Game day started out with plenty of buzz amongst the WheelKings players and staff as weeks of preparation was finally going to be put on the court. A good crowd had built up in the Auburn Basketball Centre as the game got underway with quick baskets from WheelKings Kylie Gauci and Jon Simon. The lead was short-lived as Wollongong continued to come back each time the home team threatened to break away. It was then the Roller Hawks who got on top to lead 28-24 at the end of the first quarter. Knowles had tallied 13 points for the Hawks and he was being paced by teammate Stibners who'd knocked down 3 big three-pointers from 4 attempts. Koen Jansens led the WheelKings with 10 points.

For 9 minutes of the second quarter, Wollongong maintained its 4 point lead as neither team could put on a decent scoring run. However, the WheelKings would score just 1 basket in the last 3 minutes while the Roller Hawks tallied 8 points to give them a 52-42 margin at the half. Jansens had 18 points for Wenty but it was Wollongong's Knowles and Stibners with 22 points apiece who were causing all the damage. WheelKings coach Hewson knew he'd have to make significant adjustments as giving up over 50 points in the half was unacceptable.

The WheelKings were a different team in the second half. They clamped down on defence and challenged everything. They extended their defence up the floor with Jon Pollock and Kylie Gauci really pressuring the Roller Hawks. Jon Simon was pulling in the rebounds and Bill Latham was heating up at the scoring end. Wenty were on their way to a 25-18 quarter and trailled by just 3 going into the final period.

A terrific three-pointer from Jon Pollock 2 minutes into the fourth quarter finally got the WheelKings back in front 74-72. It was then that both teams struggled to find the basket with quality defence at both ends forcing plenty of missed shots. Scores were locked 84-84 with 1:54 left but overtime beckoned as no-one from either team could make a shot down the stretch.

The teams were still tied midway through the 5 minute overtime period before Wollongong  broke away for a 5 point lead. But another huge three-pointer from Pollock put Wenty just 2 down with 56 seconds to go. The WheelKings then started fouling to regain possession. The Hawks were making half their resulting foul shots while Wenty went into long-range bombing mode to make up the gap. They took 4 three-pointers in the closing 40 seconds but failed to connect on any of them. Wollongong had survived the barrage to win 96-91.

For the Roller Hawks, Knowles had a tremendous game with and 46 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists. Stibners was a standout as well with 30/12/9 and Shaun Russell had a tidy double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds.

The WheelKings were led by Jansens' 27 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Latham also had 27 points along with 8 boards. Pollock led the offence with 9 assists and chipped in 25 points. Jon Simon had one of his best games as a WheelKing with 12 rebounds and 4 steals to go with his 10 points.

Coach Hewson was pleased with his player's offence in the first half and their defence in the second half. Considering that Bill and Jon Pollock only arrived in Australia last Thursday - Jon met the team for the first time that night - it was a solid hitout. The team will definitely be more finely tuned for their double-header against the West Sydney Razorbacks next weekend.

Saturday 3pm at Auburn Basketball Centre (see map in left menu)

Sunday 12 noon at Bankstown Basketball Stadium, Third Ave, Condell Park

We hope to see you there to cheer on your Wenty Leagues WheelKings!