WITH plenty of exciting basketball to enjoy over the weekend across a number of leagues, there were a fair few thrilling contests. That was certainly the case in the Big V Men’s Championship, with Round 6 taking place on Saturday and Sunday. It has been a cracking start to season 2022 for the Victorian-based competition, with lots of team offence and strong individual outings coming across the first five rounds, and the action continued over the weekend.

The most exciting clash to take place over the round was between McKinnon and the Hume City Broncos at GESAC on Saturday night. Coming into the game, the two sides were enjoying similar starts to the season, hopeful of making an appearance in the finals later in the year. It loomed as a crucial contest with a fair few teams around the same mark in the standings, so a boost here would be pretty handy. There was a lot to like about how the game played out, with some high quality action throughout the game. It ended up going down to the wire, with the match decided in the last few seconds, when it looked as if McKinnon had stolen the game in overtime. However, they fell a point short, with a buzzer-beating shot ruled to be from two-point territory instead of behind the arc.

McKinnon (95) def. by Hume City Broncos (96)

The Broncos got off to a great start, with a good mix of inside and outside scoring resulting in some pretty good looks. However, their opponents were up for the fight, and able to match the output on the offensive end. Three points separated the two squads at the first break, and fans at GESAC found themselves treated to a high-quality affair. Quarter number two saw the game continue to be a see-sawing affair, with neither side able to get a real advantage on the scoreboard. Chris Elder was at his prolific scoring best for the Broncos, giving them a bucket whenever they needed one, but McKinnon was up for the fight, leading by a point at the main break of play.

Nic Laycock was the star of the show in the first few minutes of the second half, nailing a pair of threes to give McKinnon the lead. However, the Broncos were determined to not let the lead slip away, with Elder leading the way once again. After McKinnon went on another burst towards the end of the quarter, he went on a personal 5-0 run and brought the margin back to one point heading into the fourth. There were some big shots in the term, with McKinnon’s scoring coming from behind the arc in the final minutes, while Elder kept the Broncos’ score ticking over. The two teams could not be separated by the time the buzzer sounded for the end of the fourth period, so the game headed into overtime. Bul Niop put Hume City up by three points with a minute to go, and McKinnon looked like they were struggling to conjure an answer. Laycock looked to have been the hero with a buzzer-beater from behind the arc, sending the game to double overtime. However, the refs reviewed the shot and his foot was found to be on the line, making it a two and giving the Broncos the win.

Standout Performers

Elder was simply unstoppable in his side’s slim win, pouring in 36 points and providing an extremely reliable avenue to scoring on each possession. He performed in all clutch situations and was one of the biggest reasons as to why they got the job done. He also delivered five steals, demonstrating how active he remained on the other end of the court. Niop was also strong with 19 points, while Sharif Black led the way for McKinnon with 31 of his own.

Across the courts

There were a few other games that took place over the weekend, with most of them being by a significant margin.

Camberwell (97) def. Western Port (74)
Chelsea (64) def. by Sunbury (94)
Wyndham (121) def. Blackburn (90)