MOUNT Gambier faces its biggest test of the South East Australian Basketball League season tomorrow night when the Pioneers head to Kilsyth Sports Centre to square off with the Dandenong Rangers.
It will be the fifth straight national championship playoff for the Pioneers, with two titles for their four recent attempts.
While the Pioneers have a better win/loss ratio than the Rangers for the minor rounds, Dandenong is one of just three sides that have defeated Mount Gambier this season.
The Pioneers defeated Dandenong back in Round 4 at the Icehouse by seven points, but in Round 11 the Rangers returned serve on their home court, running out 14-point victors.
As is generally the case with the Pioneers, not one Ranger stood out on the scoreboard, but five players reached double figures to secure the win.
Four Pioneers reached the same target, with American import Daniel Alexander topping the score sheets with 23 points.
For the Rangers, Tim Lang was the best with 20 points, while Lucas Barker managed 18.
Lang has been averaging 10.1 points-per-game for the season, while Barker sits on 14.
The Rangers also boast the likes of Josh Oswald (12.3) and Chauncey Orr (14.8) who are prolific scorers.
They have also included new import player Garrett Jackson, who has averaged 17.1 points-per-game since joining the Rangers’ roster.
Of course the Pioneers statistics are just as impressive, especially considering Alexander and captain Tom Daly made the top 10 players in the SEABL end-of-season awards.
Daly is coming off a 23 point, 11 assists conference final, while Alexander managed 11 points and 12 rebounds in that game.
Luke Jamieson was also a big contributor, with 21 points.
Included in the starting five for tomorrow night will be Daly, Alexander and Jamieson, along with Erik Burdon and Brad Hill, with a strong bench that boasts the likes of Jack Madgen, Matt Sutton, John Jones and Kane deWit.
DeWit has been a solid performer, substituting for Daly at the point, while Madgen has been electric off the bench.
Jones has made the most of his time on the floor in the latter half of the season, generally having an impact on the final result, while Sutton continues to provide an experienced head when needed.
Coach Richard Hill said there would be no advantage for either side tomorrow night, with the result sure to go down to the wire.
“We don’t consider ourselves any better than them and I’m sure they don’t consider themselves any better than us,” he said.
“They would be confident and we are confident.
“They are unbelievably talented, they go very deep and they have guys coming off the bench who can really hurt you.
“We will need to be at our best – our goal will play our best game of the year and we don’t believe there is any reason we can’t.”
However, one advantage the Pioneers may have is the experience of contesting national titles, with four straight attempts under their belts, which includes four players in the current group.
It is a scenario Hill is more than comfortable with, with some added incentive thrown in to achieve the win.
“They have improved a fair bit since they beat us,” he said.
“They have added a couple of really good key players since that game.
“They have brought in Garrett Jackson who is one of the better imports in the league in the last few years.
“But we are really comfortable with our group.
“This is the fifth time in a row we have been to this game.
“They got us the first time we went there on their home court, so it will be nice to play them in a championship game on a neutral court.”
Hill said his side would need to defend well on the night in order to put the Rangers off their game.
Much of that comes down to defending Lang around the hoop, but it extends further up the floor.
“We need to try to be strong from an offensive point of view, but we need to defend well on the interior and rebound,” Hill said.
“They are big – Tim Lang is six-foot-ten – he had 20 last time they played us.
“We need to be able to defend him and slow Garrett Jackson down.
“They have been shooting the three unbelievable well in the playoffs – 41pc which is very high – so we almost have to defend every single spot on the floor, similar to what they have to do with us.”
Hill said it would be important for his side to play its style of game, rather than allowing Dandenong to call the shots on the night.
That is one aspect of the Pioneers’ season that has seen them achieve such success in the minor round, with 21 wins and just three losses.
Hill said his team was well-prepared, especially after last week’s high-octane conference final.
But unlike the National Basketball League where multiple games decide the championship team, in the SEABL competition there is only one shot at the title.
“It is a one-off game of basketball, which can come down to the last shot or the last couple of plays,” Hill said.
“Hopefully down the stretch if it gets tight we can maintain our composure as we have for a couple of years and close the game out.
“I think which ever team defends the opposition better will probably win the game of basketball.”
For those unable to make the trip across the border, the game will be live streamed from the SEABL web site.
The game is set to tip off at 7.45pm Eastern Standard time.
