With just one round to go before finals, Ballan Brumbies Under 12 Boys E were looking to hold on to top spot on the ladder against the balanced and dangerous Phoenix Eagles.<\/p>\n
Phoenix jumped out to an early 6-0 lead though Rory Anderson before Ashton McFall eventually broke the Brumbies duck. A pair of baskets to Toby Rewuk, the latter a lovely pull-up jumper, leveled the scores.<\/p>\n
What looked in the opening minutes to be a free-flowing, high scoring affair quickly turned raggedy as both teams lost their rhythm.<\/p>\n
Ballan\u2019s on-ball defense was superb, creating a raft of turnovers \u2013 Rewuk, Hallam Reid and Lachlan Grech were menaces \u2013 though the Brumbies failed to turn those chances into points as Phoenix\u2019s defense around the basket remained stout.<\/p>\n
When Phoenix did break through Ballan\u2019s pressure they were met by a scrambling Michael Edwards-Kellett or Tom Sims, who did enough to hold up their opponent until their teammates could get back and help.<\/p>\n
With baskets hard to come by, McFall used his strength to burst through and score a pair of much needed baskets late in the first half, the scores tied at 10 apiece at the break.<\/p>\n
The second half saw both teams rediscover their attacking verve.<\/p>\n
Phoenix was suddenly comfortably navigating Ballan\u2019s extended pressure, Aidan Rattray and the very impressive Deakin Fletcher connecting from close range. For their part, Ballan were slicing through a tired Phoenix team but were making things far harder than they needed to be with Brumbies primary playmakers constantly looking off their better positioned teammates. Eddie Tranter showed his fellow Brumbies the benefits of keeping your head up, twice finding McFall for baskets on the break to keep Ballan in the contest.<\/p>\n
As Phoenix continued to keep the Brumbies at arm\u2019s length, the powerful Sims got to work. The burly centre used his strength to bully his way into offensive rebounds, converting on a pair of put-backs.<\/p>\n
With the game hanging in the balance, Brumbies coach Max Farrell took out both her primary ball movers in McFall and Rewuk, a risky move that could have proved costly but the team\u2019s defense held strong in their absence. Both boys were sent out with new instructions and it paid immediate dividends. Rewuk\u2019s defense was back on point and McFall looked a far calmer player, patiently picking apart the Phoenix defense rather than trying to plough right through it.<\/p>\n
That newfound composure brought instant success as McFall weaved his way to the hoop for three consecutive baskets to swing the match in Ballan’s favour, giving Brumbies a three point lead with under a minute to play.<\/p>\n
Anderson brought the margin back to a point, but Ballan held on to win 26-25 in a fascinating game of basketball. As a nice little bonus, the two teams will do it all again in this Saturday\u2019s semi-final.<\/p>\n