Whether at home or on the road, the Wallan Panthers’ men and women proved they were among the Country Basketball League north-east division’s elite at the weekend.
The men emerged from a Saturday night road meeting with the dangerous Myrtleford Saints with a stirring come-from-behind win, 91-85.
The Panthers trailed by 14 points at quarter time and made no inroads by the end of the first half, but emerged from the locker room with a renewed sense of focus after the long break.
Led by young gun Ryan Philippe’s 42-point scoring outburst, the Panthers clawed the margin back to six by three-quarter time and produced a huge 30-18 final quarter to escape with the win.
Luke Liesegang was a handy foil for Philippe with 18 points, with Jayden O’Brien adding 11.
The Saints were led by Toby Cossor and Ryley Bouker, who scored a combined 54 points.
Sunday afternoon’s game could not have presented a starker contrast, as the Panthers returned home to demolish the visiting Wangaratta Warriors 124-61.
O’Brien took advantage of the limited Warriors with 27 points to lead all scorers, aided by Philippe with 18, Matthew Roles with 14, William Stewart with 13 and Liesegang with 11.
Every Panther scored in the game, with Nathan Martin, Damon Adnerson and Riley Mclay notching eight points each.
The wins solidified Wallan’s place in the top four, with five wins and two losses for the season.
Wallan will play another double-header this weekend, hosting the Wodonga Wolves at 8pm on Saturday before hitting the road to face the Albury Cougars at 3pm on Sunday.
Women win
The Panthers’ women also completed a successful double at the weekend, downing the Saints 70-59 on Saturday before breezing by the Warriors 76-45 at home on Sunday.
Unlike the men, Wallan’s women started strongly in their game against the Saints, leading 27-12 after the first quarter.
Behind a balanced scoring attack led by Carley Cranston, 18 points, Ruby Pantisano, 16, and Katarina Kekez, 15, the Panthers were able to withstand a second-half fightback attempt from the Saints to hold on for an 11- point win.
At RB Robson Stadium on Sunday, Wallan was able to pull away after trailing Wangaratta by a point at quarter time, stifling the visiting Wolves in the second term and allowing only five points.
At the offensive end it was a similar story to the day prior, with Pantisano’s 14 points leading the team, with 12 from Cranston, 10 from Kekez and 11 from Melissa Buckley.
The Panthers’ women will play the same teams as the men this weekend, with the women hosting Wodonga Lady Wolves at RB Robson Stadium at 6pm on Saturday followed by the men’s game at 8pm, with the women playing in Albury at 1pm on Sunday and the men starting at 3pm.
The Seymour Blasters will also return from a bye to play road games against Albury on Saturday, with the women playing at 5pm and the men playing at 7pm.