By Trevor Jackson
THE Mount Gambier Pioneers men continued their perfect start to the NBL1 South Season with a hard-fought victory over Frankston Blues on Saturday night at the Icehouse.
In an entertaining clash which could have gone either way, the Pioneers came from behind late in the game to claim the win 100-91 and remain undefeated after two rounds of play.
Much of the success came on the back of a 30-point Michael Harris game, complemented by 11 rebounds and seven assists.
For his efforts Harris was voted NBL1 South men’s player of the week.
In an action-packed first term the Pioneers trailed by just a solitary point, thanks to a late tow-point basket to Tom Kubank.
The second term unfolded in similar fashion, with the Pioneers trailing by as much as 10 points mid-way through.
They fought back as the term unfolded and a Nick Marshall layup with seconds on the clock closed the margin to just three points at the long break.
Frankston came out hard after the break and began to pile on the hurt, leading by as much as 12 points after just three minutes of play.
The situation looked somewhat dire with three minutes to play in the third term, with a 13-point deficit and plenty of work to do to stay in touch.
The Pioneers methodically closed the margin and a Harris three-point bomb closed it back to just three points at the final break.
Scores were tied early in the final stanza and the Pioneers managed to wrestle the lead mid-way through the quarter.
The game continued basket-for-basket from there, until, with a minute on the clock, a timely Harris layup put the Pioneers eight points clear and they remained in front until the final siren.
Harris’s 30 points was complemented by 22 from Kubank, 19 from Marshall in his first game back, 16 from Erik Burdon, returning from a bout of Covid-19 and 10 from Jordan Rawls.
Harris’s dominance around the boards showed 10 of his 11 rebounds at the defensive end of the floor.
While coach Richard Hill had recovered from his bout of Covid-19, Tom Daly was not so lucky and had to sit the game out, along with the injured Kane deWit.
The Pioneers also lack a second import player who is due to arrive soon.
Hill said all things considered, it was an impressive result.
“It was probably one of our best regular season wins ever,” he said.
“They are a pretty good side – they were top of the season last year when it was called off and have exactly the same group.
“We were down on numbers and down a hole, probably 11 or 12 down in the third quarter.
“Nick Marshall went off (injured) and the guys were exceptional.”
The big game from Michael Harris was the ideal antidote for the Pioneers’ woes, which Hill said was timely in the scheme of the game.
“When Nick went down, Michael stepped up and took the game over,” he said.
“It really is no surprise, he did that in all our pre-season games.
“He may not always score that many points but I think he will continue to get better as a player.
“He is young and a nice little acquisition.”
Marshall suffered from severe cramps in both his legs but when he left the floor Hill said everyone seemed to lift, with the side “looking down a hole”.
Burdon also had a major impact on the contest, shooting at 50 per cent from outside the three-point arc.
Considering everything conspiring against the Pioneers leading up to the game and on the night, Hill said he was over the moon with the result.
“Going into the game, the team we were going to put on the floor, given the strength of Frankston, I just wanted to be competitive and see what happened,” he said.
“To get a win was really important.
“Now we have four road games in a row, then Geelong here, which will be a tough run.”
