ANOTHER weekend is in the books, as is another round of the Big V Men’s Championship. Round 5 took place over the span of a couple of days, with five matches taking place around Victorian basketball courts. It was a big weekend on the schedule, with the ladder again set to change with some intriguing matchups on the cards. Among the clashes was a ripping contest between the Western Port Steelers and the Chelsea Gulls at Civic Reserve Recreation Centre on Sunday afternoon.

Coming into the clash, the Gulls were still searching for their first win in season 2022, while the Steelers had claimed just one victory themselves. It was an opportunity for both sides to get back on the right side of the results after a disappointing start to the season. The two teams came into the round fresh off 25+ point defeats too, so there was plenty of room for improvement. It was one of the most exciting games of the year, and in the end, Western Port was able to sneak past Chelsea and grab their second win of the season to the tune of just one point.

Western Port (89) def. Chelsea Gulls (88)

The Gulls stormed out of the gates in the first term, rallying behind the efforts of duo Stewart Tyrell and Corey Standerfer. Western Port could not match the output on the offensive end, and its defence was struggling to contain the red-hot offence of Chelsea. The margin was out to 12 points at the first break, and the Steelers faced an uphill battle. Scoring lifted from both sides in the second term, and the home side was able to get a slight advantage after a slow start to the quarter. Chelsea pushed its lead out to 17 in the first couple of minutes, but as the period continued, Naaman Hightower got going inside the paint, and the lead was reduced to just nine points heading into the main break.

Western Port’s momentum continued into the second half, continuing to reduce the margin it faced earlier in the game. It took the Steelers just two and a half minutes to erase the half time defecit, with Chelsea’s offence coming to a halt. The home side was able to stretch its lead out to six points at various stages of the third, but the Gulls kept themselves within two points at the final change. Western Port was able to once again get the upper hand in the final term, leading by as much as 13 points in the last quarter. However, the Gulls were determined to keep themselves in it, producing one last fightback and getting within one point in the last few seconds of the game, but were ultimately defeated by time.

Hightower was the standout in the win for the Steelers, producing a big double-double of 31 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. He was the catalyst for the comeback in the second term, and dominated play inside the paint and proving no match for the Chelsea interior defence. Troyce Manassa was not far behind with 24 points in a performance that also caught the eye. Standerfer was Chelsea’s best with 21 points, constantly creating scoring opportunities for the Gulls.

Across the courts

There were four other clashes that took place around Victoria’s basketball stadiums, with some interesting results coming out of the round.

Blackburn (88) def. by Western Port (106)
Wyndham (90) def. McKinnon (76)
Camberwell (76) def. by Hume (89)
Sunbury (81) def. McKinnon (79)