THE ELTHAM Wildcats took over their clash against the Melbourne Tigers early, jumping out to a hefty lead in the first half en route to a 19-point win in Round 6 of the VJBL Under-18 Girls VC Championship over the weekend.

The Wildcats came into the clash as favourites after getting off to a strong start to the newly regraded division of the VJBL, winning three of their first five games since being matched up against the best teams from the first half of the year. On the other hand, the Tigers did have home court advantage and were not too far behind with two wins from the first five rounds, so a win here would have truly kickstarted their title hunt.

On the back of a tremendous first half performance, the visitors were able to get the job done at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre on Friday night, claiming their fourth win in the VC Championship.

Melbourne Tigers (44) def. by Eltham Wildcats (63)

It could not have been a better start for the Wildcats, who scored the first six points to silence the crowd early at MSAC with a trio of baskets after a scrappy first few minutes from both teams. Although the Tigers responded to cut the margin back to one, Addison Knight had a huge first term for the visitors with 10 points in the opening frame to lead Eltham to a 12-point buffer at the main change.

The Wildcats continued their strong work into the second frame, pushing the margin out even further in a strong showing of their offensive power. It was Amy Thompson who broke the game open offensively this time, dropping nine points for the quarter including a three-point bomb on the eve of half time, and at the main break, Eltham led by 17 points and was fully in control of the match.

Coming out of half-time, the Wildcats dominated the first few minutes of the third quarter, pushing their lead out to as much as 30 points in an emphatic showing of scoring. Sophie Richardson was the main culprit here with a quick burst of 10 points which included two triples. However, the Tigers bounced back well in the closing minutes of the period, going on a 10-0 run to cut the deficit back to 20 points at the final change.

It was a slow finish to the match for both teams, with just a combined 15 points registered for the term as offence on both ends of the floor came to a grinding halt. Although it was impressive defence from Melbourne, time bested the home side as the Wildcats managed to cruise home to a 19-point triumph on the road.

Richardson was the star of the show for the Wildcats, dropping a game-high 25 points including a decisive burst in the third term that put the game to bed. Knight was next up with 16 points of her own, while Charlotte Ogier rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points.

Laura Seiz was the standout for the Tigers, doing a lot of the heavy lifting on the offensive end to try and spark some much-needed scoring for Melbourne. She finished with 19 points, the most of any Tiger and fought all match to try and ignite her team.

ACROSS THE COURTS

The Nunawading Spectres managed to hit the road and get the job done when they travelled to Mullum Mullum Stadium to take on the Bulleen Boomers, claiming a 10-point win in enemy territory for their second win in the division.

The Sandringham Sabres flexed their muscles once again with a simply dominant showing against the McKinnon Cougars at Southern Basketball Stadium, claiming an enormous 72-point triumph to remain the easy championship favourites.

In a thrilling contest at Kilsyth Basketball Stadium, the Kilsyth Cobras claimed a three-point win when they went head to head with the Dandenong Rangers on Friday night, remaining in second spot in the standings with a record of five wins and one loss.

Finally, the Keilor Thunder defended home court strongly in their clash against Geelong United at Keilor Stadium on Friday, claiming an eight-point win to balance out their record with three wins from six outings.