James Murphy
A DOUBLE-header awaits the Mount Gambier Pioneers this weekend, with both the men and women’s teams hitting the road for Round 12 of NBL1 South basketball.
The women enter off a thrilling one-point win over Hobart last round, which handed them a hat-trick of wins after a few rounds in the wilderness.
In a competition which is unforgiving to say the least, with even lowly placed teams posing a threat, the Pioneers will be out to hold onto their top-four position.
They currently sit in fourth with a one-win buffer either way.
This week they match up against Nunawading Spectres and Dandenong Rangers, with the latter in particular likely to present a challenge.
The Rangers sit a win behind the Pioneers in fifth spot but enter off a win over third-placed Sandringham Sabres.
Adding further intrigue to the clash will be former Pioneer Imogen Rock, who will gear up against her old teammates as part of the Dandenong squad.
“It will be good to catch up with her,” Pioneers women’s coach Matt Sutton said.
However, when on the court there will be no holding back and both teams will give their all in what is another important game.
Despite the Pioneers’ ladder position, they still have five games left to play in the final three minor rounds, leaving plenty of room for movement.
Nunawading sits at the bottom of the order in 19th position.
Despite that, the Spectres put up a fight against the Pioneers back in Round 6, with the latter claiming a 17-point win.
“Both teams are highly competition,” Sutton said of the coming round.
Another factor will be the availability of Zitina Aokuso, who comes off a match-winning performance against Hobart.
“Zitina has some committments with the Opals, so we will find out (later in the week) what that looks like for our preparation,” Sutton said.
Her absence will be felt on court, but the likes of captain Isabella Brancatisano, along with ever-reliable Sherrie Calleia and Haliegh Reinoehl, should keep the Pioneers in the contests.
They play Nunawading on Saturday night, before moving on to a Sunday afternoon encounter with Dandenong.
