The Bankstown Bruins men’s team extended their winning streak, defeating the Sydney Comets 99-89 in a tense battle at Bankstown Basketball Stadium on Friday night.
Akil Douglas won the jump ball for the Comets, with the visitors opening the scoring off the back of free-throw shots awarded due to a Bruins foul. Tederick Wolfe sank the first shot in for the Bruins with a 2-point layup shot. The first quarter displayed quick end-to-end basketball with many turnovers, including Bruins star Jason Cadee forcing a turnover that led to Ahmed Barba-Bey scoring a 2-point layup for the Comets, and multiple turnovers from the visitors due to the solid Bruins defence.
Anthony Mundine and Elijah Kamu combined showcased a solid first quarter performance with multiple shots going through the basket, helping the Bruins take a tight one-point lead into quarter time, despite both teams missing opportunities to slot the ball through.
A personal foul from the Comets saw the Bruins open the scoring for the second quarter with free throw shots slotting in, helping them extend their lead. Comets showcased solid defence at times, challenging the Bruins and forcing them to miss easy shots under pressure, while the Bruins also displayed their defence, blocking and causing the Comets to miss shots from sinking in.
Obrei Kyei had a great second quarter, shooting multiple three-point jump shots, challenging the Bruins’ defence. Tederick Wilfe dunked a two-point shot on the edge of halftime, sending a loud cheer around the court. A turnover by Bruins player Zeke Evans gifted the Comets a two-point layup from Chol Adup seconds before halftime.
In the third quarter, the game was a tight tussle with both teams playing with aggression, with turnovers from both teams occurring. Tederick Wolfe played well in the third term, shooting shots to help his team extend a comfortable lead over the Comets.
Cadee couldn’t stop slotting shots in, scoring multiple times in the third term with Alexander Higgins Titsha dunking a two-point shot on the edge of the third quarter. For the Comets, Ahmed Barba-Bey had a solid third-quarter performance, helping the Comets tighten the Bruins’ lead.
The Comets opened the scoring in the last quarter with Chol Adup slotting a three-point jump shot, with the Bruins turning the ball over seconds later, giving Obrei Kyei to shoot a two-point reverse layup. Both teams failed to convert easy shots, with turnovers piling up in the last quarter for both teams due to excellent defensive pressure from both sides. At the end, the Bruins’ offensive and defensive areas of the game were too strong for the Comets to overcome.
Post-game Bruins CEO Christian Gobolos provided some insights into what the Bruins did differently compared to last week’s win over Hornsby Kurin-Gai Spiders.
“I think the intensity, but it was a bigger challenge for them this time around. Look, the Comets played amazing basketball tonight, but yeah, I think we just sort of picked up the intensity, and the guys just got the win. Tedric played an amazing game, but I think it was an overall performance. The fact is, there was contribution right across the floor, so yeah, an amazing night from the guys’ perspective,” Gobolos highlighted.
Gobolos said the Comets will be a difficult team always and spoke on how the players are tall and defensively will always be hard to match up against.
“I guess the level of play was very high intensity, and I think you can see in terms of the hustle between both teams of going for the ball, hard fouls, unsportsmanlike fouls. So obviously there was a bit of feeling in there at the same time,” Gobolos said.
The Bruins’ next home game will be on Saturday, May 2 at Bankstown Basketball Stadium against the Maitland Mustangs.