South Spotlight | Palmer shoots Rangers to Hobart win

Featured image: MJB Photography

Joe Palmer put up 33 points and eight triples as the Dandenong Rangers scored a spirited and thrilling win over the Hobart Chargers 98-94 to open their NBL1 South Tasmanian road double this weekend.

Both teams came into the match up at Hutchins School on identical 5-4 records and coming off losses, and they would go on to play a game with plenty of feeling between the two line-ups.

Dandenong did lead by 16 points at quarter-time on the back of 38 points in the opening 10 minutes and while the Chargers never quite got in front again, they gave it a good crack without Luke Rosendale and only fell four points short in the finish.

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It's the first game of a double in Tasmania for both teams this weekend with Dandenong improving to 6-4 with the win while Hobart are now 5-5 having lost three in-a-row.

Joe Palmer scored 14 points in the first quarter for Dandenong on his way to 33 for the game with 8/13 three-point shooting along with seven rebound and three assists.

Harry Froling was up against a team he won a championship win and delivered another 23 points, eight rebounds and three assists while Michael Meadows added 17 points, 10 boards and four assists, and Josh Kunen eight points and eight rebound.

Then there was Sam Davidson with the Rangers +17 with him on the floor across his 30 minutes where he ended up with 10 points and two assists.

The Chargers put up a good fight all evening in the absence of Luke Rosendale with Jacob Richards continuing his standout form with another 37 points, nine rebounds and two assists with 11/21 shooting from the floor and 12/15 at the foul line.

Anthony Drmic added 17 points, five rebounds and five assists for Hobart, Noah Clarke 16 points and five boards, and Nick Paul 13 points, 11 rebounds and two steals.

The Rangers arrived trying to bounce back from a loss to the Kilsyth Cobras and they started the game on fire with 38 points in the first quarter to open up a 16-point lead by quarter-time having gone on a 12-0 run.

Joe Palmer had 14 of those points with 4/5 three-point shooting while Jacob Ricahrds and Noah Clarke combined for 19 of the 22 points from Hobart.

The Rangers were still leading 57-45 by half-time but the Chargers had worked back into the contest with 23 points to 19 with scoring 8-19 from the field, 3/11 from deep and 4/5 at the foul line.

Richards and Clarke were up to 30 points between them by half-time with Dandenong were still shooting 54 per cent and had just three turnovers with Palmer up to 17 points with Harry Froling adding 17 and Michael Meadows 15.

There was plenty of feeling between the teams too and a lot of it centred around Froling who was up against the team he won a championship with back in 2022 but it was the Chargers going into three quarter-time with the momentum even with still being behind.

Richards hit a massive three on the buzzer for Hobart to cut Dandenong's lead to 77-72 but the Rangers did enough to maintain that advantage through the fourth quarter to start their Tasmanian road trip with the four-point Friday win.

Both teams back up to play again on Saturday night with the Chargers playing host to the Diamond Valley Eagles while the Rangers head to Launceston to face the Northern Force.

NBL1 SOUTH 2026 SEASON | ROUND 7

HOBART CHARGERS 94 (Richards 37, Drmic 17, Clarke 16)

DANDENONG RANGERS 98 (Palmer 33, Froling 23, Meadows 17)