THE MELBOURNE Tigers were clinical at stages throughout their Round 4 win over the Knox Raiders 2 in the Victorian Junior Basketball League (VJBL) Under-18 Boys in the VC Watson at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre on Friday night.

The third quarter proved the difference when it comes to the scoreboard, with the Tigers outscoring the Raiders 19-8 in that period to jump out to a hefty lead. Although Knox made things tight late in the piece, Melbourne had enough of a buffer to hold on for an eight-point victory.

It was a slow start for the home side, who were struggling to find consistent offence in the first period and allowed the Raiders to hold a four-point buffer at the main change. Knox looked in danger of breaking the game open, but a clear shift in defensive intensity flipped the script for the Tigers, and put the opposition under plenty of pressure.

Melbourne began to cause plenty of turnovers and score in transition in the second period, and upped their defensive intensity in the third, holding the dangerous Knox outfit to just eight points in that frame in what was a decisive adjustment in the context of the game.

While not truly full-court pressing, the Tigers were pushing up in their defensive set up, and looked to put the pressure on the Raiders ball-carrier. The hosts were also relentless in their switching, constantly shuffling over if there was a loose Knox player.

The Raiders began to rely heavily on the three ball, and when the shots were not falling, it left them vulnerable to fast break points down the other end. On the other hand, the Tigers were looking to push the ball inside and finding this to be a very successful scoring method.

Melbourne’s dominance inside was on the back of a terrific performance from Archer Donaldson, who led all comers for his side with 17 points on the night. He showed excellent footwork and could escape the reach of his opponent in a phonebox with clever pivoting under the hoop.

The Tigers were looking to feed players as they were cutting into the basket, with plenty of off-ball cuts in their halfcourt sets. Although not always successful and sometimes resulting in turnovers, it was a great way to allow their bigs to play one-on-one in the low block, which is where they did their best work.

The Raiders did lift in the final term, with Jake Witowski (19 points) and Jordan Pasula (18 points) threatening to inspire a final quarter comeback with some excellent shotmaking in the final eight minutes of play.

However, the Tigers were composed with ball in hand, and Aiden Anstess nailed a late layup to seal the result in what was a gutsy win from Melbourne, one that perfectly encapsulated how restrictive this team can be when they lift their defensive intensity.