On Saturday night, Central Daylight Time, the New York Knicks sensed a winning opportunity for an NBA championship.
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On Saturday night, Australian Eastern Standard Time, the Gators sensed an opportunity too.
Both grasped the chance with both hands and slammed it home.
Yes, the stakes were poles apart – but it’s been a long time between drinks for either organisation.
Nearly a month since the Gators broke their winless drought to start their Big V men’s division one campaign, a clash against fifth-placed Craigieburn on paper seemed to be another loss upcoming.
But Shepparton captain Josh Kooiman spoke to The News ahead of the Gators’ match-up with the Eagles and despite the separation on the table and in the win-loss column, there was a feel that the Gators could emerge victorious on Saturday night.
After an earlier beating in the season to the Eagles, the Gators hadn’t walked away stunned by defeat, rather buoyed by what a second encounter could pose.
“Craigieburn is in a funny spot at the moment, they lost on the weekend to Altona (second-last in division one), so we feel like it’s gettable for us,” Kooiman said ahead of the round 11 clash.
“We felt confident after our loss to them earlier this year, so we definitely feel like we can compete, but we won’t get ahead of ourselves.”
Shepparton indeed stayed calm and collected in the blockbuster home fixture, delivering cool-headed plays in the clutch alike to Knicks superstar Jalen Brunson to inch ahead by the final buzzer.
A strong start beyond the arc had Craigieburn ahead by as many as nine in the first quarter, a similar burst out the blocks to San Antonio in game five of the NBA finals.
But with three-and-a-half terms to play, there was no panic on the home side’s bench as American import Joseph Allen took Brunson-inspiration (or perhaps Brunson took inspiration from Allen) and scored 10 straight points for Shepparton to close the margin to one point at the sound of the quarter-time buzzer.
Facing former Gators teammates Tom Frame, Lachy Kego and Tyler Best, it was the former that adapted to his previous home hardwood the quickest, producing a short scoring avalanche to hand the Eagles a seven-point buffer in the second term.
Gator Isaac Jones scored a three and a midrange jumper off the bench to put Shepparton in front soon after, however, and from there Craigieburn became the chasing team.
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Craigieburn's Finn McClure guards Gators' Sam Hawkins on the wing. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 2 of 11
Gators' Joseph Allen enters triple threat. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 3 of 11
Gators' Joshua Kooiman stops and props for the jumpshot. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 4 of 11
Gator's Joseph Allen analyses his options across the hardwood. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 5 of 11
Craigieburn's Mark Berezdecky traps Gator Joshua Evans at the sideline. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 6 of 11
Gator Sam Maher drives through outreached arms. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 7 of 11
Gators' Joseph Allen pulls up from midrange. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 8 of 11
Gators coach Sam Gebauer lays out instructions from the playbook. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 9 of 11
Gator Sam Maher dribbles up court. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 10 of 11
Gators' Jordan Birch crosses over. Photo by Rechelle ZammitImage 11 of 11
Gators' Sam Maher bursts by former Shepparton Gator Tom Frame. Photo by Rechelle ZammitA third quarter lead as big as 10 had the finals-contending Eagles stunned by the last-placed Gators, but Shepparton’s belief had been prominent since the opening tip.
As Allen rallied the troops through offensive spark, a steal in the dying seconds by Samuel Hawkins sent the Swamp’s crowd into raptures, the men’s Gators holding on for a five-point victory, 77-72.
While it wasn’t quite the 45 points of his fellow American and NBA Finals MVP Brunson, Allen’s 26 points and 14 rebounds were the backbone behind Shepparton’s second win of the season, as Hawkins (19 points) and Kooiman (14 points, five assists) also made an impact.
The women’s division two Gators nearly produced an upset of their own too, taking third-placed Wallan down to the wire.
Shepparton led through the first three quarters, but were overrun by a quality Panthers outfit in the final period to lose 68-77.
Both men and women’s programs face Surfcoast this weekend on the road.