STAR guard Sophie Kleeman led the Newcastle Hunters to a thrilling 72-67 victory over Manly-Warringah last Saturday to clinch a Waratah Basketball League finals berth.
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Kleeman produced another excellent all-round game to lead the scoring with 17 points and had three rebounds, two steals and an assist.
Fellow guard Susi Walmsley also had a major influence on the Hunters’ seventh win from 11 games with 10 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Coach Peter Astley said one more win would cement a top-six finish for the Hunters at the end of the season but conceded the victory over Manly might be enough.
“Let’s hope we don’t have to rely on getting one more win and the girls have a lot more wins in them,” he said.
“I think to secure a finals spot in May would be great but there is a long way to go and I just want this team to keep getting better, because I think we can.”
Teenage stars Alison Ebzery (11 points, three rebounds, three assists) and Jasmine Forcadilla (12 points, three rebounds) were also standouts for the Hunters.
The women led at all three breaks before the Sea Eagles hit back to draw level at 65-65 with four minutes remaining before Kleeman and Walmsley stamped their class on the match.
The last-placed Hunters men put up a tremendous fight before going down 88-75 to competition leaders Manly.
Ryan Beisty was again the star with 30 points as the Hunters surprised the home side to lead by seven points at half-time before a dismal third term cost them the win.
The Hunters held Manly to nine points in the second quarter to be on the verge of the upset of the season before the Sea Eagles proved to classy in the end.
On Sunday a Hunters select team including several emerging stars from the Youth League team were defeated 78-60 by the Singapore national team at Newcastle Basketball Stadium.
The Singapore team was coached by former Newcastle Falcons sharp-shooter Michael Johnson whose team is preparing for the South East Asia Games in Singapore next month.