The Report: Round 11

Senior Men 
Eltham Wildcats 68 defeated by Waverley Falcons 77
J. Canovan 16 points, J. Sykes 15 points/5 blocks, J. Aver 11 points/11 rebounds

The Wildcats came out slow in the opening quarter in the “Make Some Noise with Wattyl” night against a very talented Falcons outfit at Eltham High on Saturday night. After losing the first two quarters Eltham fought back in third period behind their man defence going into the final quarter down 4 points. The Falcons showed their class in the final ten minutes not allowing the Wildcats back into the game.

Eltham Wildcats 66 defeated by Hawthorn Magic 69
J. Canovan & C. Cameron 13 points, J. Aver 12 points

The Wildcats weekend didn’t get much better as they took on the Hawthorn Magic on Sunday. After jumping to an early 9 point lead the home side worked their way back into the game going into the first quarter tied 19-19. Eltham stepped the defence up in the second quarter only allowing 7 points from the Magic which would see them take the lead and momentum going into halftime. The Magic were able to fight back and take the lead in the final 4 seconds of the game behind a J. Barry three point shot. The Wildcats called a time out and drew up the final play for J. Aver to send the game into overtime but the shot missed and Eltham were left with another loss.

Senior Women
Eltham Wildcats 56 defeated by McKinnon Cougars 71
A. Kunek 26 points/ 12 rebounds, O. Bontempelli 13 points, J. O’Shea & M. Dargan 8 points

The Cougars out rebounded (53-25) and outscored the Wildcats in the paint (28-18) on Saturday night and took control of the game from the tip with a C. Ioannidis 3 point score in the first twenty seconds ignited an 8-2 run from the visitors. Kunek and Bomtempelli were once again at their best, while S. Foote, K. Mountford & A. Burrows all debuted as Wildcat juniors who have come up through our programs.

Youth Women
Eltham Wildcats 48 defeated by McKinnon Cougars 67
J. Daoud 10 points, K. Ferronato 9 points/8 rebounds, E. Horsley 6 points/10 rebounds

The Wildcats started well with Vine & Daoud hitting the scoreboard as Eltham found momentum early up by 6 points at the first break. The game would go back and fourth in the second and third periods but the Cougars caught fire in the final quarter outscoring Eltham 25-10. Eltham once again struggled with valuing possession turning the ball over 28 times but had good signs with Daoud and Ferronato having standout performances.

Youth Men
Eltham Wildcats 60 defeated by Melbourne Tigers 65
C. Yammouni 24 points/6 rebounds, O. Magbegor & J. Costa 9 points

Things looked ‘dandy’ for the Wildcats on the road in the first quarter as they poured on a 19-6 scoreline. However the Tigers would win the next three quarters and the game would come down to the final minute as a lay up from Yammouni tied the game 60-60 with under a minute to play. A well defended play after the timeout saw an incredible shot by M. Gaze who hit a three point shot for the Tigers over two defenders. Eltham had two three point chances and were unable to convert which saw the Tigers come away with a 5 point win.