By JARROD POTTER
BIG V DIVISION 2 MEN GRAND FINAL SERIES – GAME ONE
ONE-nil.
Keysborough sits in the ultimate position in the three-game Big V Division 2 Men’s championship series after a back-and-forth first match went all the way to double-overtime to find the Cougars’ victorious.
It took 50 minutes of hard-fought basketball to separate the Cougars from the Steelers in the 79-71 nail-biter.
Both sides had their chances to knock out the game through regulation time, but it took two overtime periods in the end as the game went to the wire.
They got under each other’s skin in the process with a little push and shove and heated words exchanged.
But that gamesmanship didn’t stop Keysborough keeping the tempo high – rolling the dice with the entire roster to tire out the opposition who relied mostly on the three-pronged attack of star guard Manny Hendrix (32 points, eight rebounds), Ricki Dehaan (12 points) and Peder Whelan (nine points, 13 rebounds).
An early Keysborough advantage was whittled away through the third term as Western Port fired – hitting four treys in a 22-13 small victory to take back the lead.
Trailing 46-50 at the final change, Keysborough rallied to hit the first eight points of the last time before the back-and-forth began in earnest.
Western Port reclaimed the lead at the three-minute mark as neither side could find the basket.
A late-match foul-out of Steelers’ centre Whelan gave the Cougars a little more room to operate in the key as Heard and Smith started flying.
Dehaan went to the line and had a chance to give his side the win, with two free throws right at the end of regulation, but missed one to force the match to overtime.
Steve Haddrell sank a match-defining trey early in overtime one, to put the Steelers on the back foot, while neither side could really hit their shots as Hendix, Smith and Heard all struggled to seal the deal.
But Keysborough dug deep once again and rallied to push out and hold onto the lead and take the upper hand in the grand final series.
“Both sides knew how much was on the line,” Keysborough coach Nathan Vogt said.
“I reckon Steven Haddrell’s deep three was a turning point and we knew if we could make them panic and play the clock against us we’d win from the line which was exactly how it played out.”
Vogt saved highest praise for Heard’s all-court efforts as the American shone in a 28-point, 14-rebound, four-block performance under each basket – epitomising the key in Keysborough.
“He had four blocked shots and that goes nicely with 28 points and 14 boards,” Vogt said.
“That was a nice stat-line for him – but it’s the little things that help us.
“Matching up on Manny Hendrix – really impressive performance when he went to him – and strategically speaking, having someone who was such an important part of our make-up who can play two to five and guard anyone on the floor is invaluable.”
David Smith (10 points, six rebounds) was gallant through his 41-minute performance – barrelling through the Western Port talls en route to the ring – while Vogt squeezed every millisecond out of his complete roster, throwing the ball around to great effect as the likes of Jamie LeClerc, Jamal Talo and Andrew Lowe among others battled manfully when called upon.
“Playing personnel we used 11 out of our 12 guys and nine would’ve played double digit minutes,” Vogt said. “In terms of legs I knew that if we could keep our guys fresh they wouldn’t have the legs to run it out.”
Game two is scheduled for Saturday night at 7pm at Somerville Basketball Stadium and if it’s needed, the third and deciding match-up will be Sunday from 2pm at the same venue.
While two-nil would be the preferred option for the Cougars, Vogt believes his side’s stamina will push the Steelers to the limit across the series.
“We’d like to wrap it up Saturday if we can, but if it goes to Sunday I’m confident that we’ll have fresher legs and run them off the floor,” Vogt said.
“Going into a game like this, it’s always a tough game – they’re undefeated on their floor, so we’ll have to do what no other team has done this year.
“But you’ve got to beat the best to be the best.”
Keysborough has been in this spot before – in its runner-up 2012 season to Craigieburn after leading the series – and Vogt thinks wisdom earned at that time will help guide the Cougars to go one step better.
“Back in 2012 we were five points short in game two and ultimately lost the championship series there, but I think our guys are a lot smarter this time around and better for the experience,” Vogt said. “I’d be surprised if this one slipped through the fingers so to speak.”
