TOM HAYES
BASKETBALL
CBL
By TOM HAYES
THERE were no blemishes to records for Latrobe Valley sides in the Country Basketball League, with the Moe Meteors, Traralgon T-Birds and Morwell Magic winning their eight games last weekend.
With two games for the weekend, it was going to be harder for the T-Birds to keep a 100 per cent record, but they did just that.
They can thanks themselves for starting the game against Wonthaggi Coasters with intensity, as an even game followed in the final three quarters.
Traralgon got the jump on their counterparts, coasting to a 13-point lead at the GRISS. The T-Birds gained another point by halftime, moving to a 14-point lead.
The second half was a tie, 31 points apiece in the third quarter and 21 points each in the final term, allowing Traralgon to take the win 104-90.
Ben Barlow and Ben Waller starred on the scoresheet with 28 and 26 points respectively, with three others managing double digit scores.
The T-Birds completed the double in a tight eight-point win over the Sharks, one that saw the Sharks slowly come back at Rosebud.
Traralgon was ahead by as much as 13 points at halftime, before beginning to concede their lead, dropping to 11 points, then eight by fulltime.
Thankfully for them, their margin was drawn out far enough to hold on, moving their record to 7-2.
Zac Bezzina was at his best with 30 points, Waller was up there again with 27, as was Koby Tibballs, who scored 25, completing the tri-pronged attack.
MOE dismantled Korumburra Wildcats, scorching them by 30 points at home.
It was fairly straightforward for the league leaders, consistently bringing the heat with them each and every week.
Their 19-point halftime advantage stretched to 30 by the end of the following quarter, before the foot came off the pedal ever-so-slightly to see the game out, 90-60.
Austin Shelley was of course at the forefront with 34 points, while Ben van Dyk helped with 23 of his own.
Moe moved their win-loss record to 9-0.
MORWELL got things moving in a positive direction, with their second win of the season, beating the luckless Lakes Entrance Pelicans on their home court.
Lakes Entrance gave it to them in the early stages, taking a three-point lead, that was levelled out by halftime. Morwell grew the lead to two points at the end of the third quarter, and with their noses in front, they kept on digging.
It was meant to be after all, as the Magic doubled the Pelicans’ score in the final term to walk away 18-point winners, some reward for a gruelling win.
Jordan Canovan was leading the way with 30 points, assisted well by Daniel Board (15 points).
MAFFRA went 1-1 for the weekend, starting with a 10-point win over Southern Peninsula Sharks, before a massive 61-point loss to Warragul Warriors.
Sale weren’t so lucky, going down to the hands of Pakenham, 126-59.
Wonthaggi cruised to victory over the Pelicans, smashing them by 89 points, 151-62.
JUST like the men, all women’s teams from the Latrobe Valley went undefeated, in what proved to be a perfect week for the region.
Traralgon coasted over the line against Wonthaggi by 11 points, thanks to a competitive second half performance.
The Coasters nabbed the lead early, but in the last three quarters it was all the T-Birds, as they chipped away at the deficit, slowly growing a lead, before winning 59-48.
With +10 points in the second half, they have their resilience to thank for their gutsy win.
Samantha Labros was the key to unlocking the win, as she scored 28 points.
The T-Birds capped off the weekend in style with a commanding 45-point win over the Sharks.
While picking up the win, they were so close to keeping them to single digit scores for each quarter, as the Sharks only managed 11, five, five and nine points in each quarter.
Traralgon made it look easy, smoking their opponents in each quarter to ease to victory 75-30.
Labros topped the scoring once again with 17, but this time it was more of a team effort, as Hannah Smith scored 16 and Tanarly Hood scored 13.
MOE also made it look easy, cruising to their sixth win of the season in their win against the Wildcats.
In doing so, they only needed to win three of the four quarters to get the job done.
But it was their final quarter stanza that was a stand out, managing to outscore Korumburra by 20 points, completing their 32-point win, 84-52.
Piper Albert top-scored with 29 points for Moe, with their next best scoring nine.
Albert seemingly went head-to-head with Korumburra’s Tyla Angwin, who scored 25 points for the visitors.
MORWELL are back on track with their third win for the season, doing so in convincing fashion against Lakes Entrance.
Just like Traralgon, Morwell nearly kept the Pelicans to single digits in each quarter, only allowing them to score eight, seven, 10 and eight points for a total of 33.
Morwell passed 33 points in the third quarter, before rushing to victory in a smashing win, 72-33.
Abbey Noblett (20 points), Taylah Pavey (20) and Emily Scholtes (18) starred for the Magic, as they move up to seventh in the competition.
SALE Sonics were forced to forfeit their match against Pakenham, resulting in a 20-0 win for the Warriors.
Maffra also collected two wins, an 84-25 win over Southern Peninsula, and a massive 130-48 win over Warragul.
Wonthaggi made it look easy against the Pelicans, downing them in an 85-41 win.
TRARALGON men have a game this Saturday, while Moe and Morwell are both at home on Sunday.
The T-Birds women play at home on Sunday, as do the Meteors and Magic.
