Miners Look to Continue Success at Home

The GMHBA Ballarat Miners are looking to build upon their outstanding play as of late as they take on the Sandringham Sabres this Sunday, from 2pm at the MARS® MINERDOME.

The Miners were fantastic throughout the month of May, winning eight of their nine games— including three doubleheader weekends—which allowed for competition-wide recognition of Ballarat as one of the up-and-coming powerhouses within the league. The most recent recognition has come in both Roy Booker and coach Dave Flint receiving the coveted Player and Coach of the Month award, respectively, for the month of May.

Throughout the past month Booker has averaged 32.1 points and 8.3 assists per game, and has firmly inserted himself into conversations as a potential league-MVP. Booker has lead the Miners to an impressive 8-5 record where they are sitting third on the ladder of an extremely competitive East Conference. A tall task for the Sabres will lie in developing a game-plan to contain him and keep the ball out of his hands.

Similarly, Ken Horton remains essential to the Miners’ success. Leading the league in rebounds per game (12.4), Horton is a strong defensive player, but also has proven from night to night to be an offensive threat as well, averaging 20.1 points per game. With solid ongoing support from locals Anthony Fisher, Ash Constable, Sean Massey and newcomer Nathan Sobey, as well as the dominance in the paint from captain Liam Gibcus, Sandringham may have their work cut out for them upon entering the Minerdome.

Other struggles facing Sandringham are the team’s internal issues. After just having released their import and leading scorer, Michael Moore, and finding a quick replacement in power forward Junior Hairston, it would be easy to assume that the Sabres may not be fully established in their offensive sets and defensive principles come Sunday. However, a saving grace for the Sabres may come through the play of Rayshawn Goins, who has been the team’s only consistently productive player thus far. Goins, for the month of May, has been averaging 22 points and 13 rebounds each game, and has shown no signs of slowing down. With an uncertainty for how Hairston will perform in his first weekend with the Sabres, success for the Miners will come through a dedicated focus to holding Goins to well below his averages.

As we come upon the halfway point of the season, the Miners are playing extraordinary basketball and need all the crowd support they can get to build upon the team’s momentum and propel them into a secure finals spot. Tip-off begins from 2pm, following the Rush who take on the Lady Sabres from 12pm, at the MARS® MINERDOME.