By JARROD POTTER
WARRIORS only took the war to the Western Port Steelers in the dying moments of their two-point BigV basketball defeat on Saturday night, with Pakenham left to rue missed chances and a lack of much-needed intensity.
Out-gunned vertically by the Western Port talls, Pakenham fought hard to combat the Steelers’ height while reeling in a burgeoning deficit that ballooned to 43-55 early in the fourth quarter.
Pakenham shot woefully – especially in the last quarter missing 10 shots with the match still in the balance.
With only four minutes remaining, it appeared the Warriors had woken up – finally sinking shots and reeling back the 12 point margin.
Tim Bydder and Jeff Reid hit some crucial three-pointers to keep the Warriors alive and some customary Pakenham tough defence – including a match-high seven-steal quarter – dragged the game back to a one-point margin with 40 seconds left.
As the clock drained, point guard Jay Ferriere took a last ditch three-point bomb, from effectively the half-court line, to win the game but the shot bounced off the rim to leave Pakenham two-points short in the 63-65 loss.
New recruit Jeff Reid (16 points, five rebounds) showed his skill – hitting a clutch three-pointer in the dying minutes to keep Pakenham hopes alive – while captain James Topp (16 points, five rebounds) and rising star Tim Bydder (11 points, three rebounds, two steals) toiled in the defeat.
“Our intensity wasn’t there for enough of the game… we waited til it was far too late,” Pakenham coach Ryan Rogers said.
“The tough thing was we missed some open jumpers that we’ve been able to make to date.
“They went out and we put them on the foul line and that’s how it pans out.”
The loss slips Pakenham down to seventh, but will face ninth placed Melton on Saturday night for a chance to leap back into the top standings.
Pakenham will be without guard Sean Armstrong for at least two months, with the young guard tearing ligaments in his ankle off the bone in a mid-week domestic basketball grand final.
