Spectres Too Much for Miners

7/4/14

The unwavering support from a home crowd of 937 fans was unfortunately not enough to help the GMHBA Ballarat Miners over the line Saturday night, as they were dealt an 86-106 loss at the hands of the Nunawading Spectres.

Roy Booker and Ken Horton would lead the scoring for Ballarat, both with 23 points, while Booker gave out nine assists and Horton pulled in 10 rebounds. Captain Liam Gibcus was also an offensive threat for the Miners, finishing with 20 points for the game on 70% shooting.

After what was a pretty even first half, with the Miners only trailing by two going into the break, the Spectres would use the second half to prove why they are early favourites for top contenders within the league. Nunwading, led by Shane McDonald, would show off their 3-point shooting prowess to start the second half, shooting a remarkable 57% from the three in the third quarter, and opening it up to a 14-point lead going into the fourth quarter.

Despite an exceptional performance, Gibcus would foul out early in the fourth quarter, taking away a much-needed scoring option for Ballarat, but also leaving them without an answer for Nunawading’s dominant post players in Simon Conn and Chris Cameron. The Spectres would continue shooting the ball with high accuracy throughout the fourth quarter, while Ballarat struggled to find an offensive rhythm, resulting in a loss for the Miners.

McDonald was best on court for Nunwading, scoring 27 points, grabbing six rebounds, and dishing out eight assists. Nunawading’s Conn and Cameron combined for 49 points and 21 rebounds at 60% shooting.

The Miners look to bounce back quickly this Wednesday night as they take on the Bendigo Braves in a rivalry match set for 8pm at the MARS® MINERDOME following the Rush, who are set to tip-off at 6pm.

Photos of the game are available at www.facebook.com/BallaratMiners