Div 3 Men fall Short in first home Game of the Season
SLBA Division 3 Men
October 4th, 2015
After a disappointing performance against Glasgow Fever in the season opener, Colliers Div 3 Men looked to show signs of improvement in their first home fixture of the season playing Dumbarton Dodgers.
The Dodgers are a very experienced SLBA team, finishing in a very tight race amongst the top three teams in the league last season, so the game seemed likely to be a tough test for the Colliers, even for a home fixture.
The first couple of minutes saw Colliers being tentative on offense and they allowed Dumbarton an early lead behind their strong inside play and capable leadership from their guards. Once Colliers started to find opportunities to put Dumbarton under defensive pressure and get easier opportunities to score as a result, Colliers looked like a side capable of getting their first win of the season for most of the first half.
Unfortunately, with only a few minutes to go until half time, Colliers went from only 3 points down to 12 points down at the half. Costly mental errors and unnecessary fouling gave Dodgers opportunities they capitalised on.
Unable to find their rhythm in the second half, Colliers were unable to pull back Dodgers who demonstrated their experience and composure throughout the rest of the game. Later in the game, Colliers showed some signs of progress - getting the ball inside on offence and putting the Dodger’s zone defence under pressure - but an inability to get defensive rebounds along with more fouls conceded meant Dodgers were able to finish off the game comfortable winners.
Final score: Colliers 46 - Dodgers 78
Head Coach Derek Milligan commented: “I felt there was a 10 to 15 minute stretch in the first half where we were the better team but unfortunately we weren’t able to sustain our play for the whole game.”
“Our key focus in training will be on finishing the opportunities we create more effectively, we had a significant number of opportunities to convert good team play into points but we just couldn’t put the ball in the basket.
“Credit is also due to the Dodgers though who played well and earned their win.
“There will be times this season where we are inconsistent as our young players develop and we integrate our new players more and more into the team but what will be crucial is how well we translate the good culture and attitude we’ve developed in training onto the court in future games.
“I still have confidence in this squad’s ability to play good basketball throughout this season.”
NEXT GAME:
Playing Lockerbie Tornadoes in an S.L.B.A. Division 3 away fixture on October 20th.
HOME GAMES:
Home games are played on Sunday nights at the Alistair McCoist Complex in East Kilbride, tipping off at 8.15pm. Our next home game will be against Clyde Cavaliers on November 1st.