By ROY WARD
DANDENONG Rangers men got an early look at championship contender Geelong Supercats and Rangers coach Darren Perry believes his side will take a lot from the loss.
On Saturday night the Rangers lost 88-84 at Dandenong Stadium to the Supercats. New power forward Ash Cannan came up big for the visitors in the final term, making five key free throws out of his 17 points to keep his side ahead.
Despite giving up 27 turnovers and struggling to keep the Supercats off the boards, the Rangers still found a way to keep pace with the visitors, with import Daequon Montreal scoring a game-high 27 points and seven rebounds.
But Montreal also made a foolish play in the final minutes by questioning a foul call, resulting in him earning a technical foul. The Supercats took their lead out to six with the extra free throws and possession of the ball.
Yet the Rangers refused to give in. Andrew Harms scored a quick five points after getting a lay-up and then making three free-throws on the next play to bring the Rangers within one point with 14 seconds left.
Cannan, who only played 17 minutes in the match, was fouled on the inbound pass and made two free throws, giving the Rangers a chance to force overtime. But Harms’ three-point shot missed and Theron Wilson pulled down the rebound with just seconds left and was fouled as time expired.
Harms had 17 points and eight assists while Tony Lewis added 12 points.
Perry said the two sides had put on a “physical chess match” and were two of the best sides in the league.
He said Montreal’s tech foul was costly but the Rangers had struggled in other areas as well.
“At the time we didn’t need it but we threw it away 27 times and gave up 19 offensive rebounds so we did other things wrong; it’s not something we should isolate,” he said.
“We turned it over 27 times. We gave up 19 offensive rebounds but we were still there with a chance to take the game to overtime, so there must have been some other good things going on.
“Hopefully we respond well to this loss and get back to winning next match.”
New Rangers signing Owen Odigie was impressive during his time on the court after coming back from a broken wrist but he was forced to leave the game late in the final term after being fouled heavily, causing a tooth in his mouth to be pushed back.
Perry said Odigie was taken to hospital as a precaution after the game.
The Rangers have a showdown with rivals Knox Raiders at the State Basketball Centre at 8pm this Saturday and then back up against Canberra Gunners at Dandenong Stadium at 2pm this Sunday.
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