Hobart Chargers men in control before having to battle to scrape home over Eltham
The Hobart Chargers men put in their “worst game” before clinging on to edge out Eltham for their third win of the season.
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IT wasn’t pretty by any stretch but the Hobart Chargers have clung on in a dramatic NBL1 encounter to edge out Eltham and improve to 3-2 on the season.
With the chance to send the match into overtime, Wildcat Ovie Magbegor missed two free throws with 1.7 seconds left on the clock, letting the Chargers escape with a 74-72 victory in a match they led for all but 73 seconds.
In control for large portions of the contest, the hosts suddenly found themselves locked in a tense battle down the stretch when Adam Doyle (19 points) and Sam Whelan connected on long bombs to tie the scores at 72 apiece with 8.7 seconds left.
From the ensuing timeout Jonathan Mines (22 points) drained a short jumper to put Hobart back ahead, only for Magbegor to get sent to the charity stripe when Zac White was judged to have fouled his attempted shot.
“We didn’t play great basketball, it is probably our worst game, but to sneak out with a win was important for the club,” coach Anthony Stewart said.
“We are 3-2 now but the point guard position is something we need to keep working on, just finding different people out of sets and getting the ball in the right hands at the right time is certainly something we are certainly struggling to do.”
Mines was supported by Koen Sapwell (16 points) and White (10).
The Chargers again were on the receiving end of the foul count (22-12) to leave Stewart perplexed at some of the calls.
“I am sick of getting home games where every time the foul count is against us. Some of the calls are so inconsistent, every week we come out on the wrong end,” he said.
Chargers lack hunger in Wildcat mauling
PANIC stations haven’t been activated yet for the Hobart Chargers women but coach Mark Nash is well aware the 2021 NBL1 season is fast slipping away unless his side can find a missing hunger.
The Chargers crashed to 0-5 with an 88-75 defeat by Eltham on Friday night, undone by a herculean effort on the boards from Wildcat Anneli Maley.
Maley, who stands at 185cm, hauled in 29 rebounds – one less than the entire Hobart squad – to show a hunger and intensity missing from the hosts.
Her performance helped the visitors finish with 20 offensive boards, allowing Lily Scanlon (25 points) and Rebecca Pizzey (21) to cash in on second-chance opportunities as Eltham pulled away in the second half after trailling by two at the long break.
“A nine rebound second half isn’t going to win you many games and Anneli Maley showed how you can dominate a game with effort and rebounding,” Nash said.
“We have had issues with Keely Froling, Monique Conti and once again someone has come out and given us a bit of a lesson in competing hard.
“There is nothing to what she is doing other than competing every possession.
“We are almost at that point being 0-5, I don’t remember a time in the Chargers women’s program being 0-5 other than the first year.
“You don’t want to give up on a season but if we can’t turn it around pretty quickly, the club starts looking at next year.
“It’s about having a bit of pride for this club and right now I’m not seeing sustained effort over 40 minutes.”
Tayla Roberts led Hobart with 24 points on 12-14 from the floor, as well as pitching in six rebounds and six assists.
Maddie Garrick had 18 points, 16 of which came in the second half.
New Charger leading from front
LATE Chargers addition Jonathon Mines is embracing his role as a leader within a young Hobart side despite only meeting his new teammates on the eve of the NBL1 season.
Mines has slotted seamlessly into the group, which has started 2-2 ahead of Friday night’s home clash against Eltham at Kingborough Sports Stadium.
With a wealth of experience having played in Croatia and Greece, Mines was signed from the QBL in Queensland and has made an immediate impact at NBL1 level.
He is averaging a team high 22.7 points through the first four matches, proving a threat both inside the paint and from deep.
“A lot of teams that I’ve been a part of it’s that midline, there’s always the veterans so I’ve been a leader but not as a role of this calibre,” Mine said.
“I’m actually embracing it, I’m enjoying it and the guys are accepting that as well.
“The guys have been real welcoming, on and off the court and that made everything a lot easier as well, good group of guys and very high character fellows.
“Coach ‘Stewie’, with the sets and philosophies he’s running it makes everything easier for me, I don’t have to go out there and do something that I’m not capable of.
“Also having the guys around me and the support cast, everyone knows how to play at a high level, so it makes everything a lot easier for myself.”
After toppling South Conference fancies Ballarat at home a fortnight ago, the Chargers split last weekend’s road trip, which saw 2018 championship centre Zac White make his return from a broken finger.
Mines expects the team’s form to only get better as chemistry continues to build.
“We are still trying to find out who we are and what our brand of basketball is, but it’s very positive at the moment, especially from this last weekend.
“You never want to get too high or too low, but beating Ballarat, who on paper is a top four team in our league, for the group of guys that we have, being so young and coming out with a win like that, we can then look at ourselves in the mirror and say we can compete with the best.”
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