Posted on 5 June, 2012
The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras wrapped up their third double header weekend in the 2012 SEABL season which consisted of six games in just 16 days. For the Swinburne Lady Cobras, Sunday’s game marked their sixth win in a row and the end of a long stretch which proved just how competitive they can be in the League. The Swinburne Lady Cobras picked up a 24 point victory against Ballarat and returned on Sunday to beat the number two team on the opposite side of the ladder, the Dandenong Rangers. For the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras, the weekend was not a success as the men suffered two critical losses to the Miners and the Rangers which dropped them precariously into sixth place on the ladder.
The Swinburne Lady Cobras hit the road Saturday night to Ballarat in Round 11 of SEABL competition. It was a slow start for both teams, and the Lady Rush matched each one of the Swinburne Lady Cobras’ points as the first quarter ended 15-14 in favour of the home team. In the second quarter, the Swinburne Lady Cobras took back the lead after big three pointers by both Gemma Kerr and Chantella Perera to put them up by 11 points. The Swinburne Lady Cobras went into the halftime ahead 36-29. Rejuvenated by the break, the Swinburne Lady Cobras came out in the second half in top form, allowing only 21 points by the Lady Rush the rest of the game.
Extending their lead from seven to 20 points in the third quarter after another three-pointer by Kerr and a three point play by Hayley Moffat, the Swinburne Lady Cobras comfortably sailed to a big win. The Swinburne Lady Cobras’ defensive efforts forced 27 turnovers and converted them into 24 points in the win. Captain Chantella Perera led the team with 20 points and Kristin Barnes and Hayley Moffat followed with 14 and 13 points respectively. Sarah Parsons again controlled the boards, pulling down 10 rebounds and also dished out six assists.
The Swinburne Lady Cobras’ true test came Sunday afternoon as they played host to the Lady Rangers on Hugh McMenamin Court. The highly anticipated match-up pinned the second place team in the South Pool against the number two team from the East Pool. The Lady Rangers entered the game with the highest team scoring average in the League, recording 76.5 points per game. But it was the Swinburne Lady Cobras’ defence that prevailed, holding the hot shooting Lady Rangers to just 51 points while scoring 65 of their own points to secure the win.
After a first quarter score of 21-20 for the Lady Rangers, it appeared the match would be a back and forth battle until the final horn. The Lady Rangers built the first lead, but the Swinburne Lady Cobras answered back with a three point play by Kristin Barnes and then a jump shot by Barnes in the next possession. The second quarter started a run that was all about the Swinburne Lady Cobras and would provide the necessary cushion to cruise to their 13th win of the season. The Lady Rangers could not get an open look in the period and only managed to score six points which allowed the Swinburne Lady Cobras to take a ten point lead that was the deciding factor in the game.
The struggles continued for the Lady Rangers in the second half as the defensive pressure by the Swinburne Lady Cobras, led by Sarah Parsons, picked apart their attack and seized one steal after another. The Lady Rangers were without scoring leader Stephanie Cumming, and her presence was greatly missed as the Lady Rangers could not get into their offensive rhythm. An elbow to the face took starting point guard Jordyn O’Shea out of the game early in the third quarter, and the Swinburne Lady Cobras had to play without her for the majority of the second half. O’Shea returned with just 4:04 remaining in the game to deliver an inspiring late game performance, hitting a three pointer immediately followed by a deep two point jumper to prove nothing could shake her or her team’s desire to win.
The Swinburne Lady Cobras went on to a 65-51 victory with Chantella Perara scoring 17 points, Kristin Barnes with 15 points and Jordyn O’Shea with 11 points. Sarah Parsons grabbed nine rebounds and four steals in the game.
The Swinburne Lady Cobras have a bye for the Queen’s Birthday Weekend. Their next game is at home against Hobart on Hugh McMenamin Court on Saturday 16 June 2012 with tip off at 6:15pm.
The weekend outcomes for the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras were much to their disappointment as the team went 0-2 against Ballarat and Dandenong. The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras’ record dropped to 6-10 for the 2012 SEABL season whilst their position on the ladder fell to sixth place. Plagued with poor shooting and inconsistent efforts on defence, the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras could not overcome either opponents in Round 11 and enter the bye weekend with critical self-assessment needed to turn their season around and secure a spot in the top four of the table.
The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras’ Saturday night match up was against a Ballarat team who just one spot below the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras on the ladder were eager to knock them off. In the first quarter, the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras hung with the Miners and were down by six after ten minutes. Struggling to get a good touch on the ball, the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras missed four of their first five attempts from the three point line. While the Miners stayed on scoring pace in the next period, the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras started to fizzle out, unable to build any momentum to stay in the game. The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras were held scoreless for the first three minutes of the second quarter and what started as a six point deficit quickly grew to 18 points before the half.
The Miners scored with ease from all spots on the floor, getting over half their points (42 points) from inside the paint and another 18 points from beyond the arc. With four Miners putting up double digit performances, the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras’ defence was not on par to claim any wins. The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras committed 23 turnovers, uncharacteristically high for a team that only averages 12 in a game. The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras fell 80-51 to the Miners. They were 23 points shy of their average points scored per game (74.2 ppg) as no one but Matt O’Hea seemed to be able to get the ball through the hoop. O’Hea scraped together 16 points on the night and was the only Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras player to score in double digits. Tim Lang had team high ten rebounds.
Hoping to rebound from the loss and give the home crowd a good performance on Sunday, the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras again came up short against the Dandenong Rangers. The first place Rangers came into the game as the anticipated favourites and that expectation was met as the Rangers defeated the Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras 101-62.
The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras jumped out to an early 10-3 lead after a basket by Zach Malvik and were still holding on to a two point advantage at the 2:04 mark when Garfield Blair converted a defensive steal into a fast break dunk. But those brief leads in the first quarter were extinguished by strong performances by the Rangers to close the period and remain in control for the rest of the game. Led by Imports Daequon Montreal (21 points) and Tony Lewis (26 points), the Rangers shot a remarkable 59% from the field and 61% from the three point line.
The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras lost control in the second half, only scoring 26 points while allowing 49 points by the home team. Head Coach Grant Wallace ran through his entire roster trying to find a spark to pull his team back on track, but nothing seemed to work against the dominant Rangers team. The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras shot 31% from the field but had a more even attack with contributions by Tim Lang (16 points, 9 rebounds), Garfield Blair (14 points) and Zach Malvick (11 points).
The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras can only hope the upcoming time off will help them rest, recover from injuries and refocus on the goal of securing a top four spot on the ladder and stay in the running for post-season play.
The Swinburne Kilsyth Cobras have a bye for the Queen’s Birthday Weekend. Their next game is at home against Hobart on Hugh McMenamin Court on Saturday 16 June 2012 with tip off at 8:15pm.
