Knox Raiders keep playoff aspirations alive

THE Knox Converse Stadium played host to a different Knox Ford Raiders men’s team on Saturday night.
The inconsistent 2007 squad were able to fire on all cylinders as they ran away with a 100-81 win over the Ballarat Miners in what was one of the more impressive wins for the season.
Star import CJ Massingale put up his second consecutive 30-plus point output with 37, including 6 three pointers to go with 8 rebounds and 3 assists.
Solid contributions also came from Glenn Siegle (17 points, 6 rebounds) and Sean Carroll (13 points, 3 rebounds), while John Bryant patrolled the paint area with some strong interior defence, which included 5 spectacular blocked shots to go with 17 points and 15 rebounds.
The Miners were only able to muster up 34 points in the second half against a determined Knox defence in front of a lively crowd.
With the win, the Raiders go to 6 wins and 11 losses, only two games behind fourth place in the SEABL South Conference standings.
The men will shoot for back-to-back wins this Sunday against cross-town rivals the Nunawading Spectres at 2pm at Knox Converse Stadium in what is always a heated battle.
Earlier on Saturday night, the Knox Ford Raiders women once again showed why they’re in strong contention for the 2007 SEABL women’s title as they fought off a resilient Southern Districts Spartans team by 10 points, 67-57.
The Raiders came out with all guns blazing in the first quarter to give them a 12-point advantage at the break.
It was the Raiders defence that seemed to continue to trouble the Spartans in the second quarter as they put up only 24 points in the first half against the Raiders 39.
Ever reliable Australian Opals representatives Emma Randall and Hollie Grima led the charge for the Raiders with some impressive minutes coming also from Julia Tan (10 points, 6 assists, 3 steals) and Sally Laing (6 points).
The Spartans were no match for Randall who poured in 25 points along side of 12 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.
Grima was able to fill up the score sheet for the Raiders too, with 24 points and 11 rebounds.
The Spartans managed to rally late behind Kirby Dalgleish and Shona Burrell and cut the lead down to six but the Raiders were able to keep their composure with some timely buckets to hold on by ten.
The Raiders still sit equal second after the weekend with the Bendigo Lady Braves who also notched up a victory, both teams sit on 12 wins and 6 losses and move one win closer to top spot as the Ballarat Lady Miners were defeated for only the third time on the weekend to sit at 16 wins and 3 losses.
The Raiders will now move focus to the Nunawading Spectres on Saturday night 8pm at Knox Converse Stadium.