyte in the hunt for finals if he continues to perform like this. For Pakenham, it was very much a team-first approach as they spread the load and had several contributors hitting double-figure scoring as they kept themselves undefeated.

Pakenham		Stat	Warrandyte
Elias Kafrouni	15	Points	32	Michael Birt II
Elias Kafrouni	11	Rebounds	14	Bryan Moore
Michael Johns	4	Assists	2	Bryan Moore
Michael Johns	+13	+/-	+3	David Moore

 

D1W

Mildura 74 def. Warrandyte 71

Another game-winner from the Mildura Heat as they improve to a 4 and 2 record. Warrandyte put up their best fight of the season, led by captain Ellie Locke with 16 points and 9 assists and Michaela Kuen who had a huge game with 20 points to go with her 20 rebounds. This young Venom team fought hard all game but giving up 23 offensive rebounds caused significant issues for the girls. For Mildura, Tyra Johnson was the hero with 18 points, including her game-winning 3-point shot and she was well supported by Amy Saunders off the bench with 14 points and 11 rebounds. This would’ve been a massive upset for the Venom, but they will have to wait another week as they search for their first win of the season.

Mildura		Stat	Warrandyte
Tyra Johnson	18	Points	20	Michaela Kuen
Brooke Edson	13	Rebounds	20	Michaela Kuen
Demalza Henry	4	Assists	9	Ellie Locke
Demalza Henry	3	Steals	2	Locke, Wylie

 

D2M

Altona 80 def. Maccabi 77

Huge performances from Idan Shamis and Adam Klas have almost inspired Maccabi to an upset win over one of the Championship fancies in the Altona Gators. Shamis set the tone early, scoring at will as he leads his Warriors team to an 8-point lead at the first break. The Gators responded strongly in the second quarter as Nick Formosa and Tyson Burton ensured that they got the scoreboard ticking over. In the second half, both teams went basket for basket as they jostled to win this tightly contested game, ultimately it was Samson Rocker with a putback off his own miss that got the edge for Altona and gave them the win.

Altona		Stat	Maccabi
Formosa, Burton	19	Points	23	Idan Shamis
Nick Patel	12	Rebounds	10	Adam Klas
Formosa, Cousins	4	Assists	5	Klas, Shamis
Nick Formosa	4	Steals	4	Adam Klas

 

D2W

Surf Coast 70 def. Blackburn 64

Blackburn was almost able to pull off the upset of the round as they faced a strong Surf Coast team. The Vikings were able to absolutely dominate the offensive rebounds, pulling down 34 offensive rebounds across the game, led by Michelle Johanson with 7. This allowed the Vikings to attempt 32 more field goal attempts than Surf Coast but it was the percentage they were shooting at that ultimately cost them in the end. Despite Surf Coast turning the ball over 22 times and losing the rebounding contest, Cortney Hollowood (28pts, 5as) were able to lead her team to the win. They shot a much better percentage from the field so took the most of their opportunities. The Vikings will be upset that their poor shooting cost them this one!

Surf Coast		Stat	Blackburn
Cortney Hollowood	28	Points	15	Samantha Zennaro
Kim Hammond	22	Rebounds	11	Michelle Johanson
Cortney Hollowood	5	Assists	2	Maggie McCarthy
Cortney Hollowood	3	Steals	2	Rebecca Cunningham

 

VYCM

Casey 87 Def. Diamond Valley 85

It was a battle of physicality in Youth Champ Men between the Casey Cavaliers and Diamond Valley Eagles with some strong and agile bigs throwing their bodies around. Early it was the Eagles who got off to a quick start scoring a huge 35 points in the first quarter. Casey had to dig their way out of the hole and without question they did immediately getting to a 1-point margin at the half. The second half saw an exciting and thrilling competition with neither team waving the white flag. Casey’s short burst in the 3^rd gave them just enough to hold in and take the win by just 2. Tony Marchese off the bench produced 20 points coupled with Bolton's 16 points. Daniel Poelsma was dominant finishing with 29 points to go with 5 rebounds falling just short.   

Casey		Stats	Diamond Valley
Tony Marchese	20	Points	29	Daniel Poelsma
Kobe Miles	7	Rebounds	9	AJ Magbegor
Kobe Miles	4	Assists	2	AJ Magbegor
Kobe Miles	2	Steals	2	AJ Magbegor

 

VYCW

Nunawading 80 Def. Bendigo 65

After a slow start coming off a grand final appearance, the Nunawading Spectres get their first win for the 2023 season against the Braves. In a slow start in the first, the Spectres went for a 31-point quarter to hit the halftime break. It became a stealing frenzy as they came away with 26 steals for the game forcing 44 turnovers for the Braves. Unfortunately for the Braves it wasn’t their day, especially without the likes of Richardson, Condron and Blanch. Neave Hancock-Wolfe was dominant across the board for Nunawading filling the stat sheet in almost every column. Shooter Jessica Smith did what she could, coming away with 16 points and 11 rebounds with Isabel Whitelaw with the game high of 21.        

Nunawading		Stats	Bendigo
Neave Hancock-Wolfe	19	Points	21	Isabel Whitelaw
Julia Gnocato	5	Rebounds	11	Jessica Smith
Anika Stehbens	6	Assists	4	Jessica Smith
Sasha Korakis	6	Steals	4	Taylah Rennie

 

YL1M

Collingwood 95 Def. Bulleen 93

A clash between two very competitive teams in Youth One Men with the All-Stars snatching the W over Bulleen in an overtime battle! A constant up-chop and change game with numerous lead changes through the entire game it got all the way to the very end with a great off-ball cut and finish by Marcel Haj to tie the game at 84. Both teams had opportunities to take the win yet overtime it was. An after-time-out play from Bulleen, Holland came up clutch with an offensive rebound missed by Stewart to then dribble from the key out to the corner for a massive 3pt bucket to tie the game at 93 with just over 10 seconds left. With a timeout to use, the All Stars draw up an isolation play for Wetnhiak at the top of the key and with a tough pump fake and step through just inside the 3pt line, a 1-foot jump shot falls on the buzzer!

Collingwood		Stats	Bulleen
Rieth Wetnhiak	35	Points	24	Nathan Stewart
Kuich Gatwech	8	Rebounds	16	Jamie Uhr-Henry
Wetnhiak / Mackog	2	Steals	2	Thomas Giannatos
Wetnhiak	6/9	3pt	5/15	Nathan Stewart

 

YL1W

Camberwell 76 Def. Wyndham 61

It was an offensive-driven game in Youth One Women between the Camberwell Dragons and Wyndham with over 160 shot attempts in the 4 quarters. A slower start for both teams in the first half it was only a 1-point margin going into the half. Bringing the game to a tie at 3 quarter time the Dragons came home strong with a 29-point quarter to close out the game. Camberwell’s ability to get to the line proved to be beneficial making 13 of their 18 chances with Wyndham only putting up 6 attempts from the stripe. Dominating the rebound count with 26 offensive rebounds, this gave the Dragons the upper hand coming away with 17-second change points. A shorthanded Wyndham team fought, showing the league they can compete no matter the situation.

Camberwell		Stats	Wyndham
Jacinta Li	21	Points	10	Goodman / Moddie / Bartlet / Spehar
Lucy Mann	12	Rebounds	16	Grace Spehar
Kaitlyn Wallace	6	Assists	3	Moodie / Ali
Rachel Smith	5	O Rebounds	4	Grace Spehar

 

YL2M

Whittlesea 65 Def. Wallan 62

A massive Thursday Night Hoops for Big V in the Easter Holidays as we had the Whittlesea Pacers host the Wallan Panthers outside the weekend. It was all Whittlesea in the first getting out to a 17 to 8 first quarter. Wallan did their part to make it a battle as they chipped away in the second closing the margin. A tight finish saw this game come all the way to the end battling for the ball on every occasion. Wallan had a chance at the end of a very smart play by Lachlan Lombardo throwing the ball off the ring on his 3^rd free throw attempt and springing the ball back to himself. With a kick-out pass to Luke Cairns who heaved up a deep 3pt attempt, it fell just short looking on target and hitting the front of the rim.

Whittlesea		Stats	Wallan
Ethan Bateman	23	Points	15	Dylan Lombardo
Ethan Bateman	17	Rebounds	7	Dion Stacey
Chayse Pinono	3	Assists	2	Lachlan Lombardo
Nicholas Di Grazia	5	Steals	2	Lombardo / Cairns / Villegas

 

YL2W

Albury 74 Def. Mornington 71

A long trip up North for the Breakers being hosted at the Lauren Jackson Stadium by the Bandits. It may have come into effect as the Breakers came out of the gates slow scoring just 7 points, giving up 17 to the Bandits. In a great fight, they were able to bring it back to the hands of Katramados. Albury held the charge and came out strong in the 3^rd quarter holding onto an 8-point margin at 3-quarter time. Mornington gave it everything as they did not want to travel all the way up and back to fall short, yet unfortunately, this was the case. The Bandits held the lead and came away with the win by just 3 points giving Mornington their first loss for the year pushing themselves to 2^nd on the ladder leading into round 5.  

Albury		Stats	Mornington
Tahli Smith	14	Points	19	Kijana Katramados
Tahli Smith	16	Rebounds	11	Bridget Morrison
Quintal / Fielder	2	Assists	2	Grace Reidy
Bella Fielder	9	Steals	3	Kijana Katramados