Suns still a chance to shine in playoffs after beating Magic
The Kalamunda Eastern Suns have remained within reach of the top eight in the MSBL standings with a comfortable 113-89 victory over the Mandurah Magic on Friday night.
The Suns’ 10th win of the season leaves them two games behind the eighth placed ATD Stirling Senators. The victory also snaps their three-game losing streak. The loss for Mandurah is their fifth consecutive as they remain in 12th position.
Both teams came out shooting the ball well in the first quarter, with Mandurah captain Ben Caporn and Kalamunda’s Ben Smith both hitting on their first four shots.
Despite missing four big men through injury or absence, the Magic controlled the offensive rebounding in the first half, however they seemed troubled by the presence of Kalamunda big man Justin Brown, who revelled in having the major height advantage in the low post.
Poor field goal shooting from Mandurah allowed the Suns to take a 11 point lead into half time. The Magic shot 35% from the field in comparison to the Suns’ 53% in the first half.
After the break the Suns gained control of the game behind the outside shooting of Dean Hadley. His hot hand allowed the lead to blow out to more than 20, and from there the game became a foregone conclusion.
Despite Kalamunda’s height advantage, Mandurah managed to keep the overall rebound count even, much to the dismay of Suns coach Ashley McCormick.
“Mandurah had a few of their big men out and still managed 23 offensive rebounds, which is just too much,” McCormick said.
“We managed to keep our turnovers down which is good. We need to execute our game over longer periods of time for us to win the remaining three games heading towards the finals."
Hadley led all scorers with a game high 29 points, which included seven from three point range. Brown chipped in with 24 points and nine rebounds and Joel Questel recorded 14 assists, while Mandurah were led by Caporn who finished with 18 points. The Suns finished the game shooting 49% from the field compared to the Magic’s 36%.
Kalamunda, which may need to win as many as three of its last four games to make the playoffs, head back home on Saturday night to face the ATD Stirling Senators. Mandurah’s next game will see them face top of the table Lakeside Lightning next Friday night away from home.
In earlier WSBL action, the Mandurah Magic snapped their three game losing streak and stopped Kalamunda’s three game winning streak with a routine 79-62 victory. Victory sees the Magic reclaim third spot on the WSBL ladder, following Wanneroo’s earlier loss.
Hailey Dunham had a superb all around game for the Magic to finish with 21 points, 8 rebounds and 5 steals. Casey Mihovilovich contributed a near triple double for the Magic with 19 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds.
Adrienne Jones top scored with 14 points for the Suns, who remain in sixth position on the WSBL ladder.
Article by Nathan Winch at Mandurah Aquatic and Recreation Centre
Photo by Grant Lauterbach
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