In the first mid-week fixture for the season, the North Adelaide men hosted the Eastern Mavericks on ANZAC Day. The Mavericks are yet to win this season and looked to get their first win over the Rockets who were 2-1 before this fixture.

As the umpires opened the game, the both teams were surprisingly cold and missed a number of shots until import Aric Miller opened up the scores. He did this by finishing a beautiful mid-range spin jumper. The cold start by the visitors soon stopped as Devon McGee cleaned up a missed shot with a put-back jam giving them two of their four first quarter points. After a lacklustre quarter from both clubs the quarter finished 12-4 in North Adelaide’s favour.

The second quarter saw much more action. Both clubs were more successful on the offensive end of the hardwood. The Mavericks looked to make up for their poor first quarter with a better 2^nd. Much like the first quarter, both sides struggled from the field although the ideas were present. After a little run, the margin was at 3-points with over six minutes in the half remaining. After pushing for a comeback, the Mavericks took the lead by 1-point and then soon had it taken away the very next play. After their one lead, their defence improved although Luke Mapunda began to warm up from the field nailing a few good baskets. The Maverick players took it into their own hands to slow Mapunda with one of their players receiving an unsportsmanlike foul. Worries for Luke soon appeared with him floored for a substantial period. As halftime came, the Rockets were in the lead with a small 8-point margin.

The long break proved useful for the Eastern Mavericks as they further cut the margin. The visitors cut the deficit down to 3-points after defensive lapses by North Adelaide. The worries for the North Adelaide captain soon disappeared after Mapunda nailed a jump-shot and his game continued. Other Rockets helped build the lead including a highlight outlet pass from Starling to Miller for two. The highlight basket pushed the lead back out to 10-points. After a couple more intense plays, the Rockets picked up the pace and continued to build a lead. As the end of the third term neared, North Adelaide began to run away with the lead. The scores were set at 57-39 leaving the Mavericks down 18.

Desperation appeared to set in for the visitors as they were forcing shots to get back into the contest. Not only were they forcing shots but also taking them very early in the shot-clock to potentially have more time on offensive possessions. The lead did not look in doubt during the final quarter with import Aric Miller pulling up for a triple for the 19-point lead. Memories were made in the final term with Matthew Trandafil checking into the game and making his debut. In his two minutes of gameplay, he contributed 4-points and a rebound.

The final siren sounded and the Rockets were victorious by 28-points on their home court. The win has notched them to second place only two points behind leaders Forestville and above the Southern Tigers on percentage.

Co-Captain Luke Mapunda and Spirit Medal winner did not appear phased with the second game in four days.

“It was nice to get that second game in not so many days to sort of redeem ourselves from Saturday.”

“It was okay and we looked after ourselves with a good recovery session and came ready to make up for a missed opportunity.”

 

Notable Players:

North Adelaide

Aric Miller: 20-points, 3-rebounds and 3 assists

Luke Mapunda: 16-points (46% FG), 6 rebounds and 2 assists

Brad Jonnek: 17-points (63% FG), 5 rebounds

 

Eastern Mavericks

Lachlan Barker: 15-points, 3 rebounds

Devon McGee: 13-points, 7 rebounds

Thomas Cioffi: 8-points, 10 rebounds.