North Adelaide Rockets (6-5, 5th) v South Adelaide Panthers (6-5, 6th)

The Rockets and Panthers will do battle on Saturday in the men’s Match of the Round, which tips off at the earlier time of 6.30pm.

South is currently in the midst of an inevitable form surge, having now won three straight matches.

In Round 10, the Panthers overcame a three point half-time deficit to defeat Centrals 91-83 at Marion.

Daniel Johnson put in another splendid performance with 34 points, 17 rebounds and 5 rejections in 33 minutes, while Mitch Creek marked his return to the line-up with 28 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds.

A day later, Johnson and Creek combined for 46 points and 28 boards, while Isaiah Omamogho scored 18 points, as South knocked off Woodville at St Clair 90-80.

The Rockets extended their winning streak to six thanks to a 79-67 away win over the Warriors.

Matthew Lycett had 22 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks as North won for the 12th time in its last 14 regular season away games.

However, the Rockets’ run came to a halt the next day at home to Sturt, where they were comprehensively defeated 67-81.

Lycett was again the top man with 16 points, while Tom Rowe had 15.

The last time North met the Panthers was in Round 2, where South got home 77-76, despite the absence of Johnson.

This is a crucial game for both teams, who, along with Sturt, are in fourth position with a 6-5 record.

Creek will not feature in this one, but with Johnson in full flight, I think the Panthers might sneak home.

Eastern Mavericks (4-7, 8th) v Sturt Sabres (6-5, 4th)

The Eastern Mavericks will be playing for their season when they host Sturt on Saturday.

The Mavs’ dismal home record has been largely the cause of their struggles to date, having won just once in five attempts.

They have been a much better side on the road, winning three out of six.

Eastern split its road double last weekend, going down to West in overtime 77-84, before knocking off the Tigers 97-79, breaking a five game losing streak.

Brad Hill had 22 points and 7 rebounds against the Bearcats, before exploding for 33 and 10 versus Southern.

Aaron Bruce and Shane Breheny also stepped it up against the Tigers; Bruce had 27 points and 8 assists, while Breheny had 19 points and 20 rebounds.

The Sabres got their weekend off to a perfect start with a 61-59 home win over top-side Norwood.

Darren Ng was the Player of the Game with 21 points, 8 boards and 6 assists, while Jacob Holmes had 17 points and 17 rebounds.

Sturt then sealed its return to the top five with an impressive 81-67 defeat of North at Hillcrest, thanks to 22 points, 20 rebounds and 9 assists from Holmes, and another 20 points from Ng.

The Sabres have suddenly hit form, something that was not the case when they played the Mavs in Round 2.

On that night, Eastern took advantage of the absence of Ng and Jan Warbout to score a 95-93 win at Pasadena.

The Mavs will be desperate to keep their finals hopes alive and will likely score a lot of points, but they have struggled defensively all season, so expect Sturt to secure another victory.

Norwood Flames (8-2, 1st) v Southern Tigers (2-9, 9th)

The Flames will be hoping to fend off fierce competition for first place when they tackle the Tigers at Mars on Saturday.

After going down to Sturt 59-61, Norwood is only half a game ahead of West and Forestville, although it does have a game in hand.

Against the Sabres, the Flames failed to put the ball through the bottom of the net in the first half, scoring just 25 points on 8/35 shooting.

In the second half, Norwood improved its shooting to 15/36, but made just 1/4 free throws.

Andrew Webber scored a team-high 16 points, while Todd Matthews had 11 points, 8 boards, 5 steals and 4 assists.

Southern, meanwhile suffered through another tough weekend, losing two home games, so now a bottom-five finish appears a foregone conclusion.

The Tigers found some offence, but at the same time, their defence dropped off.

Southern led Forestville by seven at half-time and were level at three-quarter time, but was smashed 19-33 in the fourth, going down 78-92.

Marcus Robinson was the Tigers’ best there with 18 points and 11 rebounds.

On Sunday, Southern led the Mavs by 10 at half-time, but was then outscored 21-49 after half-time, losing 79-97.

Codey Ellison was strong in that one with 17 points and 7 boards.

Norwood will go in full of confidence, having picked up an easy 68-36 win in the teams’ previous clash.

Do not expect a much different result here: Flames to win big.

Central District Lions (1-9, 10th) v West Adelaide Bearcats (8-3, 2nd)

The West Adelaide Bearcats will be hoping to keep their Minor Premiership chances in tack when they visit the Lions on Saturday.

With Jeff Dowdell absent, the Bearcats struggled to close out their games last week.

West was fortunate to escape with an overtime victory versus Eastern after giving up an 11 point lead going into the final stanza, but was not so lucky against Forestville, going down 83-88.

Against the Mavs, Anthony Spadavecchia, Blake Truslove, David Nurse and Paul Rankin combined for 61 points and 33 rebounds, while in the Eagles match, Nurse had 24 points and 7 assists and Truslove scored 19 points with 16 boards.

Central Districts played just the one match last weekend, which was an eight point road defeat to South.

Josh Kollasch was the Lions’ best with 19 points, 7 boards and 6 dimes, while Lachlan Parker had 19 points and 8 rebounds.

Centrals has now dropped its past four games and is just 1-9 overall.

Last time these teams played off, the Lions led at three-quarter time, but were rolled in the fourth and lost 71-79.

I do not think they will get as close this time. The Bearcats should bounce back from last week’s defeat and end their losing streak at one with a comfortable win.

Forestville Eagles (8-3, 3rd) v Woodville Warriors (5-6, 7th)

The Warriors will need to put their Round 10-11 misery behind them when they visit Forestville on Saturday.

Woodville entered last weekend in a tie for fourth position, but back-to-back home losses has seen it fall to seventh.

Against North, Adam Blight put up 21 points and 10 rebounds, but the normally-reliable Colin Matteson, Josh Knight, Zane Reeves and Cameron Wilson combined for just 33 points on 13-41 shooting, as the Warriors lost by 12.

Wilson had 20 points and Matteson 18 versus the Panthers, but South was too good, winning by 10.

The Eagles, in contrast, had an excellent weekend, with come-from-behind wins over Southern and West.

The Tigers led the Eagles by seven at half-time, but led by Rashad Tucker, Brad Sullivan and Neil Mottram, Forestville rolled them in the second half for a 92-78 road win.

Tucker had 22 boards, 15 points and 8 assists, while Sullivan had 19 points and Mottram 15 points and 8 rebounds.

The Bearcats were up four over Forestville at the end of three, but a 25-16 fourth stanza got the Eagles home 88-83.

Sullivan had a game-high 25 points, including four treys, whereas Tucker was again instrumental with 16 points, 13 boards and 8 assists.

The last time these sides clashed, Tucker was reasonably quiet, but Forestville still won 77-63 at St Clair.

However, in the last five matches between these teams, the visitor has been victorious, with Woodville winning its last two at Wayville.

I believe the trend will break this time. The Eagles are in great form and I expect them to get the win and keep pace with Norwood and West.

James Woite