Slim Jims battle on in tight game

ROUND 8 of Meeniyan Basketball Association (MBA) men’s competition produced a couple of competitive matches, with the winless Slim Jims going close to a breakthrough victory, while the Beers continued on their undefeated way but were challenged.

Honey Badgers 48 def Slim Jims 42

The Slim Jims had the flexibility of a couple of bench players, enabling them to rotate their oncourt personnel and test out the fitness of a Honey Badgers’ outfit consisting of just five players.

All Slim Jims players scored, with Lewis Bradbury the most prolific with 13 points, with Joel Webb contributing 11 points.

Jacob Beckwith was influential in the Honey Badgers 6-point win, with 16 points, as was Tom Evans who scored just a couple less.

The winning team showed strong discipline, with no player recording more than three fouls despite lacking the opportunity for bench time.

Brodie Chadwick of the Slim Jims caught the eyes of the referees, accruing four fouls for the game.

The Slim Jims take on the middle-of-the-table McHarrys in round 9 and will need to be at their best to join the winners list.

Beers 59 def 50 Shades of Klay 49

50 Shades of Klay defied expectations, taking it right up to the highly fancied Beers, but fell 10 points short.

Both sides had to put their faith in their oncourt players, with neither having a presence on the bench.

Matthew Portelli and Alej Lacanaria registered 13 points apiece for the plucky but beaten Klays, with teammate Tylah O’Connor Linke also impressing with 12 points.

However, the Beers again showed their scoring versatility, also having three players recording substantial point tallies.

That trio was a little more prolific than the Klays, with Michael Green (17 points) leading the way from Jacob Byrnes (16 points) and Mitchell Green (14 points).

While there wasn’t much between the teams on the scoreboard, the foul count was another matter, with the disciplined Beers incurring the wrath of the referees just once, while 50 Shades of Klay infringed on 14 occasions.

It doesn’t get any easier for 50 Shades of Klay next round, going up against the third-placed Renegades, a side that has lost just once this season.
The Beers look to continue on their winning way against the top-placed Bricklayers.

The Beers will enter the contest as favourites, with the Bricklayers’ current top spot partly attributable to bonus points received for attending MBA’s AGM.

Renegades 61 def McHarrys 45

The Renegades made it three straight wins, with a solid 16-point victory over the McHarrys.

That was despite the McHarrys having a bench player, while the Renegades made do with a team of five.

While Nathan Trotto found foul trouble with four blemishes against his name, he was again unstoppable for the Renegades sinking 23 points.

Cameron Stone was another who made a big impact on the scoreboard for the victor, with 18 points.

Josh and Mason McGannon were the top scorers for the beaten McHarrys with 11 and 10 points respectively.

Bricklayers 81 def Foster Young Bucks 58

While Darby Hoskins impressed with 23 points for the Foster Young Bucks, Xavier Bolge proved a scoring machine for the Bricklayers, racking up a dazzling 33 points.

That helped propel the tradies to a 23-point win.

Every player in the match hit the scoreboard.

Both sides took a disciplined approach with just 10 fouls in total for the game.

The Foster Young Bucks will look to bounce back against the Honey Badgers, a side that got the better of them in a round 2 encounter.

The Bricklayers will enter their clash against the Beers as underdogs, but confident they can be the first side to knock off the premiership fancies.