Brad Sullivan swished a three-pointer from the top of the arc with just 4.1 seconds remaining as Forestville overcame a fast-finishing Norwood for a stunning 90-89 road victory on Saturday.

With 6.3 seconds remaining and the Flames leading by two, the Eagles had possession from the sideline in their front half.

Coach Andy Simons had no time-outs left, but Norwood coach Brad Davidson surprisingly took one himself.

This allowed Simons to draw up a play for the on-song Sullivan, who came off a double-screen just above the foul-line to knock down the game-winning three.

Norwood Point Guard Todd Matthews had the opportunity to win the game on the buzzer, but his rushed layup was off the mark as Forestville broke their Mars hoodoo, in yet another classic between the two sides.

Sullivan was on fire all night, finishing with a season-high 26 points, including 6-13 from beyond the arc.

Rashad Tucker had 12 points and 15 boards, to go with 6 assists and 3 steals.

Adam Doyle had another solid outing with 9 points, 7 assists and 3 steals.

Nick Blair had 15 points, while Brad Haydon and John Wernham each chipped in with 14.

Matthews scored 21 points, including three consecutive three point bombs in the fourth quarter. He also had 7 boards and 4 assists, and finished 5-7 from the carpark.

Andrew Webber had 10 of his 21 points in the final period. The Eagles’ nemesis hit 4-7 threes, but shot just 3-6 from the foul-line.

David Cooper was the shining light for the Flames of the opening three periods, finishing with 23 points and 15 rebounds.

Forestville led by 15 at quarter-time, 11 at half-time and 10 at three-quarter time. They were also up 14 late in the third, but were outscored 6-2 over the final minute of the period.

With Trent Fildes missing, Simons used predominantly a six-man rotation throughout the match, with seventh man Majok Deng seeing just 6.24 of action.

In contrast, Davidson used 11 players, meaning the Norwood players would be fresher over the final 10 minutes.

The Flames built on their mini run to end the third by extending their defence to the full 94 feet.

For the most part, this troubled the Eagles, who either turned the ball over, or started their offence later in the shot clock than preferred.

At the other end, Matthews and Webber started getting the open looks they had been craving, with the Forestville defenders also letting their guard down in the paint.

With just over a minute left, the Flames led by four points with possession, before Doyle stole the ball off Ben Howell and converted it into two points.

After trading stops, Howell missed a potentially game-sealing shot, before Sullivan scored the game’s final basket.

As they did against West Adelaide, the Eagles pushed the ball up the floor with authority.

The bigger, older and less athletic Flames were slow getting back into transition, and struggled to stop Forestville’s off-ball movement in their half-court offence.

The Eagles also got to the rim in one-on-one situations with too much ease.

Only Cooper was offering any resistance on Norwood’s part, with fellow big men Nick Hambour and Keith Krause non-factors.

Forestville looked on song right from the get-go, jumping out to a 7-0 lead.

The Flames got the next six points, before the Eagles put another 11 on the board.

Forestville did a good job of mixing up between man and trap on defence, with Norwood unable to get into a rhythm offensively, trailing 27-12 at quarter-time.

The two teams traded blows for most of the second period, before a 9-0 run capped by a Webber trey got the Flames back to within just six points with one minute remaining in the half.

However, answering baskets from Blair and Doyle made it 46-35 at the long break.

 

Defining moment: For all Sullivan’s three was worth, Norwood still had plenty of time to win the game. After the basket was scored, Davidson took another time-out, meaning the Flames would advance the ball to in line with the three-point line at their offensive end. With Matthews and Webber on fire, either one would be an excellent option. Matthews inbounded to Cooper in the post, then lost his marker. However, Cooper’s handoff was poor, and Matthews did not gather the ball cleanly. After scooping the ball up, Matthews’ rushed left hand layup was off the money, with the Eagles needing a full forty minutes to secure their victory.

Forestville verdict: One week prior in their loss to Sturt, it seemed Forestville would struggle to compete with the league’s best sides, after a favourable first three rounds that saw them go undefeated. However, an unlucky loss to West and a sensational win against Norwood prove what this young, athletic Eagles side is capable of. The biggest question mark is over whether they can continue to compete with only a six or seven man rotation, but that remains to be seen. Forestville’s next match is against Eastern at Wayville on May 21.

Norwood verdict: The Flames have finally lost, albeit by one point. Their wealth of size and experience will trouble most teams, but against the Eagles, their lack of speed and athleticism was exposed for much of the night, and without the hot shooting of Matthews and Webber, they would not have come as close as they did. Look for opposition teams to exploit this weakness. For their next match on May 21, Norwood travel to St Clair to face the Warriors.

By James Woite