Trevor Jackson
The Mount Gambier Pioneers men finished the minor rounds of the NBL1 South season with a win and a loss in a double-header weekend.
Friday night was a dominant display by the Pioneers, as the home side built to a 12-point first-quarter lead and never looked troubled from there.
The Pioneers went on a 10-0 run before the Miners knew what was happening, with a 14-point advantage at one stage to set the scene.
From there it was simply a matter of how much, rather than if the home side would win as they simply controlled the contest.
Much of it came from the usual suspects around the basket, with Michael Harris topping all-comers with 26 points.
Nick Marshall finished the night with 20 points, Clevon Brown 18, Jordan Rawls 15 and Tom Kubank 13.
In a nice touch, prior to the tip off, Eric Burdon was presented with an award for breaking the highest games record for the Pioneers, joined by former record holder Jason Joynes.
Burdon notched up 268 games for the Pioneers on Friday night.
The men then faced a tough Waverley Falcons on Sunday afternoon and went down to the tune of seven points.
It was a game of fluctuating fortunes, with the Falcons up by 10 points after the first quarter, with the Pioneers reducing that after winning the second term by eight points.
The Falcons turned that around again with a 28-19 third term, leaving plenty for the Pioneers to do in the final stanza.
The Pioneers closed the margin to just five points mid-way through the last quarter off a Kubank layup but the Falcons replied through Simon Conn, with back-to-back baskets to stretch the margin back out to nine with five minutes on the clock.
A triple to Marshall late in the term gave some hope, with the Pioneers down by eight points but it was too little, too late and the Falcons claimed the 93-86 victory.
Kubank was in good touch, with 20 points and nine rebounds, while Harris put up 19 points.
Marshall was impressive around the boards, with double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds, Brown and Rawls had 11 points each and Kane de Wit 10.
As a result of an impressive season, the Pioneers locked in second place on the ladder and qualified to host a home final.
That will take place Friday (tonight) at the Icehouse when Mount Gambier hosts third-placed Kilsyth Cobras.
