By Trevor Jackson
THE Mount Gambier Pioneers men split a double-header weekend for Round 2 of the NBL1 South season at Wulanda.
In two tough contests the Pioneers were able to account for Frankston Blues on Saturday night with a 93-87 win, but went down to the Ballarat Miners on Sunday 105-94.
Against the Blues the Pioneers were on the back foot early, as the visitors hit the floor running with a huge 38-point opening term, while holding the home side to 19.
From there it was a massive effort for the Pioneers to firstly get back in the game and then overhaul the margin to claim the win.
That came from winning the remaining three quarters – 26-14, 23-17 and 25-18.
The Pioneers evened the scores early in the third term off an Akech Aliir layup, but could not contain the Blues as they continued to apply pressure at both ends of the floor.
The home side trailed by seven points at the final break, then managed to draw even with the Blues again inside the first two minutes of the last term.
However, they were unable to sneak in front, as Daniel Trist drained a triple to put the Blues up by three, before stretching that to five.
Back-to-back baskets from Nick Marshall and Austin Shelley had the Pioneers within one points with four minutes to play, before another triple to Trist opened the margin again.
The Blues stretched the margin to six points of a Klay Brown three, before a Titus Robinson dunk closed it back down to four.
The back-and-forth continued, with one free throw to Brad Newly to stretch the margin for the Blues, before Tom Daly hit a floater to again reduce it for the Pioneers.
By the final break the margin was a solitary point and the game was set for an exciting finish.
Newly hit the first basket of the final term before Dylan Marshall responded, then took the lead with a pair of successful free throws.
Dylan Marshall and Aliir kept the scores coming for the Pioneers and a layup to Shelley opened the margin to eight points in favour of the home side.
Trist and Brown continued to be dangerous around the hoop, keeping the Blues right in the contest and when Lucas Barker dropped a regulation layup, Pioneers coach Richard Hill called a time out with just 30 seconds on the game clock and a one-point lead.
From there it was all about free throws as both sides fouled to force stops, but a Brown tip on off his own missed shots had the Blues back to within two points with just seven seconds remaining.
Dylan Marshall then dropped four free shots from two separate fouls and the Pioneers celebrated.
Marshall top scored for the Pioneers, with 23 points, while another highlight was a double-double to Aliir, with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Nick Marshall and Shelley both contributed 15 points.
For Hill it was an amazing game, something he said he had never witnessed before.
“It was crazy,” he said.
“We were 25 points down.
“I have never seen anything like it to be honest.
“They made their first seven threes.
“It was pretty wild.
“We were able to go in at half time only a handful of points down which was pretty weird.
“We got back to even in the third term and then it was a dog fight.
“I’ve seen teams get hot early but they were ridiculously hot.
“I’ve never been involved in a team that came from that far down to win.”
As it sits it appears the Pioneers are a bogey team for the Blues, who haven’t beaten Mount Gambier in a decade.
As for Dylan Marshall’s game, Hill said it was a “ripper game”.
“He had a really good game,” he said.
“He was able to make some big plays down the stretch, knock down all his free throws and we were able to rely on him.”
Hill said the Pioneers’ defence picked up after the opening term and made life difficult for the Blues.
Once the side was back in the game the Blues adjusted and game went basket-for-basket.
Against the Miners on Sunday, a 12-point difference in the second half was about the only difference in the end.
An even first half saw the Pioneers lead by just one point at the long break, but it was the Miners who took advantage in the second half.
They outscored the Pioneers by six points in both quarters to take the win, despite a huge 29-point, nine-rebound game from Nick Marshall.
Shelley was again in the points, with 21 to his name, Aliir contributed 16 and Daly 11.
Hill said it was simply a matter of the Miners playing better basketball on the night.
“We worked hard but didn’t shoot the ball well,” he said.
“They played well and shot the ball well.
“They are a solid team.”
Hill was impressed with Nick Marshall’s game, along with Shelley’s, but said they needed more from other areas.
“Nick had a great game … Nick and Austin shot 50 of our points, but we needed a little more from somewhere else,” he said.
“They had four guys who were really productive and we were also in foul trouble early.
“But that is not an excuse, it is just what happens.”
The Pioneers now sit with three wins from four games to open the season, something Hill is happy about.
“I would have been happy with two and two given who we were playing,” he said.
“I am really pleased to be three and one.
“We have to find about 14 wins from somewhere over the season, so it doesn’t matter where they come from.
“We had four games in eight or nine days to start the season which is not easy, but we have two home games in a row now, both singles, which is good.”
