Men’s Norwood Flames vs South Adelaide Panthers
The men are currently on a 4-game losing streak (1-4), looking to regain some momentum against the third-ranked South Adelaide Panthers (4-1). The Panthers are a force to be reckoned with on the offensive end, being the third-ranked offence in the Central Division, they also aren’t a slouch defensively but they are in the bottom half of the league in that regard. The boys should be able to use this defensive inconsistency to their advantage in a vital game.
The first quarter opened with a quick layup off the jump ball, this quick bucket ignited the Flames early, especially Jack Hemphill and Jack Stanwix who combined for 13 of the first 14 points as Norwood exploded to an early 14-3 lead. After this blistering start for the Flames, the Panthers found their usual offensive rhythm and closed the gap substantially, scoring 5 in a row. The Flames looked shocked by the sudden fight from South Adelaide and lost their footing, only being able to follow up a miss for a quick 2 before the Panthers went on an even bigger 6-point run to close the quarter, the lead slashed from 11 to just 2, 16-14.
The Panthers’ shooting was switched on to start the second quarter, draining their first 2 triples, thankfully Norwood was able to respond, hitting two triples themselves as well as finding their way to the line for some easy points to keep the Panthers at bay. Alex Starling of the Panthers was doing his best to keep them in this game, scoring 5 straight for South Adelaide before the Flames scored 7 straight forcing the Panthers into a timeout. Coming out of the timeout Riley Harrap and Norwood continued their offensive onslaught, scoring 6 straight. The Panthers made a small response, but the Flames were able to hold them off for the rest of the half, going into the break up 44-36.
The third quarter showed that both teams could lock in defensively, both the Flames and Panthers forcing each other into drawn-out possessions, ending with forced or heavily contested shots. This defensive focus led to a shortage in scoring, for the Flames this shortage was broken by a couple of threes from Riley Harrap. For the Panthers it was much more difficult to keep the scoreboard ticking, relying mostly on difficult finishes at the rim or being bailed out with fouls and getting to the line. Once the Panthers started scoring though, their defensive intensity dropped significantly, allowing the Flames more looks at the rim for easy finishes, as well as good looks at kick-out threes. This balanced offensive approach in combination with stellar defence led the Flames to take a 66-49 lead going into the final quarter.
The final stretch started with both teams scoring some back-and-forth, the Flames barely edging out the Panthers with an 8-5 open, led by sharp shooting from Riley Harrap and Blake Morrow. More elite three-point shooting allowed Norwood to keep extending their lead. The offensive approach in this quarter was unguardable for the Panthers as every single player on the court was contributing to the offence. The offence never let up as the Flames kept extending the lead possession after possession, the Panthers had no real answers on either end and struggled to find any rhythm in this quarter. The game ended, with an outstanding win, 101-76. Isaac’s Double Double performance along with his grit and determination was enough to earn him the ANZAC Medal.
