jimmy de bas
Years ago
Game of the Year (for Tigers fans)
TIGERS CLAW PAST MAVERICKS
Cool heads and a change in defence proved the perfect remedy for the Southern Tigers and their slow start to the 2006 season.
The Tigers, who were 0-2 going into Saturday's clash versus the Eastern Mavericks at Mount Barker, found themselves down by 21 points and staring down the barrel at a Mavericks team stacked with talent.
When Eastern's Ben Madgen nailed his fifth 3-pointer for the night, he gave his side an 84-63 buffer - usually a match-winning lead - with little over 11 minutes remaining in the game. What the Mavericks didn't count on was the never-say-die attitude of a Tigers team hungry for a win.
Coach Billy Hopkins instructed his troops back into a zone defence, and the team responded well. From 21 down, the Tigers zone suffocated Eastern's scoring options, whilst everything the Tigers threw up down the other end seemed to be falling in.
The tenacious Tiger defence also seemed to mentally affect an inexperienced Eastern, 36er Brad Hill picking up a technical foul and big man Brad Bungey picking up his 2nd unsportsmanlike foul for the night.
With 4 minutes remaining, ex-Maverick Joel Goodenough swished a 3-pointer to tie the game, bringing the Tiger bench to its feet.
Instead of the game going down to the wire, Southern stunned the home crowd by going straight past the Mavericks, and when some Matt Alexander hustle set up Dave Bowley for a 3-point-play, the Tigers had completed an amazing 30-2 rampage to lead the Mavericks 93-86.
The final two and a half minutes were a mere formality, the courageous Tigers pulling out an improbable 102-94 win which could be the start of something big.
Southern Tigers 102 (Gerlach 24, Bowley 17, Alexander 16, Boal 15, Goodenough 14)
Eastern Mavericks 94 (Madgen 25, Davis 15, Hill 13, Campbell 12)
