Men's Previews - Round 16

Eastern Mavericks v Forestville Eagles

The Eagles (11-4, 2nd) will be hoping to maintain their place in the top two when they visit the Mavericks (4-11, 9th) on Saturday.

Forestville currently sits in second position, half a game behind Norwood, whom they lost to last week, and one game ahead of West.

The Eagles have lost their season splits against both clubs.

Against the Flames, Forestville trailed by 19 midway through the third quarter, before Nic Blair and Majok Deng headed a sensational comeback that fell just short of victory.

Blair had 12 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, while Deng equalled his career high with 8 points, as well as adding 2 blocks.

Rashad Tucker continued his excellent form with 25 points, 12 rebounds and 7 steals.

On the other hand, Eastern is now second from the bottom, its lowest rank of the season.

The Mavericks were the only away side to lose in Round 15, going down to North 87-94, in spite of leading at the end of the first, second and third quarters.

Ben Madgen, who sits fourth in scoring at 22.2 ppg, was fantastic with 32 points and 6 rebounds, while Aaron Bruce had 16 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds and 3 steals.

Shane Breheny had 13 points, 10 rebounds and 4 steals, and Mark Hautop produced 12 points and 5 rebounds.

The last time they met, Madgen, Bruce and Brad Hill put on a show, combining for 83 points, but the Mavs still lost, 96-100.

This is a danger game for the Eagles, who cannot afford to take this one likely, even though their opponents have won just one of their last 10.

Ultimately, Forestville should win and maintain its top two seed.

Norwood Flames v Woodville Warriors

It is make or break for the Warriors (7-8, 7th) on Saturday when they face ladder-leaders Norwood (11-3, 1st) at Mars.

A win would keep alive Woodville’s dream of a very unlikely finals appearance, so long as at least one of West, Sturt and North loses this weekend.

However, a loss would confine the gallant Warriors another season without finals.

Woodville had no game last week, having played two the week before.

The first of those matches was against the Bearcats, whom they shocked for the second time this year. Jarrod Graves and Colin Matteson led the team in scoring with 16 apiece.

The second was versus Sturt, where the Warriors led by 10 heading into the final quarter, before making just three field goals in the final period and going down by three. Zane Reeves was the high man in that one with 19 points.

This week’s opponents, the Flames, are back in first place after defeating Forestville 81-74.

David Cooper (22 points, 17 rebounds, 4 assists, 6 blocks), Andrew Webber (22 points) and Todd Matthews (9 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals) each made big plays down the stretch to secure the victory.

The win was Norwood’s seventh on the road from eight attempts, with the one loss to the tune of just two points.

The last time they met, the Flames were victorious, 77-67.

I believe the scoreline will be similar this time around.

Sturt Sabres v South Adelaide Panthers

In the Match of the Round, Sturt (9-6, 4th) has the opportunity to end South Adelaide’s (7-8, 6th)finals ambitions when the two sides clash at Pasadena on Saturday.

The Sabres are in fourth position with a two-game advantage over the Panthers, who sit in sixth place.

Sturt has had two weeks to prepare for this game, because of a bye last Saturday.

The Sabres instead played twice in Round 14, going down by three to Forestville, and then defeating the Warriors by three.

Darren Ng combined for 50 points over the two games, including nine treys.

Ng will be absent for the game this Saturday.

Jacob Holmes produced 55 points and 28 rebounds in total.

South, in contrast, suffered a crucial defeat at the hands of West on Saturday, going down 67-75.

After trailing the entire match, the Panthers closed to within four with 2.20 remaining, but fell just short of a stunning revival.

Daniel Johnson was “held” to 32 points, adding 19 rebounds, 5 blocks and 4 assists.

Isaiah Omamogho scored 11 points and Kyle Howe-Tipene 10.

The last time they met, the Panthers took advantage of Holmes’ absence to win 102-99.

Home court advantage will probably see Sturt home, but this match has the potential for an upset, especially with Ng out.

West Adelaide Bearcats v Southern Tigers

With a tough final two rounds to follow, the Bearcats (10-5, 3rd) need to make the most of this week’s home clash with inevitable Wooden Spooners Southern (2-13, 10th).

West is by no means locked into third place, where it is stationed presently.

The Bearcats, mathematically, can still finish top or miss the finals completely.

With matches against the Sabres and Flames to come, this is a danger game for West.

The Bearcats held off a fast-finishing South last week, before again winning by eight.

West shot just 35% from the field, but made up for it by going 17/18 from the foul-line and turning the ball over on only seven occasions.

Jeff Dowdell had another great night with 30 points and 11 rebounds, while David Nurse had his highest scoring output in a month with 13.

Blake Truslove and Ben Evans scored only 11 points between them, but did have 13 and 12 rebounds respectively.

To say the Tigers are due for a win would be an understatement, having lost 10 in a row and 13 of 15 overall.

Southern would have to win all three of its remaining games to avoid the Wooden Spoon, after going down to Centrals 56-69.

Reece Turner (11 points) and Sam Hemmings (10 points) were the only Tigers to score in double figures, although Michael Florance did have 10 boards.

The last time they met, the Bearcats defeated Southern 82-70.

West should win this one comfortably.

Central District Lions v North Adelaide Rockets

North Adelaide (9-6, 5th) can seal another finals birth if it can defeat Centrals (4-10, 8th) at Starplex on Saturday.

The Rockets have a two game lead over South and Woodville, also having won the head-to-head split with both sides.

In Round 15, North came from behind to defeat the Mavericks, its ninth win from 11 games.

Matthew Lycett continued his strong form with 24 points and 8 rebounds in a season-high 38 minutes.

Lycett is averaging 20.7 ppg over his last seven matches.

Josh Bond, Brett Collins, Tom Rowe and Ryan Franceschinis each had at least 14 points, as the Rockets continued their consistent spread of scorers.

The Lions are in the midst of their best form for some time, having won three of four.

Their last two wins have come without young tall Daniel Carlin.

Centrals knocked off Southern last week, behind 24 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists from Joshua Kollasch.

Kollasch is averaging 21.5 ppg over his past four outings.

Lachlan Parker added 16 points, while Luke Frost had 12 rebounds and 9 points.

The last time they met, the Rockets got up 74-68.

I expect a higher scoring game this time, but with North to get the points again.

By James Woite




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