Anonymous
Years ago
36ers vs Hawks, Sep 19 at Starplex
The Adelaide 36ers have come from ten points down in the last quarter of their match against Wollongong at Gawler on Sunday to record a gutsy 89-84 victory.
In a see-sawing battle that saw both teams in foul trouble (Ballinger and Hill for the 36ers would foul out whilst Forman, Davidson and Saville would do the same for the Hawks) the 36ers carved out a tough win in front of the sold-out crowd at Starplex.
Due to the number of foul calls it could be said that the game was won from the foul line. The 36ers hit 31 out of 37 free throw attempts where as the Hawks would only hit 25 from 35 attempts.
The key momentum swing of the game would come after a contested Larry Davidson lay-up miss. Davidson's subsequent remonstration with a referee earning a technical foul and would mean 36ers captain Adam Ballinger would hit two foul shots and then a three-pointer on the next play, bringing the 36ers right back into the game to be down two points.
In the frantic last few minutes Ballinger and Craig Winder would make huge plays to get the 36ers the lead and then also build a slight buffer.
Hawks import Gary Ervin would draw a fifth foul from Adam Ballinger and go to the line for two foul shots. He would ultimately miss both meaning the 36ers would maintain a small lead going into the last minute of the game.
The 36ers did enough at the defensive end to secure the victory in the last minute.
36ers High Scorers
Ballinger 24 (9/13 fgs)
Winder 23 ( 8/13 fgs)
Hawks High Scorers
Ervin 27 ( 8/15 fgs)
Davidson 18 ( 6/10 fgs)
Other highs
36ers - Holmes 8 rebounds Carter 7 assists
Hawks - Davidson 9 rebounds Saville 4 assists