FRANKSTON cast away any doubt of being a title contender in the Big V Youth Championship Men’s Division, with the only Blues being what their opponents suffered at the hands of a ruthless opposition. The affectionately named Blues first destroyed Diamond Valley Eagles by 35 points on the road, before returning home to obliterate Wyndham by 60 points a day later.

In the first of those two games which took place on Saturday, the Blues produced two dominant quarters to break away from the 1-1 Eagles. Though the home team had the lead by four points at the opening change, that would be a far cry from the end result, with the second and fourth quarters yielding a combined 66 points to 27 as the Blues stormed to a 104-69 triumph.

Five players produced double-digit points tallies with skipper Jesse Lans knocking down 17 points and picking up five assists, while Lachlan Kanngiesser (15 points, three rebounds) and Ben Forsyth (13 points, two rebounds) were other key scoring starters, the latter of whom shot six of seven from the field.

Big man Heath Tenner pulled in nine rebounds – including three off the offensive boards – and managed to record nine points, while support from the likes of Zade Nugent and Ryley Nyssen who combined for 13 rebounds off the bench, was crucial in the win.

Bailey Milligan (17 points, four rebounds) and Maximus Tatter (15 points, three rebounds, three assists and four steals) did what they could, while James Coleman also dropped 11 points in the heavy defeat for the Eagles.

There was no sign of a slow start on Sunday as Frankston blitzed a shellshocked Wyndham en route to a 60-point shellacking. The Blues raced out to a 10-point lead at quarter time and by half-time that margin had grown to 22. The most brutal quarter was yet to come though, with the Blues pouring on a whopping 40 points to 12 during the third term to have the Dreamstreet Lending Arena in raptures. Not willing to take the foot off, the Blues finished strong in the final term to make it an even 60 points by the final buzzer.

Kanngiesser shot nine of 11 from the field – including four of six from long-range – on his way to an equal team-high 23 points alongside three rebounds. He shared the limelight with Nicholas Beattie off the bench who went at a point a minute thanks to his 23, which also featured five of nine from beyond the arc.

Forsyth and Tenner both had 10 points and eight rebounds, while Nugent (four points, nine rebounds and five assists) crashed some critical boards) and Lans (11 points, four rebounds and five assists) did a little of everything. Amahri Ryer (14 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals) was the other player in double figures for points.

Brodie Salter notched up 20 points in a disappointing defeat for Wyndham, while it was the work of Adam Arkadio (16 points, nine rebounds and two assists), Jordan Adams (17 points, four rebounds and four assists) and Spencer Smith (10 points, six rebounds) who chipped in with some assistance off the boards. Unfortunately the depth for the visitors was not there, with just six of the 69 points coming from players outside the top four, compared to Frankston’s 73 points off the bench.

AROUND THE COURTS

Frankston is not the only undefeated side in the Youth Championship Men’s Division with Kilsyth Cobras and Dandenong Rangers also completing an unbeaten start to the season. The Cobras took down Nunawading Spectres by 16 points on the weekend, while the Rangers knocked up back-to-back victories over Melbourne Tigers (nine points) and Geelong United (two) in a couple of thrillers.

The Tigers and United both suffered heartbreaking defeats, with the pair also going down to Knox Raiders and Keilor Thunder respectively in Round 2. Sandringham Sabres survived against Knox in a high-scoring 98-91 result, while Eltham Wildcats took down Wyndham by 22 points and Nunawading bounced back from the loss to Kilsyth with a victory over Diamond Valley. Hume City Broncos and Casey Cavaliers were the other Round 2 winners.

ROUND 2