Mixed results in Apple Isle

TEMPO: Titus Robinson continues to dazzle the crowds as he settles into the NBL1 competition and the Pioneers roster.

By Trevor Jackson

IT was a tough weekend for the Castec Rural Pioneers men, with a double-header road trip to Tasmania – via Sydney – due to the Victorian coronavirus shut down.

It made for a long weekend and Friday’s game against the Hobart Chargers appeared to suffer as a result, as the Pioneers went down by 28 points.

However, they turned that around on Saturday night and claimed a 10-point victory over North West Tasmania.

Friday’s game saw a relatively even start, with the Pioneers down by just six points at the first break.

However, the Chargers picked up the pace for the next two terms to create a big lead.

The Pioneers chased hard in the final stanza, but despite a seven-point advantage were unable to close down the Chargers, going down 107-79.

Duom Dawam had a big game for the Pioneers with 18 points and 11 rebounds, Tom Kubank finished with 12 points and Tom Daly 11.

Saturday night saw the Pioneers back to their best, with both sides starting strong.

The Thunder held a five-point lead at the first break, but that was reduced to two points at half time.

From there the Pioneers found a groove and worked it for the remaining two terms, winning the third by four points and the last by eight to run out 104-94 victors.

This time Daly stood tall with a strong 27 points, while Erik Burdon was on target, with 21 points, four of those from outside the three-point arc.

Titus Robinson was strong, with his exciting style adding to the victory, which included 15 points and 11 rebounds, plus a huge dunk which pleased the commentators possibly more than the crowd.

Kubank finished with 12 points and Nick Marshall 11.