ROUND 2 of the Victorian Junior Basketball League (VJBL) kicked off over the weekend as a number of teams registered their second straight win to put them in good stead for the next phase of grading. There were a number of close calls with multiple games in both the boys and girls leagues decided by less than five points, while some blowouts also filtered through the results.

U18 Boys

Pool 1A:

Waverley notched up a second straight win in Pool A, defeating Ballarat by 12 points with every single player on their roster hitting the scoreboard. Matthew Jefferson was the topscorer for both sides finishing with 14 points. Pakenham got its first win on the board downing Bulleen in convincing fashion with Lauchlan Mark leading the way with a game-high 20 points.

Ballarat (42) defeated by Waverley (54)

Matthew Jefferson (Waverley) 14
Riley Dunn (Ballarat) 14
Alex Molan (Ballarat) 11

Pakenham (68) defeated Bulleen (55)

Lauchlan Mark (Pakenham) 20
Kaleb Beveridge (Pakenham) 12
Liam George (Bulleen) 10
Henry Ward (Pakenham) 10

Pool 1B:

There was not much separating the sides in Pool B with both matches decided by five points or less, highlighting the high intensity of the games. Sandringham got over the top of Camberwell by four points while Bendigo bypassed Diamond Valley by five points. Harvey Johnston starred for Sandringham with 21 points with a number of supporting roles played while in the Bendigo game it was Oliver Mayman that led the charge.

Sandringham (65) defeated Camberwell (61)

Harvey Johnston (Sandringham) 21
Samuel Veitch (Camberwell) 15
Hudson O’Keefe (Camberwell) 13

Bendigo (59) defeated Diamond Valley (54)

Jensen Miles (Diamond Valley) 14
Oliver Mayman (Bendigo) 13
Jack Miles (Diamond Valley) 11

Pool 1C:

The game between Sandringham and Casey went down to the wire with the end margin a mere two points in favour of Casey. It was a relatively low scoring affair, with neither side willing to give an inch and fighting until the dying seconds. Meanwhile, Whittlesea impressed in its outing against Nunawading.

Sandringham (41) defeated by Casey (43)

Ethan Bolton (Casey) 22
Fred Hayne (Sandringham) 14
Kylan Dsylva (Casey) 9

Nunawading (55) defeated by Whittlesea (62)

Kobe McMechan (Nunawading) 21
Jack Tatter (Whittlesea) 15
Luke Dimopoulos (Nunawading) 13

Pool 1D:

Wyndham managed to get its first win of the season beating Dandenong by nine points rendering them winless after two rounds. In the other game it was Peninsula that toppled Latrobe to sneak home with a six point win. It seemed that 25 was the magic number across both matches with Emmanwiel Deng proving to be prolific for Wyndham with a game-high 25 points while Corey Hastings and Darcy Jones inflicted the same level of scoreboard pain in their efforts for Southern Peninsula.

Wyndham (64) defeated Dandenong (55)

Emmanwiel Deng (Wyndham) 25
Jacob Borg (Wyndham) 13
Lachlan Currie (Dandenong) 11
Jak Morris-Burney (Dandenong) 11

Latrobe (74) defeated by Southern Peninsula (80)

Corey Hastings (Southern Peninsula) 25
Darcy Jones (Southern Peninsula) 25
Kody Tibballs (Latrobe) 24

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U18 Girls:

Pool 1A:

Sunbury starred in the outing against Camberwell walking away with a convincing 23-point win while it was a different story in the second Pool A meeting, with only four points separating Altona and Wangaratta. The win marked both Sunbury’s and Altona’s second win of the grading phase, setting them in good stead for their pending clash. 

Camberwell (39) defeated by Sunbury (62)

Erin Condron (Sunbury) 18
Adrienne Cameron (Sunbury) 13
Olivia Ogston (Sunbury) 13

Altona (57) defeated Wangaratta (53)

Hayleigh Frost (Wangaratta) 18
Cassie Dodemaide (Altona) 17
Jade Azzopardi (Altona) 14
Jordyn Commadeur (Wangaratta) 14

Pool 1B:

Eltham made light work of Bulleen claiming a 28-point victory to keep its undefeated streak intact. It was much closer in the other game as Ringwood just snuck home against Bellarine by five points, showcasing the level of intensity both sides brought to the table. Peyton Burns was the standout for Eltham in the win while it was the efforts of Katrina Warton that shone through for Ringwood.

Eltham (71) defeated Bulleen (43)

Peyton Burns (Eltham) 20
Amy Temos (Eltham) 18
Ashley Mrmacovski (Eltham) 14
Chantal Vitale (Bulleen) 13

Bellarine (41) defeated by Ringwood (46)

Katrina Warton (Ringwood) 20
Alivia Osborne (Bellarine) 12
Summer Field (Bellarine) 11

Pool 1C:

Melbourne fell victim to a firing Nunawading seconds side, which run out with a 17-point win after dropping the first game of grading. But that luck did not transpire in the other Nunawading game, with the side edged out by two points thanks to a determined Knox squad. Knox is the only side to sit undefeated in Pool C, putting them in good stead heading into the final round.

Melbourne (38) defeated by Nunawading 2 (55)

Ella Erickson (Nunawading) 16
Natalie Keane (Nunawading) 14
Isabel Bacon (Melbourne) 11

Nunawading (44) defeated by Knox (46)

Evelyn Curtis (Nunawading) 13
Stephanie Georgantas (Nunawading) 11
Abbey-Lee Wood (Knox) 11

Pool 1D:

Kilsyth overcame Dandenong quite comfortably to walk out with a resounding 28-point win as a number of players stepped up to the plate and delivered on the points scoring front. Molly Williams posted 20 points while Gemma Hancock chimed in with 15 to get her side over the line. Bendigo just got over the line in the clash against Korumburra, securing a narrow four-point win thanks to a Caitlin Richardson inspired performance.

Dandenong (46) defeated by Kilsyth (74)

Molly Williams (Kilsyth) 20
Gemma Hancock (Kilsyth) 15
Isabella Vanderwiel (Dandenong) 11

Bendigo (55) defeated Korumburra (51)

Caitlin Richardson (Bendigo) 32
Charlotte Anderson (Korumburra) 16
Phoebe Radford (Bendigo) 10