Saints buck the odds to upset CBC in men’s division one basketball decider

Saints cast aside their underdog status with a dynamic shooting display to be crowned the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Basketball Association’s men’s division one champions on Saturday night by beating CBC, 98-93, in the grand final.

CBC had four more wins than their rivals during the qualifying series and were well-rested after beating Saints in the first week of the finals.

But Saints, who earned their place by holding off Olympians by four points just five days earlier in the preliminary final, last weekend returned the favour against the minor premiers when five of their seven players made double-digit offensive contributions.

Saints were outscored in the first and fourth quarters and levelled-up the third at 26 points apiece.

But the second stanza was pivotal, when Saints led the way, 30-17, and Michael Gardner shone overall with a team-high 27 points.

He was backed by Lachlan Clements (18 points), Charlie Scafidi (16), Ali Rammal (16) and Laine Warena (15), whose output countered CBC playmaker Sam Morrow’s game-high 31 points.

For Saints coach Sharni Winter, victory in the grand final was a perfect ending to her fourth season at the helm.

“I hadn’t even realised that we were the underdogs until afterwards (because) every game is a new game and everyone turns up to play,” she said.

“Michael (Gardner) is incredible at getting to the basket and finishing and just played an awesome game.

“He’s played exceptional basketball this season and one of the highlights for us was that we had lots of players who can score big points on any given night.

“LJ (Clements) ended up with five three-pointers which was game-changing for us because they came at crucial stages.”

Winter on Monday said she looked forward to hopefully retaining the bulk of the squad next season.

“A lot of them are either young guys coming through or more senior players with good jobs and are hopefully sticking around,” she said.

“I’m hoping that most of them will be back to play and we can aim for back-to-back (flags).

“I’ve been able to really see the players grow over the past few years and we’ve created a solid core of players who know my expectations.

“I give them instructions and they’re listening — that’s what you want as a coach, regardless of whether you’re a female or a male.

“Some of those guys had never had a female coach before and when I first stepped in, it was a big shock for them but now everyone takes it in there stride.

“They just play which is really nice to see.”

For CBC, Miles Tierney and Dyson Sumsion complemented Morrow’s haul with 21 points and 19 points, respectively.