U16 vs Stockport Falcons

Sharks 15 37 69 84

Falcons 17 33 55 75

The Sharks have yet to have a full strength team this season and with George Brownell the latest to join the injury list this trend looked set to continue. Despite the injuries, Sheffield were determined to start making some positive strides forward and they managed to do so in this game.

The 1st quarter was a shaky affair with most teams applying full court pressure. Renny did well to steady the ship with a reliable pair of hands and the sharks were starting to find opportunities through the offense but the Stockport rims were anything but friendly, this coupled with stockport’s height advantage on the boards saw them finish the period 17-15 in front.

The visitors began to assert themselves better defensively in the 2nd quarter and caused a number of turnovers. The scoreboard did not reflect the dominance of the sharks due to some shocking finishing around the basket, several sharks suffered a nightmare spell where countless lay-ups rolled around the rim only to fall back out again. Despite this Sheffield had managed to build a half-time lead.

The lead grew in the 3rd as the sharks managed to convert the pressure into points, Conor Faulkner, after struggling with his form thus far was having a good game and Josh was unstoppable going to the basket. Callum was also knocking down shots, helping the visitors to a 14 point lead.

Te final stanza saw the Falcons mount a half-comeback, due in no small part to the rebounding of their 6’6” centre and the bullseye 3pt shooting of their no.13 . Despite this and with the greatest of respect to Stockport, Sheffield never felt the game was in danger and finished with a point win.

In summary it was a fairly comfortable win that would have been of a much larger margin had the sharks made their lay-ups and free throws. Sheffield made some notable improvements offensively and are slowly approaching the level of defense that we are used to. There is still much room for improvement but today’s game was a step in the right direction, particularly with the absence of George & Aidan.

Conor Faulkner: 27 pts, 5 steals, 3 rebs, 1 assist, 1 blk

Josh Adams: 19 pts, 10 rebs, 8 steals, 1 blk

Callum McKenzie: 15 pts, 6 steals, 4 rebs, 3 assists

Renny Nascimento: 14 pts, 8 rebs, 8 steals, 4 assists

Quincy Kaka: 4 pts, 2 rebs, 4 steals

Sheu Matewe: 3 pts, 10 rebs, 1 assist

Trent Woodward

Zach Fenech

Nathan Suttle