IT WAS a great weekend to be a home side in the National Basketball League (NBL), with Round 8 seeing most hosting teams secure a win in front of their adoring fans.

There were seven games that took place from Thursday to Sunday, as the action continued to be extremely unpredictable in nature. Whether it was upset wins, tense finishes or astounding individual efforts, there was a bit of everything in Round 8.

As is the case every week, Rookie Me Central will be providing a game-by-game rundown of the weekend’s action and how it has affected the race for the finals.

Brisbane Bullets (103) def. by Melbourne United (120)

A power outage caused chaos, but Melbourne United were able to get back on the winners’ list with a 13-point triumph over the Brisbane Bullets at Nissan Arena on Thursday night. Melbourne led by 15 points with three minutes to play, but the power went out at the venue causing a 30-minute delay and an unofficial end to the national coverage. However, it did not stop Melbourne from getting the job done in a high-scoring clash.

Big man Robert Loe was immense for the winning side, posting a whopping 30 points in one of the best performances of his career. He was able to fire from behind the arc against the Bullets, and the opposition did not have an answer for his red-hot shooting. For Brisbane, Keandre Cook was lively, particularly early and finished the game with 23 points.

Top performers:
Robert Loe (MEL) – 30 points, five rebounds, two steals
Keandre Cook (BRI) – 23 points, two rebounds, five assists

Perth Wildcats (88) def. Tasmania JackJumpers (82)

The Wildcats managed to defend their home court by defeating the JackJumpers by six points at RAC Arena on Thursday night. The visitors showed some fight in the first half, and led by four points at the main change, before Perth began to find its shooting form in the third quarter, and held on for another valuable win without Bryce Cotton.

Big man Kristian Doolittle was immense for the home side, throwing his weight around against a smaller JackJumpers outfit to finish with a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds. The JackJumpers were kept in the fight by a return to form from star guard Milton Doyle, who posted 20 of his 30 points in the first half to showcase his value to the team.

Top performers:
Kristian Doolittle (PER) – 18 points, 11 rebounds, two assists
Milton Doyle (TAS) – 30 points, three rebounds, four assists, two steals

Sydney Kings (74) def. SEM Phoenix (69)

It may have been a scrappy effort, but the Kings did enough to defeat the South East Melbourne Phoenix at Qudos Bank Arena on Friday night. Sydney trailed by double-digits in the fourth quarter, but dug deep to overrun the Phoenix in the final minutes of the game to overrun a valiant performance from an improved South East Melbourne team.

Former NBL MVP Jaylen Adams showed his class when the game was on the line, taking over the match to help steer his team to victory with the final seven points of the match. He finished the game with 20 points, five rebounds, seven assists and the dagger three-pointer from the corner. Against his old side, Angus Glover was the Phoenix’s best with 17 points, four rebounds and two assists.

Tasmania JackJumpers (83) def. New Zealand Breakers (64)

After a poor few weeks that resulted in a slide down the standings, the JackJumpers delivered a statement win from the bottom of the table, defeating the ladder-leading Breakers by 19 points at MyState Bank Arena on Saturday evening. Tasmania’s offensive woes may not have been solved, but it is hard to deliver a better defensive performance, especially against the form team of the competition, holding New Zealand to just three points in the third quarter.

In his best performance at NBL level to date, import Craig Sword was a major factor on both ends of the floor for the JackJumpers. Highly regarded for his defensive work, Sword put it together on the offensive end too, delivering 18 points on 6/7 shooting in just 20 minutes of court time. Point guard Jordan Crawford led all-comers with 19 points in a solid showing from the volume scorer.

Top performers:
Craig Sword (TAS) – 18 points, one rebound, one assist, two steals
Jordan Crawford (TAS) – 19 points, one rebound, four assists, two steals

Melbourne United (106) def. Perth Wildcats (97)

It was the Chris Goulding show as United produced an excellent comeback win over the Wildcats at John Cain Arena on Saturday night. Melbourne trailed by 14 points at the half against an impressive Perth outfit, before Goulding completely took over the match to erase the deficit and help United stay in touch with top spot on the ladder in one of the best individual efforts ever seen in the NBL.

Goulding scored 25 points in the third quarter alone, with 22 of those coming in less than four minutes of play. He hit six three-pointers in a row in a superstar-level performance from the 36-year-old. Despite the defence trying to attach themselves at the hip, he could not be stopped and was hitting shots only he could make. Goulding finished the match with 46 points in one of the best performances of his storied career.

Top performers:
Chris Goulding (MEL) – 46 points, two rebounds, two assists
Kristian Doolittle (PER) – 21 points, four rebounds, five assists

SEM Phoenix (97) def. Cairns Taipans (74)

The Phoenix continued their surge up the standings with a tremendous win over the Taipans at John Cain Arena on Sunday afternoon. South East Melbourne knocked down 17 triples in an excellent shooting display, and proved too much for the Taipans, who did get some troops back but still came into the clash undermanned.

Glover delivered another standout showing for the Phoenix, posting a game-high 22 points on 9/14 shooting from the field, continuing a strong run of form. Despite a poor shooting night, Nathan Sobey nearly produced a double-double with 14 points (2/13 FG) and nine assists in a strong passing display from the veteran.

Top performers:
Angus Glover (SEM) – 22 points, three assists, two steals
Nathan Sobey (SEM) – 14 points, five rebounds, nine assists

Adelaide 36ers (93) def. Illawarra Hawks (79)

The final game of the round saw the Adelaide 36ers continue to be the toughest team to beat at home, defeating the Illawarra Hawks by 14 points at Adelaide Entertainment Centre on Sunday afternoon. In a blockbuster clash, two of the best sides of the season to date locked horns in an entertaining clash, and the Sixers’ ability to gain scoreboard ascendancy on the eve of half time proved crucial, as the home side held off the Hawks.

Once again, Adelaide’s big names were the difference in the clash, with several stars stepping up when the game was in the balance. Montrezl Harrell delivered a game-high 25 points to go with seven boards and a massive alley-oop dunk, while Dejan Vasiljevic was not far behind with 23 points, six rebounds and four assists. Import guard Kendric Davis did a bit of everything to stuff the stat sheet and finish with 17 points, six rebounds and 10 assists.

Top performers:
Montrezl Harrell (ADL) – 25 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals, one block
Kendric Davis (ADL) – 16 points, seven rebounds, 10 assists, two steals