Scorching: Keenan Gorski was in his bag on Saturday night, dropping 46 points in Seymour's big win over Myrtleford. Photo: Wayne Herring
Seymour Blasters showed themselves to be the measuring stick in both the Country Basketball League North East men’s and women’s divisions after producing a dominant weekend of hoops.
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The men’s side embarked on its first double-header of the season, and passed the test with flying colours, recording dominant victories over Myrtleford Saints (116-69) and the previously undefeated Benalla Breakers (95-63).
Taking to the Seymour Sports and Aquatic Centre floor for the first time this season, Keenan Gorski produced an all-time scoring display in the Blasters’ homecoming on Saturday night, dropping 46 points as they blew out the Saints.
It was as if everything Gorski touched turned to gold as he carried the Blasters offence in the first half to enter the main break with 29 points.
Looking for options: Seymour's Jordan Hockley.
But despite the play of Gorski, Myrtleford did a good job hanging around in the opening two quarters, challenging Seymour’s defence to be in the contest at the half.
It was seemingly set for a thrilling finish before the class of the reigning premier came to the fore in the third quarter, as the likes of Lincoln Stewart (18 points), Abraham Solano (12 points), Tyler Best (10 points) and Jack Murphy (10 points) all got going to overwhelm the Myrtleford side.
Rising high: Seymour's Jack Murphy.
In what was a beautiful blend of offensive fluency and defensive grit, Seymour didn’t take its foot off the pedal, constantly increasing the margin until the final buzzer to walk away a commanding 47-point victor.
Walking out of the arena brimming with confidence on Saturday night, the Blasters knew they would need to maintain that energy into Sunday as fellow undefeated side Benalla rolled into town for a top-of-the-table showdown.
Welcoming a big crowd for the marquee Sunday afternoon timeslot, a fast start would be crucial for Seymour as it looked to make a statement against the 5-0 Breakers.
Driving: Seymour's Harry Stones looks to score.
And after a few early stumbles on the offensive end, it didn’t take long for the Blasters to get their game going, closing out the first term strong to open up a commanding 19-11 lead.
With the game firmly in its control, the home side continued its offensive dominance in the second term, putting up another 25 points to extend the advantage out to 14 points.
After looking like it was in position to put the game away, the third term was somewhat of a struggle for Seymour, as Benalla showed its class to break even and open the door for a final-quarter comeback.
As a unit: The Blasters team during a time-out.
But, similarly to the night before, the Blasters saved their best for last, completely taking the way from the Breakers with a brutal fourth term.
Dominating on both ends of the floor, a 32-14 run saw the margin blow out to a whopping 32 points, with the result cementing Seymour’s spot on top of the ladder.
A much more even performance this time around, Jordan Hockley and Best were the standouts, finishing with 22 and 21 points apiece, while Murphy (12 points), Robbie Sartori (11 points) and Harry Stones (10 points) all finished in double figures.
The Lady Blasters were equally dominant in their efforts at the weekend, blowing out Myrtleford Saints 85-63 on Saturday night.
Making it three straight wins to begin the season, the reigning premiers found themselves in trouble early, with a sluggish opening quarter seeing them down six at the first change.
But as all champion teams do, Seymour quickly rallied, getting the game back on its terms with a dominant second quarter.
Turning the six-point deficit into a three-point half-time lead, the Blasters continued on their merry way in the third, piling on another 20 points to Myrtleford’s 11 to stretch the lead into double figures.
They then put their foot down in the last quarter, maintaing their intensity on both ends of the floor to secure the 22-point triumph.
Maddison Ford was the star of the show, recording a third straight 30-point game to lead the Blasters’ offence, while Olivia Pearce (14 points) and Tayha Watkins (11 points) were also prolific.
Both Blasters teams will be on the road at Wallan next Saturday night, with the ladies beginning at 6pm before the men tip off at 8pm.
