By Tara Murray
The best and worst of Melton Thoroughbreds was on show as they were knocked out of the Big V men’s division 2 finals.
After losing game one of their semi-final series last weekend by one point to Coburg Giants, the Thoroughbreds turned it around on Saturday night with an 85-64 win to take the series to game three.
But in the final encounter, the Giants gained an early lead and held it for an 85-64 victory and the series win.
Thoroughbreds coach Joe Hooks said the weekend’s two matches reflected the story of their season.
“We play really well one time and then relax a bit,” he said. “It’s our biggest problem. We think we have it in the bag.”
On Saturday night, the Thoroughbreds did the damage in the middle two quarters, outscoring the Giants 51-30 and leading by as much as 26 points.
Dexter Graham scored 23 points and Wol Wol Ngong scored 20.
Hooks was hoping that form would continue in Sunday’s game, but it wasn’t to be.
The Giants showed at both ends of the court they were on a mission to seal a grand final spot.
Hooks admitted turnovers killed the Thoroughbreds early when the game was up for grabs. He said they allowed Coburg to play their style, slowing down the game and reducing the scoring.
The Thoroughbreds got within four points in both the third and fourth quarters, but couldn’t get any closer.
“A couple of bad plays and too many turnovers,” Hooks said. “We had 15 turnovers in the first half. We handled the ball a little bit too much and didn’t share the ball as much as we needed to.
“The boys got a little bit ahead of themselves. I tried to calm them down, but Coburg was disciplined.”
Graham again top scored with 21 points, but he had eight turnovers.
Mangar Manyang was the only other player to score double figures, hitting 15 points.
Despite the Thoroughbreds’ season coming to an end, Hooks said there were a lot of positives.
“It’s their first year together and they did a fantastic job – a group of guys that we have just got together,” he said.
“Making it to the final four is nothing to be ashamed of. Hopefully, they learn from this and regroup next season.”
Hooks said he hoped all the players would stick around to have a crack at going at least one step further next year.
Hooks said they were hoping that the Melton community would get on board.
“I’m extremely proud of them and they’ve learned a lot this season,” he said.
“Hopefully, we can keep the group together and hopefully we can get the support of the city.”
Coburg will play Mildura Heat in the grand final series after the Heat knocked off minor premiers Craigieburn Eagles in three games.
