South East Melbourne 78 - CANBERRA 89


Behind Robert Rose (27 points) and Mario Donaldson (19 points), Canberra posted its first win over South East Melbourne in the Brett Flanigan era. Canberra inflated a 20-point cushion in the third before the Magic responded with a 29-7 run that gave it a five-point lead with less than five minutes remaining. The Cannons iced the game with a 16-0 run to close it out. "We allowed their defence to slow us down," Canberra coach Brett Flanigan said. "They go deep and their bench exploded. However, it's a very significant win and makes us 2-0 on the road."

The Cannons have not won in Melbourne Park since 1991 and have had particular trouble with the SE Melbourne Magic in the last few years. The Cannons were forced to start Mario Donaldson in place of Chris Blakemore who is still out with a recurring elbow injury. While the Magic got the first points on the board, the Cannons blitzed them early to run out to a swift double figure lead. The Magic recovered a little to recover some dignity, though they did have to contend with Ronaldson having 3 early fouls. The second quarter also began in the Cannons favour, Magic not troubling the scorers for the first few minutes.

The momentum of the game changed throughout the game and moved in particular favour of the Magic in the final quarter. The last ten minutes SE Melbourne grabbed the league, the Magic missing many shots from outside which would have put them in contention. The Cannons were only down by five at any one stage, showing their maturity on the court not to break under the pressure. Late foul trouble from the Magic put them in real danger, giving the Cannons a number of free throws in the final minutes to consolidate the victory. Canberra eventually proving the victor, 89-78.

Rose has been overshadowed by Donaldson all season but with a 27 point haul tonight, he showed the Rose of old. He was able to prove this against his former club. He had 13 of these points in the first quarter. Rose had an awesome game tonight, though as Dwight and Flanigan said, you can expect that kind of thing from Rose week in week out. Donaldson had 19 points tonight and led the team well when things became tough. Brendan Mann was cited as MVP by coach Brett Flanigan who says he's more than happy with the performance of Pearlman also and happy for the two to share the point guard position.

There was a strong clash between Pilon and Ronaldson, Pilon's strong attention on the Boomer making him stutter early. Coach Flanigan also mentioned Pilon's performance in a post-game interview, astounded at how quickly his game is maturing. Pilon also appeared to be giving his all, the 'Truck' as he is known, threw himself at the ball and gave his best effort for the club.

Simon Dwight, on his 21st birthday, was able to celebrate a victory in his home town. Yet again the Cannons took their play to an entire new level, proving their defence was second to none. Dwight was voted among the MVPs on the radio broadcast, though he himself cited Borner as having the greatest game of his season to date. As Dwight said "If we can beat the Magic we can beat any team in the league..."

This win puts the Cannons out in the lead along with North Melbourne, who are yet to drop a game. The Cannons are second on the ladder with daylight between them and their nearest competitors. Next up is Adelaide, in what was originally dubbed the 'doomsday double' but may now be remembered a bit more fondly. Blakemore should be back against Adelaide. The next home game is next Friday VS Illawarra. And the best news for the Cannons? We are yet to see the best of Pearlman and Blakemore, watch out giants!

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