Crabs boost finals hopes with gallant win over Raiders

Crabs’ hopes of playing finals again in the Albany Basketball Association men’s A-grade competition were given a boost after they rallied late to snatch the points against Raiders’ under-18 development squad in round 9 on Tuesday night.

In the first game back since the mid-season break, it was the young Raiders who leapt to an early lead, despite star Matt Leary not suiting up because of injury.

Two early three-pointers from guard Tom Edwards helped Raiders lead by six points but the experienced Crabs fought back, trimming the margin to a point through Wade Eskett and Bodhi Holmes before Holmes nailed a long-range basket to give his team the advantage.

Leading 16-11 at the break, the signs looked ominous when the second half began as Raiders blazed away to miss their first two shots, which both came from outside the arc, while Crabs took the ball to the opposite end where an on-target Eskett sunk his long- range attempt to stretch the margin to eight.

This time, it would be Raiders who rallied, as Keanu Weeden and big man Hamish McMorran got them back into the contest, and then raw forward Daniel van der Merwe delivered a three-point play to reduce the deficit to two points.

McMorran and Weeden stepped up again to snatch back the lead for Raiders, who were consistently shooting from the perimeter, but that ploy would eventually bring about their undoing

A basket to Ain Pennaste put Crabs back in front and van der Merwe levelled scores with one free throw, but Crabs’ patient offence in the dying moments and two clutch shots from Eskett delivered an important seven-point win.

Eskett drained a clutch three- pointer as Crabs skipped clear in the last two minutes before sealing the deal with a jump shot as his side prevailed, 31-24.

It was Crabs’ third win of the season, and with 17 points to their name, they sit just two points behind the third-placed Raiders.

Crabs were superbly led by Eskett (12 points) and the physical presence of Holmes (7) and captain Jayden Scott (5) were also important.

“That’s three wins in a row now,” Scott said.

“We needed a bit of momentum and we played good stuff at both ends.” Crabs shot three of eight three-point attempts compared to Raiders, who shot at 18 per cent from outside, hitting a less than impressive four of 22.

Raiders also had their chance at the free-throw line, with Crabs in foul trouble late in the game, but they managed only six of 11 attempts, all five misses coming in the second period. Tom Edwards (9), McMorran (5) and Weeden (3 led the way in the absence of Leary, who has had surgery to repair a fractured eye socket.

Raiders coach Darren Berry said his side were out-muscled by the physical Crabs.

“Our intensity was a bit off to start with,” he said.

“We were a bit sluggish and we’ve only had a couple of trainings since December.

“Crabs are a physical team and take Matt out, that’s probably 15 points, so there needs to be some adjustment there.”

Meanwhile, Barking Owls and Tigers continued their strong seasons, with Owls taking care of Wolves, 54-41, and Tigers holding off Ambassadors, 39-35.