Cauldron erupts as Braves fall agonisingly short

Saturday night’s Bendigo Bank Braves Men’s Steve Kelly Round game against the Ballarat Miners at Red Energy Arena was one the late legendary guard would have loved.

It was tough, intense, and high quality, with both sides duking it out, failing to give an inch. The only thing Steve would not have liked was the result, with his beloved Bendigo falling just short of a remarkable win against the competition leaders.

The match began with a stunning Koch Bar block, getting the large and loud crowd heavily involved from the start.

From then on, you could hardly hear yourself think, as the stadium turned into a cauldron.

Bendigo started well, with both teams going basket-for-basket in the first five minutes. The Miners were deadly in the paint early, but as they have done many times this season, Bendigo kept with them, going into the first break 16-20 down.

Bendigo managed to slow down the Ballarat offence in the second term, getting into the passing lanes and reaching attacking spots before their opponents.

Eight points down with 20 seconds left in the half, Andrew Robinson hit a three. Rowan Mackenzie stole the in-bound pass and Billy Smythe laid it up, to give Bendigo huge momentum going into the main break.

Quality defensive pressure early in the third helped Bendigo take the lead in the first four minutes of the term, and it was game on.  

With NBL star Majok Majok in foul trouble for Ballarat, Smythe and Bar took control of the key, Bendigo scoring 16 points to four in the paint for the quarter, and eight second-chance points to zero.

That led to Bendigo leading 61-57 at three-quarter time, and the crowd was ready to witness a stunning finish.

Two successful free throws to Mitch Clarke to start the final term hinted things were running smoothly for the Braves.However, the balloon of expectation was deflated over the next five minutes as Ballarat piled on 17 unanswered points.

For a lot of teams, facing an 11-point deficit against the ladder leaders with only five minutes to go would have spelt the end of the match, but not for this side.

Bendigo hit the next nine points to come tearing back into the contest and had the chance to take the lead with less than a minute to go.

A Mitch Clarke three with four seconds left on the clock cut Ballarat’s lead to one and almost lifted the roof of the stadium.

But Ballarat managed to look after the ball and hold on, Bendigo going down 75-76 in a game for the ages.

Clarke led all scorers with 22 points, Mackenzie ended the night with 16, Robinson 13 and Lachlan O’Brien 10.

For coach Stephen Black, it was a bittersweet evening.

“You want to be able to test yourself against the best in the competition, especially in an atmosphere like the Steve Kelly game, compete hard and give yourself a chance to win,” he said.

“We did that, and I was really proud how we went about it.We had a couple of shots to hit the lead in the last minute, so I am incredibly proud of how close we got.

“But it absolutely hurts that we were in a position to win itand didn’t get the points. That makes it really hard to swallow.”