BASKETBALL: Wagga Heat sit at the top of the table, but the Yowies proved they can mix it with the Waratah League big boys after handing them their first 102-88 loss at the Queanbeyan Basketball Stadium on Sunday.
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Three consecutive three-pointers took the Yowies to 9-0 with an early break, but in true Wagga fashion soon enough it was game on again- the home side leading by just four points at quarter-time.
The Heat uncharacteristically made a lot of mistakes throughout the match, as did the Yowies- lead changes were relatively frequent- Wagga lead by two points at halftime and Queanbeyan got it back to lead by 10 points at the final break.
Frustrations from the visitors started to show and the Yowies capitalised on unforced errors and clumsy fouls.
Talor Goodall (10 points) was solid inside, Gabe Haynes (17 points) was both key for Queanbeyan in defence and attack, and the powerhouses Jono Miller (25 points) and Jeff Dowdell (21 points) attacked hard to seal the game for the Yowies.
Outside shooting had been an issue for Queanbeyan in previous weeks, but they had no problem shooting from the perimetre to extend the margin to 26 points with four minutes to go.
Despite a last minute charge by the Heat the home side held on to run on out eventual winners by 14-points.
Yowies coach Garry Ball said the match was a confidence-building win and the best is yet to come.
"We still had a number of errors and we turned the ball over a lot," he said.
"Take our sloppy game away and we could've beaten them by 30 points.
"But overall we did a great job- we had a lot of players hit double figures, so we had a lot of contributers and we lifted during important parts of the game."
Queanbeyan face off against the Springwood Scorchers at home and Ball said each match is a must-win, but his boys showed last week they have what it takes to go all the way.
"We've finally found our way, the guys have got to know how each other play and we're hitting our outside game," he said.
"Our slow start has put a lot of presure on us, but anything could happen, we've got the team to take it all the way."