BASKETBALL

COUNTRY BASKETBALL LEAGUE

By BLAKE METCALF-HOLT

 

AN impressive opening to CBL Gippsland finals has Moe heading into a Grand Final, while Traralgon and Morwell were left shaking their heads.

 

CBL Women’s: Moe def Korumburra 70-69

OT, OT.

Moe was victorious over Korumburra in a thrilling women’s semi-final by just a single point.

Playing at Latrobe Leisure Moe/Newborough, the home side won 70 to 69, denying the Wildcats a chance at back-to-back CBL championships.

The Meteors, after an undefeated six-game start to the season had them as the hot side of the competition, however losses to Warragul and Morwell (three points) saw Moe slide to second on the ladder.

Both sides held the same amount of wins, but given Moe had defeated Korumburra in Round 2 by 16 points, it gave them the home court advantage.

It wasn’t the start planned by the Meteors after the Wildcats got out to an early 7-2 start through the first four minutes of play.

Korumburra had set the tone on the defensive end, holding Moe to just eight points in the first quarter, but only led by five by the end of the opening.

The Wildcats extended their lead to double digits quickly in the second term, only for Lauryn King-Church and Ellie Coutts to charge Moe back into the game with a ruthless attack forcing their opponent’s to call timeout.

Korumburra responded with a nine-nothing run coming out of the huddle to send it back over 10 points.

A late bucket from Carly Wood placed the margin back to eight points ahead of halftime, 28-20.

Again, Korumburra engaged hotly to begin the second half, scoring six of the first seven points that placed them ahead by 13 within the first two minutes of the third term.

Caitlin Demczuk then lit up the home crowd after drilling back-to-back three-pointers in quick succession that led the charge for the Meteors as they fought back to five points midway through the quarter.

The heralded ‘premiership’ quarter was won by the home side as Demczuk scored 10 points during the term and Danielle Davies finished off strong with multiple scores that positioned Moe down two with 10 (supposed) minutes spare.

King-Church started the final term the right way for the Meteors, nailing a three that swung Moe ahead for the first time since the opening minute of the first quarter.

The Meteors scored on three of the next four possessions to go ahead by five points before the whistle became the focal attraction in the crucial remaining minutes.

Across the last six minutes of the fourth quarter, nine fouls were called that slowed the flow of the game down drastically after it had built up thoroughly as the margin got closer and closer.

Facing a four-point deficit with less than two minutes remaining, Korumburra tied the game again off the back of Alahna Arnason with 20 seconds remaining in regular time.

Moe called timeout to place themselves with the ball in hand for the final possession, however unable to hit the winning bucket as the clock ran out, the crowd was treated to extra basketball in a finals atmosphere.

Five more minutes were added to the clock and players entered back onto the court determined to guide their team across the line and one step closer to the championship.

It didn’t look good for the Meteors to begin overtime proceedings, as the Wildcats jumped ahead by seven points after a non-answered run.

Demczuk drained a three to cut into their sustained deficit and another shortly after had them down two points.

Tahni Hodgens tied the ballgame at the free throw line before Lara Gill nailed a brutal three-point blow to put Korumburra back ahead.

Gill looked destined to be the hero of the day after nailing a second long-range shot under a minute remaining before the free throw line was brought back into the picture in the dying seconds.

Now, in a two-for-one situation, the Meteors had to be perfect in the last three (and final) possessions.

Hodgens again arrived at the charity strip, hitting both to see them down by a point.

Moe secured their second completion with a successful stop at the defensive end, giving them the ball with a chance to win on the buzzer.

The game was in the hands of Demczuk, who dribbled down the clock before making her attack.

Getting into the paint, Demczuk was fouled and headed to the line to secure the win.

Hitting both free throws, the Wildcats quickly inbounded the ball with no timeouts remaining, attempting a miraculous shot from beyond half-court.

In a game of ebbs and flows, the Meteors had come out on top as they punched their ticket into the grand final and got revenge over Korumburra after their loss to them in the big dance two seasons ago.

Demczuk finished with a game-high 23 points and four three-pointers, followed by King-Church (13).

Moe will face Warragul at Cardinia Life Pakenham this Saturday night (December 14) to see who is crowned champion – a rematch of the 2021 CBL Women’s Grand Final in which the Warriors were victors by 16 points.

GIPPSLAND WOMEN GRAND FINAL
Moe vs Warragul
Saturday, December 14 at Cardinia Life Aquatic and Recreation Centre, Pakenham
Tipoff: 5.15pm

 

CBL Men’s: Traralgon def by Warragul 117-86

LOSING just one match through the regular season, Traralgon were placed as one of the hot tipped favourites to secure their third Country Basketball League men’s grand final win in the last four seasons.

However, those hopes ended over the course of a few hours on Saturday night at the hands of a determined Warragul side.

Despite being played at the packed-out Gippsland Regional Indoor Sports Stadium (GRISS) in Traralgon, the Warriors proved to be gunners for the title after winning 117-86.

Warragul found an early 9-5 lead as both sides worked themselves into the game with much spice scattered throughout the stadium as the stakes began to add up.

The T-Birds carried through the next two minutes to get it back to one point as the Warriors called timeout.

Scores from Mason Porkykali and Brooklyn Fue put Traralgon ahead, but just as they held their largest lead in the early portions of the semi-final, Warragul with a 15-8 run the rest of the first quarter to give them a four-point gap at the end of the first quarter.

A couple of three-pointers from the Warriors’ Jordan Gooiker and other stops and scores forced the T-Birds unit to smack into place after giving up a 12-2 start to the second term, facing a 14-point deficit.

Zac Bezzina began to set up their second quarter comeback, scoring almost every time down the court for Traralgon (eight points down the stretch) which lessened the blow as they headed into halftime down six points.

Following the main break, after the deficit had been as much as 15 earlier on in the game, both sides returned to the court locked in on the end goal and see their opponent sent packing.

Traralgon began to relax a little and find their game led handily by Kody Tibballs.

Tibballs was involved in all of the first five scores for the T-Birds to start the third term, namely a brilliant bounce pass to find Bezzina back door and a nice up-and-under finish and-one tying the game up just two minutes in.

Warragul’s game plan persevered, pushing the pace every time down the court, finding open players on the perimeter for three-point shots which either went in or equalled long offensive rebound opportunities.

Young star Riley Morehu took control as the Warriors faced their toughest moments of the game, nailing multiple threes in a row including a shot when smothered by Tibballs as the shot clock neared zero seeing it bounce on all points of the rim before dropping.

Nothing seemed to be able to stop Morehu at this point, as both sides began to trade buckets back-and-forth. It was he who stood alone seemingly getting to basket whenever he felt with impressive footwork and dribbling.

In what was a 16-point quarter for Morehu, the Warriors pushed their margin out to 17 by the end of the term thanks to finishing on a 31-14 run after the game was tied up.

Traralgon desperately tried to chink at their deficit, getting the game as close as 14 points following a valiant effort from Bezzina to begin the final quarter, but Warragul was having none of it.

Bezzina (32 points) and Tibballs (24) were best for Traralgon in defeat but an unassailable 35 points from Morehu as well as four other double digit scorers for Warragul gave them the win.

After being thwarted by the T-Birds in the 2022 Grand Final, the Warriors got their revenge as they advance to the big dance.

Pakenham defeated Maffra by 13 points in the second semi-final, setting up a double Warriors Grand Final this Saturday night at Cardinia Life, Pakenham.

 

CBL Women’s: Morwell def by Warragul 81-70

SNEAKING into finals after a narrow victory over Moe in the last round of the regular season, Morwell women couldn’t carry their late season fortunes over, losing to Warragul 81-70.

Each team exploded out of the gate at Warragul Leisure Centre, with the game already tied at 16 apiece after only a few minutes with shots dropping left and right.

The Magic momentarily slowed down their offensive output, but the Warriors weren’t ready to do the same as Warragul ended the opening term on a 21-11 run.

Morwell began to get their shots to go again, but were unable to break the seal and get the game under a seven-point margin.

With their season on the line, Morwell returned going on a 10-1 run off the back of Abbey Noblett bringing it within six points.

Warragul would once again answer with threes and multiple scores in a row that pushed their lead back out to 14 points, forcing a Morwell timeout.

The game sat between 12 and 18 points throughout the next 10 minutes of play through the third and fourth quarter. The Magic were unable to get it considerably closer and their time ran out despite holding the Warriors to just eight points in the final term.

Emily Scholtes finished with 24 points in defeat followed by Micaiah Judilla (19) and Abbey Noblett (13).