Basketball
21 November, 2024
Hornets ready for tough double-header
The Horsham Hornets face a tough double-header in the penultimate round of the Country Basketball League. They travel to Portland on Saturday night and host Terang on Sunday afternoon.
The Hornets are currently equal on top of the ladder on the same amount of wins as Warrnambool, with the latter playing one extra game.
Mount Gambier is third, Portland is fourth, one point behind, and Terang and Colac are fifth and sixth, respectively, so the battle for the top four will be close.
Terang and Warrnambool close out their regular season this week, so Terang needs two wins to give themselves a chance of finishing in the top four. Warrnambool should be safe, especially if they win at least one match against Millicent or Mount Gambier.
The Hornets will welcome back Micah Livingstone and will rely on the Lovel brothers, Matt and Jono, as Portland is a big, physical team.
Hornets coach Scott Benbow said they will be important.
"The Lovel brothers and Jake Hobbs will start on Saturday night, and their bodies and experience will be needed against Portland," Benbow said.
"We are not sure if Nathan Hardingham will play as he has been in and out of the side with injuries, but if he does, he always plays well against us, and Jake Hobbs or Cody Bryan will go to him, and also, that's where Jono Lovel will be vital.
"Hayden Annett is a good three-point shooter, so Micah will run with him."
With a match the next day, travelling back to Horsham, despite being a fit team, Benbow is wary of player management.
"We need to rely on the young guys to play a few more minutes on Saturday, too, so we can have something left in the tank," Benbow said.
"Cody Bryan, Austin McKenzie, and Mitch Martin are fit and up there as the best in the league, but we hope to give them a few minutes rest.
"Hopefully, at three-quarter time, we can have a good lead so we can control the last quarter, but I can't see it playing that way. Portland is a formidable opponent, and it will be a hard match in a hostile environment.
"Terang will be a tough opponent on Sunday as they are playing good basketball at the moment, but I am confident we can back it up regardless as half our kids used to play three or four games a week in squad basketball, so back-to-back is no issue for them."