SCHOOL SPORT VICTORIA - LODDON MALLEE REGION

Senior Basketball

On Friday 24 July, our Senior Girls and Boys Basketball Teams travelled to Echuca to compete in the Loddon Mallee Regional Finals of the SSV Basketball Competition. With both teams boasting strong lineups, they were keen to get on court, play some competitive basketball and hopefully qualify for the State Finals later in the Term.

Senior Girls

The Senior Girls team were dealt an early blow when Jemma Thomas and Lyndal Bannan were unable to play due to illness. However, it was fortunate that Jordan O’Bree was more than happy to move from the scorer’s bench to join the playing group for the day.

The opening game for the girls was against a handy side from Mildura Senior College. The game started relatively evenly as the girls had some trouble finding the basket, but once their shots started to drop, the confidence lifted. Mia Harvey, Charlize Pinder and Lacey Nihill led the way, as Lexie Fennell set up numerous scoring opportunities. With the assistance of Mia Morris, Dempsey McDonnell and Jordi O’Bree, the team turned their early lack of form around to dominate the majority of the match and record a convincing 46-25 win.

Game 2 saw the girls take on a very competitive team from St Joseph’s College Echuca. Once again, the match started evenly, until Lacey Nihill found her range and started to sink consecutive 3-point bombs. Mia Harvey also joined in on the points accrual, scoring with virtually every attempt at the basket. Charlize Pinder and Mia Morris also joined in, dropping some long-range shots as the girls slowly built a lead. Lexie Fennell was putting on a masterclass as the basketball director with clever passing, tactical drives to the basket, and 3-point bombs. Add in the evanescent energy and playmaking skill of Dempsey McDonnell, and the bench super-sub, Jordi O’Bree, and all players were registering points. Echuca played a very competitive game, and at times the girls had to really work hard to gain control of the match, but despite the challenges, the girls always had a handle on the match. They once again slowly built a lead and secured another convincing win, 47-33 to finish as the Loddon Mallee Regional Champions.

SENIOR GIRLS: Miss Madeline Dowling (Coach), Charlize Pinder, Mia Morris, Jordan O’Bree, Mr Matt Andronicos (Coach), Lacey Nihill, Lexie Fennell, Dempsey McDonnell, Mia Harvey

Senior Boys

Our Senior Boys team were also drawn to play Mildura Senior College and St Joseph’s College Echuca; however, both of their games proved to be tough and hard-fought from start to finish. With a squad of nine players kitted up and ready to play, court time and rotations were made with meticulous precision to ensure minimal impact on team dynamic and balance.

In the first game, Mildura started the match with a flurry of points; however the CMCB boys soon found their ‘court legs’ and started not only bringing equity back on the scoreboard but also setting up plays and court transition that put their opposition on the back foot and under pressure. The boys soon found a simple and effective game style that put them in front on the scoreboard, which was to do what we do well, and exploit the opposition’s weaknesses. This theory and game plan proved to be pivotal. The boys soon had control of the match, and despite Mildura continuing to challenge with the occasional turnover, the CMCB boys ran out comfortable winners 66-45.

In Game 2, St Joseph’s College Echuca were well prepared; having watched the previous match, they hit the court with some clever strategies to negate the dominance of the CMCB Guards. The boys were rattled to start with, as the physicality of this match was more intense, but like in Game 1, the boys eventually settled and played some terrific and smart team basketball.

Jake Gribble was dynamic from outside the 3-point arc, Max Connick was pivotal in breaking through the Echuca press, Josh Mundy, was slick with his ball movement and court transition, Gil Neilson and Jake Schubert were strong in every contest, constantly denying Echuca of free passage to the basket, and scoring on the rebound. Billy Dearricott, Charlie Bannan and Camden Mould were a great foil for the starting five off the bench, as they contributed impressively both offensively and defensively when injected into the game. However, the lynch pin in both wins was the brilliance of Nick Harvey. His ability to put on a block, take a rebound, set up his teammates with a screen or score points himself, especially when the pressure was on, was incredibly valuable. The boys worked brilliantly together, and once their cohesion was locked and loaded, they were able to secure another fantastic win 54 to 35, to also finish the day as the Loddon Mallee Regional Champions.

Congratulations to both teams on such incredible results. We wish them all the very best of luck at the SSV State Championships in Melbourne on Thursday 17 September.

SENIOR BOYS: Billy Dearricott, Gil Neilson, Camden Mould, Jake Schubert, Max Connick, Mr Matt Andronicos (Coach), Jake Gribble, Joshua Mundy, Nicholas Harvey, Charlie Bannan