There was a full programme of men’s and mixed league basketball action at the National Sports Centre on Thursday evening.
Giants v Rams
Both teams are renowned for having a decent bench and did exactly that last week.
Rams were first out of the blocks taking 10 points without reply and it was a tough first quarter for Giants who scored just points as nothing would drop for them.
Rams secured 19 points first-quarter to establish a healthy lead at the break with Jim Manuel having a strong game under the basket, collecting several rebounds to score.
Giants got back in the game going into the second quarter thanks to Daniel Bailey who bagged five points but Rams still had the lead at half-time 35-17.
Rod Ripamonti proved to be a strong target under the basket for Rams and the ball was fed into him well to score several points along with Alfredo Sepnio who also had a good game.
Giants’ Michael Pardoe, Nathan Vaughan and Corey Vaughan applied some pressure on defence which proved useful and allowed them to turn the ball over and score.
However, Rams’ experience was the difference in the teams as they moved the ball well to create the open shot and took a comfortable win 77-36.
Player of the Match - Rod Ripamonti (Rams).
Microgaming Cavaliers
v IOM College
On paper Isle of Man College had their toughest match, but the opening quarter didn’t reflect this as they took the game to Cavs scoring first from the jump.
Mel Valencia and Dylan McCallion linked well in offence, proving a surprise for the Cavs defence and were equal to their opponents throughout the first quarter, the difference being that the College were up 10-7 at the break.
The latter had a spring in their step and continued with their good run through the second quarter with Rio Garcia shooting well.
Half-time approached which allowed Cavs time to re-think their game plan and, although they were not too far behind, the scoreline was out of character 23-19 to the College.
Cavs turned the game around in the third with Sean Doyle and Dan Pieciak going on a run of scoring and limiting the opportunities of the College who found it difficult to score.
The latter began to tire as the quarter progressed just as Cavs seemed to warm up but the College fought on and didn’t give up as Vince Montuya hit a lovely three-point shot at the end of the third, giving them a glimmer of hope with score at 38-32 to Cavs.
It was just a glimmer though as Cavs played out a strong fourth quarter with Doyle and Wayne Mears sharing the points. The College could only manage six points but showed a great team spirit taking the fight to Cavs and only falling at the last hurdle.
Final score 60-38 Cavs. PotM- Sean Doyle (Cavs).
Elder Health Care Phillies v PokerStars
PokerStars returned with a stronger bench than the previous week and met Phillies who are on a run of good wins.
Revi Del Rosario opened the scoring for Phillies which was quickly met by Norbert Bojte of PokerStars.
The first quarter was a relatively close one with Phillies just edging it 14-9 and didn’t take the foot off the pedal in the second, going on a 14-point run withoutreply.
Phillies ended the half ahead 34-15, but PokerStars are made of strong stuff and were capable of a comeback.
Shawn McCurry rallied his PokerStars team and contested every ball and every opportunity, taking some well-earned points in the mean time. This work ethic shone through as they battled to reduce the deficit.
Michael Josem took some late baskets which were consolation for their efforts as Phillies’ Ivan Del Rosario kept his team well ahead in the latter stages of the game with baskets from Mark Dato nailing on the win, 72-34.
PotM - Shawn McCurry (PokerStars).
Bruce Norton Turkeys
v Celton Warriors
Turkeys were looking to improve after the previous week’s performance and faced a Warriors team who took victory by one point in their last encounter.
Corey Pinder was quick to score the first points for Warriors but Turkeys came back with seven of their own, including a three-point shot from Dave Boyle.
Warriors failed to find their rhythm in the first quarter scoring just eight points to Turkeys ‘18, but Chris Wolfendale found his range and pulled his team back with the help of David Dallimore to shorten the gap, although the half still ended 35-22 in Turkeys favour.
Turkeys’ Richard Smith had a better game this week and opened the second half with four points and was key at both ends of the court, sharing the points with Alan Walkingshaw and Wig Bregazzi who both had strong games.
Warriors’ Fred Atherton stepped up and assisted the reliable Wolfendale in the third adding much-needed points to the tally, but Turkeys were too strong and a solid team performance saw them victorious with a convincing win 59-42.
PotM- Richard Smith (Turkeys).
Mixed League Summary
Can’t Dribble Won’t Dribble are the team to beat in the mixed league with weekly improvements evident in their play as they were unbeaten in this round of matches, with Steve Christian making his debut.
Fellas put up a good fight and were missing one or two players who added great value to the team and had a mixed set of results, as did Legendary CavStars who played some good basketball but only won two games.
Both Slammers teams played well with Emma Callow leading her side to three wins. The games are getting closer as the teams improve every week and, with only a couple of weeks to go, it’s all to play for.