The halfway mark of the NBL 1 East season has officially come and gone and the Central Coast Crusaders are still within striking distance of a top eight finish.
A winnable matchup is on the cards for both the men’s and women’s squads with the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles crossing Broken Bay to take on the Crusaders at Breakers Indoor Sports Stadium in Terrigal on Saturday, June 3.
This round at home is a special one dedicated to the men and women who have made basketball on the Central Coast possible through their devotion of time and personal resources.
Tipping things off at 5pm, the women have an uphill battle against the 13-1 Sea Eagles especially with young superstar Sara Matthews still sidelined with a left knee injury.
All is not lost however with current Sydney Flames veteran Rachel Maenpaa coming on as a mid-season addition to the team.
Maenpaa, who started her long and storied basketball career with the Central Coast Crusaders back in the early 2000s, brings size and savvy to replenish what the Crusaders are missing without Matthews.
The last time these two teams faced each other was in Manly back in March and the Crusaders were able to put up the most points out of any team so far in the season against the Sea Eagles on their home turf.
A break in the action at 6.30pm will see a special on-court ceremony for the Life Members before the men’s clash at 7pm.
The Crusaders men’s squad continues to struggle, having managed only three wins for the season despite finally acquiring US import Ajay Lawton two weeks ago.
Lawton, who was a part of the 2019 championship winning Crusaders squad, has not disappointed in his two games this season so far, putting up 27 points on 50 per cent shooting in the Crusaders’ dismal road loss in Canberra recently.
The Sea Eagles men’s squad is facing difficulties of its own, notching up just two wins for the season so far with one of them being against the Crusaders in Manly back in March.
This will be Lawton’s first game at Breakers Stadium since 2019 and he is eager to prove that his trip from the United States wasn’t all for nothing.
“This is my first game i Terrigal since that special season back in 2019,” he said.
“We lifted the hardware and it was a great milestone for myself and the team.
“We’re only a few games behind the eighth seed and it’s not too late to make a run for the title.
“That run starts this Saturday in front of the home crowd.”
Stefan Kataric