Lightning bring the (Luke) Payne
ALTHOUGH the Sun City Plumbing Geraldton Buccaneers did not get the victory on Saturday night, they showed the SBL they will be a team to be reckoned with this year.
The Buccs, led by Daniel Thomas’ 28 points, went up 70-63 late in the third term but could not hold off a fast-finishing Lakeside Lightning at Activewest Stadium.
Andrew Horstman made his season debut for the home side in the close encounter, playing 10 minutes.
With the 99-92 win, Lakeside remains the only undefeated team in the competition after three rounds.
Luke Payne brought about the Buccaneers’ downfall by scoring 30 points and securing 10 rebounds.
Thomas had eight assists to go with his 28 points while Michael Lay scored 27 points and grabbed a team-high 13 rebounds.
Buccaneers coach Ray Evans admitted Lakeside were the better team on the night but said he is pleased with the intensity his team showed.
“The guys played their hearts out tonight but they (Lightning) just made the shots when they needed to,” he said.
“They were definitely the better team on the night but we showed tonight we are not too far away.”
Lakeside held an 89-84 lead with just over two minutes to play in the game.
Christopher Sofoulis then put the final nail in the Buccs’ coffin with a three-pointer to give the visitors an eight-point lead.
Evans said if his charges play like they did on Saturday night, all year, they would be on the right side of the scoreboard more often then not.
“I am disappointed with the result but our intensity on defence compared to this time last year was completely different,” he said.
“We are going to get better and if we play with that intensity each week and correct a few little errors we will be right there at the end.”
The Buccaneers’ second import, Morgan Sabia is expected to arrive in Geraldton on Wednesday.
He will not line up against the Goldfields Giants next week as the Geraldton organisation fill out his immigration forms.
Evans said he may not play for a few weeks but is happy the American will be able to train with the team.
Article by Taylor Courtland (Geraldton Guardian)
Photo by Darren Speedie (Vision Inspired Photo)
Comments
Comment Guidelines: The SportsTG Network is made up of players, families and passionate sports followers like you who have a strong opinion about sport. That's great - we want you to have your say and share your thoughts with the world. However, we have a few rules that you must follow to keep it fun for all. Please don't be rude, abusive, swear or vilify others. Apart from some pretty serious sport sanctions, we also can ban you and report you if things get out of hand. So play fair and have fun, and thanks for your contribution.