It's not often you see a team put forth their worst and best performance of the season in back to back games but the Shoalhaven Tigers have somehow done it.
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The team had a rough go of it against the undefeated Sutherland Sharks where they were only able to put up 48 points in a blowout loss, however the boys took the performance on the chin and responded with a 113-76 win over the St George Saints the following day.
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Going up against Sutherland was always going to be a tough game for the Tigers but even they would say their performance was not up to par with almost everyone outside of Brayden Morris (16 points) and Lachlan Armstrong (12 points) struggling to find the bottom of the net.
However it was on the defensive side of things that the Tigers were most exposed, it was especially made harder without the presence of big man Jeremy Harding who does a lot for the undersized unit.
The Sharks saw a balanced team run away with the game as they had five players reach double figures in the 93-48 victory.
The Tigers could have let this loss impact their spirits but they didn't, instead they used it as fire to fuel their best performance of the season the next day.
It was a rude shock for the Saints as they found themselves sucker punched quickly by an electric and fiery Tigers squad.
It was domination from the tip off as a reinvigorated Tigers defense allowed them to get out and running, taking advantage of every fast break.
Six Tigers reached double figures with Corey Walker putting up his best game of the season with 24 points, a huge jump from his average of 6.47 points per game.
Armstrong and Morris yet again both had big performances with 22 and 18 points respectively, while Jared Baraguir (14 points), Alexander Kessell (10 points) and Rory Shepherdson (10 points) all reached double figures as well.
It was a complete game that showed the Tigers at their best while also being the perfect way for the team to close out the regular season.
This weekend the Tigers will be looking for a repeat performance in the quarter-finals against the Coffs Harbour Suns (17-3) who finished third in Pool B.
It'll be a tough clash between the two sides on the Suns home court of Sportz Central in Coffs Harbour.
That match tips off at 6pm on Saturday August 13.
Sam Baker
Sam Baker is Journalist with the South Coast Register on the South Coast of NSW. He also contributes work to The Batemans Bay Post, Milton Ulladulla Times, Southern Highlands News and Illawarra Mercury. Email: sam.baker@austcommunitymedia.com.au Phone: 0472 904 583
Sam Baker is Journalist with the South Coast Register on the South Coast of NSW. He also contributes work to The Batemans Bay Post, Milton Ulladulla Times, Southern Highlands News and Illawarra Mercury. Email: sam.baker@austcommunitymedia.com.au Phone: 0472 904 583
