Adelaide 36ers Daniel "DJ" Johnson returns to the NBL1 Central for the Eagles yet again after last playing the 2018 Grand Final against the Southern Tigers. Picture by The Mercury/news.com
Saturday 30/04/2022
Woodville Warriors vs Forestville Eagles – (St Clair – The Castle)
Women (6:30pm)
The Warriors have a 2-1 record surprisingly and will be no pushovers for an Eagles team that said themselves they came out not prepared enough against the Lions on Monday afternoon. Sam Simons speaking on the The Hoopsters NBL1 Central Show with Bevo and Downtown Wednesday said the Forestville Eagles credited the Lions for their shooting but knows her team weren’t quite switched on that afternoon. “They came out and played hard as we expected them to, they shot the ball pretty well, I don’t think we played our best basketball so it made it a pretty close game,” Simons of the Eagles told the show. Simons will need to lead her team from the front if the Eagles are to prevent another close one however if they shut down McCarty and Winter, the Eagles should account for the home side.
Key Stat – The Warriors once again lead the league in steals averaging 12.7, the Eagles however have the lowest turnover average in the league of 10.3.
ESPN Prediction: Eagles by 11 points
Men (8:15pm)
Game of the week in my book and an early look at I believe two of the top contenders for the men’s championship. Both teams starting fives will look very different to what they have in opening rounds, the Eagles landing the well-known signing for months of 36ers Daniel Johnson and the impending return of Perth Wildcat Jack Purchase. The challenge for the Eagles will be balancing this lineup and the Warriors defensive minded names of Wurm, Meldrum, Stepney and Jackson who on the first bite could expose the Eagles top looking heavy lineup. With all these star matchups its likely going to come down to the depth of each team across the bench which the Warriors shade the Eagles in slightly, but I think the Eagles may have one too many guns loaded to take the Castle for the start of their season onslaught that’s coming…
Key Stat – The Eagles will have a potential combined 460 games of NBL experience in their lineup.
ESPN Prediction: Eagles by 7 points
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CROSS OVER DRIBBLE 