The final regular season round of the 2013 Central Australian Basketball League had the Eastern Mavericks hosting the North Adelaide Rockets at their Mt Barker home. In round 9 the Lady Mavs held a late Rockets charge to claim victory by 1 point, in the weekend’s rematch North Adelaide equalled the series 1-1 with a 78-54 win to hold a 23 point differential.

Injuries have beset the Eastern Mavericks team over the past 5 weeks, and they have lost their last 4 games, including a shocker to low placed Southern Tigers.  They have fallen from 2nd place and double chance in the finals to a straight run of elimination matches.

Amanda MacDermot has been sidelined since their round 14 clash with the Panthers, Jemma Thacker was to miss a second week on the trot and their backbone point guard Tenille Searl pulled herself from the Rockets match early with knee concerns.

It was a milestone night for Eastern’s Madison Bycroft (100 games) and Jaimi Rock (50 games), though it would have taken a monster win to lift the Mavericks into 4th place and a home elimination final as their competitors sat well above them on percentage.

Both Tess Madgen and Alex Wilson returned to the side from international tours for Australia and the game was set to be a great test of the two teams who had both locked down finals appearances.
The Rockets had Easterns measure in the opening term, scoring the first points they were able then able to maintain a lead after Madgen had tied it up with a three pointer. With 8 first quarter scoring contributors the Rockets shot at 47 per cent while it was Maverick’s big guns Madgen, Shannon Tarran and Wilson, scoring all but two from Georgia Green, with the bulk of Easterns points.

Green has been developing over the past weeks into a consistent scorer for the Mavericks, with 11 points, 13 rebounds on the night, she provides a strong presence on the boards at both ends and will add some valuable depth to the Mavericks bench in the coming finals campaign.

Despite pulling in 7 offensive boards which led to more shooting attempts in the first term, the Mavericks shot at a lower 32 per cent, coupled with their high foul count which allowed the Rockets easy points, they failed to capitalize.

Searl did not return for the second period, having undergone knee reconstruction in the past she was not to risk playing on with any soreness the week before finals. As expected the Mavericks fought on, a mere 2 points in the opening 5 minutes for the Rockets allowed Eastern a run which culminated in Megan Thomas converting one of two to tie the scores.

Finally Jess Smart and Shannon McKay broke the Rocket’s drought, regaining the lead momentarily before Madgen scored from down town and a rebounding foul put them over the limit, Green tied the scores again with one of two at the bonus line.

Mavs coach Nathan Jones’ heart could be forgiven for skipping a beat as he watched Madgen hit the ground clutching her ankle with little more than a minute left in the half. With what was hopefully no more than a light sprain she left the court to place it in an ice bucket, after the game Mavericks club president Neal lean commented “Tess will do everything she needs to do, to be right for next weekend, she’s completely professional like that”.

The game went on with the two teams trading bonus trips to the line, the Rockets came out on top and a buzzer beating 3 from Wilson could only close the gap to 9 points.

A scoreless opening 5 of the third term had the Mavericks well and truly on the ropes, The Rockets employed a zoned full court press that troubled their opposition and caused a spike in turnovers. Jo Hill and Jamie-Lee Peris made the most of them, going to work under the ring they totalled 8 points as Eastern languished. Bycroft broke the drought and the Mavericks enjoyed a short burst as Green converted a couple of ‘and-one’ plays and Rock got on the board with a three-pointer to bring the deficit back to 11.

The Rockets finished the term with another 8 unanswered points for a sturdy 19 point buffer at the last break. The final quarter bred no surprises as the rockets carried out the game by 24 points, Hill finished as team high scorer with 14 among 4 other double figure teammates. Wilson added 5 last term points for a game high 15 points, she added 12 rebounds (7 offensive) for a double-double.
The opportunity was there for the Mavericks, a below average shooting night, 28 fouls and a whopping 30 turnovers the crucial factors. A positive sign for the Mavs, their 23 offensive rebounds, something Jones will relish against a team they hope to face again this August. Eastern Mavericks 54 (Wilson 15, Madgen 12, Green 11) defeated by North Adelaide Rockets 78 (Hill 14, Peris, Smart 11).

The Rockets win puts them just ahead of Sturt by percentage, and gives them runner up bragging rights for the regular season. They will now host the Sabres at their Hillcrest haven in a qualifying final this Saturday. Over the weekend the Flames secured an undefeated season as they put the Eagles down, relegating Forestville to 4th place where they will now host the Mavericks at Wayville in an elimination final.

Forestville took two wins against the Mavericks this season, Eastern lost the most recent match by 19 points, however with a full strength squad back in round 7 that difference was only 3 points at the same venue they will meet at this Saturday. Aside from any serious damage Madgen is sure to be back on the court this weekend, with Alex Wilson also back in the line-up, and Thacker, Searl and a hopeful MacDermot available for selection the Mavericks will enter this contest full of confidence they can make the first step toward a championship.

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By Lachlan Eggers