Poor first term hurts Slammers

A poor opening term cost the Printsync South West Slammers, who lost to the Stirling Senators by eight points at Warwick Stadium on Sunday.

The home side had a 10-point lead at the first break and despite repeat efforts from the Slammers to fight back, the Senators held strong to grab a 94-86 victory.

The Slammers welcomed back Brian Voelkel for the first time this season and he wasted no time in having an impact, grabbing a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds.

Fellow import Tre Nichols also starred, scoring a game-high 30 points, but it was in vain, as the Senators’ perimeter shooting had them hold the lead.

The Senators hit 11 of 30 attempts from beyond the arc, compared to the Slammers, who hit just the four triples for the game.

A solid second term had the Slammers cut the margin to just seven points at half-time and they then rallied in the third to be down by just the three points at the final break.

But the Slammers could manage only 18 points in the fourth quarter, as the Senators held on through the likes of Rhys Vague (20 points, 13 rebounds), Austin Bruton (19 points) and Cody Ellis (14 points).

In a positive for the Slammers, they had an even spread of scorers, with four players reaching double figures.

Co-captain Clive Weeden continued to show improvement after coming back from his knee injury, scoring 12 points and grabbing five rebounds.

The Slammers also won the rebounding count 40-37 and grabbed nine steals in a good defensive display.

On Thursday night the Slammers will travel to the Mike Barnett Sports Complex to take on the Rockingham Flames.