Picture: TREVOR JACKSON
THE Mount Gambier Lakers will hit the road for the final minor round of the Country Basketball League South West men’s season tomorrow night.
Pitted against the Bacchus Marsh Lions, the Lakers will be out to silence the roar of their opponents, in a battle between two and three on the ladder.
The Lions have had a consistent season, with just three losses and will be eager to bounce back from their defeat to the Geelong Supercats last week.
For the Lakers, their season has been nothing short of first class, with minimal hiccups along the way.
Aside from the one loss to the Horsham Hornets at home – which later saw the Lakers hit the road and recover their pride in round nine – the Mount Gambier side has not dropped another game, sitting in second place behind the Hornets.
If not for a draw against the Colac Kookas due to a water leak at the Icehouse, the Lakers would likely remain at the top of the table, as they had for the first half of the season.
Although the minor premiership is not completely out of reach, as a win tomorrow holds the potential to move them up a step.
However, the Hornets face two unthreatening opponents in a double header to finish the season and should all go as expected, will hold onto the top spot heading into finals.
It will be the first time the Lakers and the Lions have met this season, adding an unknown element to the clash.
Both teams have some capable scorers in their lineups, with the Lakers looking to the likes of Lachie Hunter and coach Kane de Wit for big totals this season.
The pair average 19.08 and 17.58 points a game respectively and will be sure to fire again tomorrow.
They will be joined by the likes of Braiden Ousey (17) and Matt Berkefeld (14.23), who have also put in consistent performances this season.
Last week de Wit shot a game high 27, in a dominant win over the Ararat Redbacks, while Ousey and Berkefeld both shot 24.
They will look to back up their solid scores, with Bacchus Marsh looming as a tough opponent.
The Lions also hold some dangerous statistics, with William Feben averaging 23.58 points a game from the 12 matches he has taken to the court.
Jordan Kirk will also be a threat, with 19.92, also from 12 games, while Max Beaument (13.92) will be another to watch.
Feben in particular has loomed large this season, with a monster 53-point haul against the Terang Tornadoes in round 11 his best, which included 10 three-point bombs in the high-scoring affair.
Earlier in the season he posted scores of 31 and 34 in the round four double header against the Bellarine Storm and Geelong respectively, both top eight teams.
All this adds up to a game which should be a fitting end to the minor rounds, before both teams gear up for their finals’ campaigns next weekend.
The match will kick off at 8pm at the Bacchus Marsh Leisure Centre.
