Picture: JAMES MURPHY
IT will be the ultimate challenge for the Mount Gambier Pioneers men when they clash with North Adelaide Rockets tomorrow night at the Icehouse, for their second meeting of the 2019 Basketball SA Premier League season.
The round seven match will provide an opportunity for the Pioneers to test how far they have come from that round one bout, which ended in a 15-point defeat.
It is sure to be an entertaining game and coach Richard Hill said he is excited to hit the court.
“I am really looking forward to seeing how much we have improved since the first round – if at all of course,” he said.
“I think we are a fair bit better than we were then.
“North Adelaide will be better as well, but I am looking forward to it.”
Hill said he was pleased with how the team has come together this season.
“We feel pretty good about ourselves and I really like the team,” he said.
“We are still taking some baby steps, but we are certainly much improved.”
Since round one, Sam Daly has been a big in, while American import Kentrell Barkley was jet-lagged when the Pioneers faced the Rockets last time around.
Regardless, Barkley was still in fine form to score a double-double, with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
He backed that up with a 24 point, 12 rebound game the next day and from there has continued to be an asset to the team.
Joined by the likes of fellow American DayJar Dickson, who played his best game for the side last week, along with the Daly brothers and Brad Rathjen, the Pioneers have no shortage of talent.
Captain Tom Daly can be expected to lead the side again off the back of consistently high-scoring performances, but it is another long-term Pioneer who Hill would like to see make an impact.
“I think Erik Burdon had a better game last weekend, he had been struggling to knock shots down,” Hill said.
“He has been working really hard at training and he is stroking the ball nicely now.
“I am thinking he might be due to explode from the three-point line – I’m hoping that might be the case.
“But it does not have to be him, someone else will certainly pick up the slack if that does not occur.”
Fans can expect another full roster to hit the court tomorrow, excluding youngster Braiden Ousey, who has undergone a shoulder reconstruction after an injury at training a few weeks ago.
In terms of a game plan, Hill said the Pioneers will need to focus on their defence, as North Adelaide packs plenty of punch under the basket.
“We are looking for a better defensive effort to what we have been putting forward,” he said.
“That is a team chemistry thing, it is getting to know each other and our defensive system.
“We are going to need to defend them in and around the basket very well.
“That is their strength, they have a really strong front court, so we are going to need to defend in that area very well and rebound very well.
“That is going to be the key for us I think.”
The game is set for an 8.15pm start and will follow the women’s match in what is sure to be a thrilling night of basketball.
