SOUTH Adelaide men’s side threw down the gauntlet to Forestville Eagles on the weekend, with the Panthers holding on in a tight contest at Mitchell Park Sports and Community Centre. The top three battle saw the third placed Panthers join both ladder leaders Forestville and Sturt Sabres with an 11-3 record for the season, though the 88-85 victory was far from clinical.

A first term really set up the win as South Adelaide jumped its highly touted opponent with a 25-17 opening quarter, and by the main break, had a 46-37 lead. The Panthers’ shooting from long-range in the first term had been clinical at 50 per cent, while they sought more inside looks in the second. Both sides broke even in the points in the paint with 22 apiece, and that fluidity to get to the basket helped the Eagles in the second half.

Despite both teams shooting at a poor clip in the third quarter, Forestville had a stack more looks, and were able to finish the term with 18 points, the same amount as the Panthers despite shooting at just 21 per cent from inside the arc. Their long-range shooting was still on-point, but unfortunately for the visitors, they still faced a nine-point deficit at the last break.

After a Tom Kubank triple a couple of minutes into the final stanza, the Panthers held the nine-point lead at 70-61. However the Eagles responded with the next five points to close within two possessions. Jeremy Smith would deliver the next four points himself to help the Panthers breathe a sigh on relief and be up 74-66 with five and a half minutes to go, but it would be short lived.

The experienced Daniel Johnson made one of two from the charity stripe, and then Uche Dibiamaka and Greg Mays made the home crowd get a little closer to the edge of their seat with back-to-back baskets cutting the deficit to just three points.

Kubank would come to the rescue just seconds later with a fast transition and layup, only for Fiston Ipassou to compound those worries with a brilliant long-range jumper. At that point the gap had close to two points, but no sooner had the Eagles essentially caught up, but Smith was again set to singlehandedly get the Panthers out of trouble.

Smith drained an inside shot, then after an Ipassou miss, the ball would land in Smith’s hands up the other end and he made no mistake from three-point range. In the blink of an eye, the margin was back out to seven (81-74) and the challenge was thrown down to the ladder leaders.

As expected Forestville did respond scoring the next five points, though another crucial missed free throw from Johnson meant the deficit was still two points with just over two minutes left. Kubank would have no such trouble after drawing a foul close to the basket, extending it back out to four, before Eagles’ Adam Doyle sank a ridiculous triple to make it a one-point ball game.

The score stayed at 83-82 for what seemed like an eternity as both sides missed chances, before Jarryd Hoppo stepped to the line, making one of two free throws. The players were desperate and forcing turnovers, and after a jumpball went the way of the Eagles with 28 seconds on the clock it looked promising. Unfortunately Adam Doyle turned the ball over and Dibiamaka was forced to foul Johns.

The South Adelaide player went to the line and calmly delivered with both free throws to make it a four-point game again (86-82). It would not be the end of the twists and turns however. Johnson determined to be the hero lined up a three-pointer up the opposite end and drained with success, cutting the deficit to one point yet again.

Just 14 seconds remained, and determined to run the same play again, the Eagles fouled Kubank. He went to the line and scored both making it three points, which meant with seven seconds left, the Panthers needed a Hail Mary. Once again the ball found its way into the hands of Johnson who took the shot, but this time missed, and with it retained in the same hands of Hoppo, the Panthers were able to hold onto possession for the last six seconds and enjoy a nail-biting win.

SOUTH ADELAIDE 25 | 21 | 18 | 24 (88)
FORESTVILLE 17 | 20 | 18 | 30 (85)

Best:
South Adelaide: Jeremy Smith (21 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds), Tom Kubank (20 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals), Samuel Johnson (14 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists), Alex Starling (10 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists)
Forestville: Daniel Johnson (27 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal), Greg Mays (20 points, 11 rebounds, 1 steal, 5 blocks)