Floater game: Sam Beks erupted in the fourth quarter as the Gators came out on top.
Photo by
Tegan Fairley
With just more than a minute on the clock Warrandyte Venom was making its way down the court at the Swamp, two points down and hunting the bucket it needed to put itself in front for the first time since the opening quarter.
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But Shepparton Gators skipper Matt Bartlett was having none of it.
With the Gators’ perfect home record on the line, the captain came up with the game-winning play, poking the ball free and diving on it to wrestle possession away from the visiting side.
Shot-caller: Captain Matt Bartlett calls the play.
Photo by
Tegan Fairley
Shortly after, Detroit import Derek Murphy muscled his way to the ring to seal a 67-63 win for Shepparton in the Big V Division One conteston Saturday, April 22.
Early on, Bartlett set the tone, starting the game with back-to-back triples before Benalla product Lachlan Kego took over in the second quarter, starting off with a hook shot before reaching deep into his bag to pull off a beautiful fade-away jump shot.
Dominant: Lachlan Kego had himself a game.
Photo by
Tegan Fairley
He capped it with a spin move to lose his man before getting up high for the two-handed dunk.
The Gators got out to an eight-point lead early in the third quarter which was quickly erased by Warrandyte, with some tough shot-making from star duo Paul Nikoloff-King and Matthew Scammell.
And, while the Venom clawed back late, Bartlett’s heroics, helped by vice-captain Sam Beks — who came alive in the fourth — got the Gators over the line.
Beks was king of the fourth, making his presence known off the bench when the Gators needed him most, sinking a number of timely threes and getting to his trusted floater.
Home intensity: Sam Beks praised the fans in the stadium.
Photo by
Tegan Fairley
“It was a bit of a different role for me, I came off the bench and was willing to accept that to do whatever the team needed me to do to win,” Beks said.
“Whenever my number was called I was able to help the team out and do what I do, bringing that punch and energy, and I’m happy to keep doing that if that’s what the coach asks for.
“I just came alive in the fourth by trusting the work I put in and the team as well.”
Beks said there was a lot to work on and that the group would be getting back to basics in training this week.
Gators coach Josh Waight was relieved to come out on top of a tight affair and praised Warrandyte’s performance.
Rallying the troops: Coach Josh Waight with some words of wisdom in a timeout.
Photo by
Tegan Fairley
“We hit some big shots, we made the right reads and we did an excellent job defensively, we forced them into tough shots and they did make some tough shots as we knew they would,” he said.
“Down the stretch we persisted with what was working and got the win.
Waight said everyone had their moments and contributed and that he was pleased with how versatile the group was becoming.
The sixth man: The Gators are unbeaten at home.
Photo by
Tegan Fairley
The Gators are now 4-0 at home, with the only loss of their 5-1 record coming on the end of a back-to-back away at Pakenham in round two.
When asked about the energy the home crowd brings, Beks and Waight couldn’t understate the impact of the sixth man.
“It makes a huge difference for us,” Waight said.
“They’ve been excellent and we love playing in front of them.”
Beks went one further.
“I reckon we’ve got the best home crowd in Victoria, let alone Big V,” he said.
You can watch exclusive highlights and listen to Sam Bek’s interview on Shepparton News’ Instagram or TikTok.
Gators sit at second on the Big V Division One Men’s ladder and take on 10th-placed Collingwood on Saturday night, April 29, at 7pm at Shepparton Sports Stadium.
