PREMIER League basketball returns to the Icehouse tomorrow night when the Pioneers host the West Adelaide Bearcats in round 12 of the Basketball SA Premier League season.
Both the men and women will look for another victory, after both tasted success in their round 11 games against the Eastern Mavericks.
For the women it will be more important to succeed, as they currently sit down in sixth place on the ladder, one below the Bearcats.
The men sit in fourth place, with an eight win/three loss record, while the Bearcats sit down in eighth place with four and seven.
It will be an important game for the men and one which is not a foregone conclusion.
While the Bearcats sit down towards the blunt end on the ladder, there is no room for complacency.
The Pioneers face tough games in the coming rounds and a loss tomorrow night would place a lot more pressure on the side as the season heads well into the second half.
The problem is the Pioneers are still struggling with personnel, with both Erik Burdon and Sam Daly under injury clouds.
Burdon appears likely to line up, while Daly is almost a certain non-starter, which leaves the side short in their starting five.
Brad Rathjen can easily fill a spot there after an impressive first half of the season, while Lachie Hunter can also slot in as a big man to kick the game off.
But it places more pressure on the bench players to stand up and carry the load across the full four quarters.
The Pioneers coaching staff have managed the injuries well, with wins in the absence of those regular starters.
But they will face a formidable foe which coach Richard Hill said was more-than capable of claiming the victory.
He said the Bearcats won the championship just two years ago and still have many of those players in the roster.
“West Adelaide’s form has been okay,” he said.
“We watched some film on Tuesday night and they are more than capable of playing really good basketball, so it is a bit of a danger game for us.”
Much of that danger comes from the side’s top scorer Bryan Jefferson, who averages 21.45 points per game, along with 9.82 rebounds.
Stopping him will be an important factor in the final result, along with the likes of Patrick Thomas at the point and Tom Kubank, who averages 13.25 points per game.
“Jefferson is a really good player,” Hill said.
“Across the last three games he has averaged 28 points and 10 rebounds.
“They have some decent players and some young, talented players.
“If we do not play well tomorrow night we could very well lose.”
The worst case scenario for tomorrow’s game is if both Burdon and Sam Daly do not line up.
However, the Pioneers boast six players with double-figure averages – including those two – which still leaves plenty of firepower to get the job done.
Rathjen has shown plenty of class in his return to the team, while Americans DayJar Dickson and Kentrell Barkley have certainly slotted in well, providing not just points but plenty of entertainment along the way.
“Brad was very good last week,” Hill said.
“He was as good as anyone on the court.
“I think Kentrell is one of the best players in the competition and DayJar has improved out of sight.
“He has worked really hard and some of his highlights last week were incredible.”
Tomorrow’s game tips off at 8.15pm.
