In the curtain-raiser to the Top End Challenge final on Saturday night at the Marrara Indoor Stadium in Darwin, the Adelaide 36ers finished in ninth place in the NBL’s elite preseason tournament with a blowout 98-55 win over the Darwin Airport Resort All Stars.

A large and enthusiastic home crowd cheered every score, rebound and blocked shot by the All Stars, but the Sixers were simply too big and experienced for a team comprised of the best talent from various local associations in Darwin.

The 36ers led 21-7 at the end of the first period thanks to six points from Troy De Vries and Adam Ballinger, and extended their margin to 27 as they took a 54-27 lead into the change rooms at halftime.

The All Stars were working hard and looking to provide some highlights for the fans, and to their credit never quit in the second half, but Ballinger was unstoppable with his versatile inside-outside game and he was a key in Adelaide blowing it out to a 78-38 lead at the end of the third period.

The final quarter afforded Adelaide coach Marty Clarke the chance to run his bench and tinker with some different rotations, and he would have been pleased with the way his team kept working hard despite leading by a ton against the overmatched All Stars.

Five Sixers scored in double figures led by Ballinger with 26 points, while Daniel Johnson had 13 points and 11 rebounds and both Craig Winder and Brad Hill had 12 apiece.

The All Stars got 14 points and five rebounds from Bobby Guyton and 10 points from Chris Baldwin, while Rashad Chase pulled down 14 boards.

Adelaide’s win was their first in the Top End Challenge as they closed out their tournament with a 1-2 record