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THERE were two games in the Men’s SBL on Friday night with the Cockburn Cougars beating the Mandurah Magic and the Kalamunda Eastern Suns downing the Perry Lakes Hawks.

Round 5 of the 2018 Men’s SBL season got underway with the two matches on Friday night ahead of five huge clashes on Saturday night and then another two on Sunday afternoon.

The Friday night action saw the Cockburn Cougars defeat the Mandurah Magic at Mandurah Aquatic and Recreation Centre 81-75 and the Kalamunda Eastern Suns beat the Perry Lakes Hawks 109-101 at Ray Owen Sports Centre.

MEN’S SBL PREVIEW – WEEK 5

Round 5 of the Men’s SBL began on Friday night with Kalamunda hosting Perry Lakes with both teams not quite at full strength.

The end result was an exciting, high-scoring affair with the Eastern Suns opening up a handy advantage during the third quarter and that was enough to see them overcome the Hawks to the tune of eight points.

Kalamunda was still without the presence of Louis Timms and Courtney Belger while Perry Lakes continues to be without a second import following the injury to Tyler Monroe.

Kevin Davis had another tremendous night for Kalamunda leading his third SBL team in as many years to a third win of the season so far. He finished with 30 points, 11 rebounds, five steals and four blocked shots on the back of shooting 11/18 from the field and 7/8 at the free-throw line.

He had good support once again from Logan Viskovich who delivered 22 points, seven rebounds and three assists on 9/16 shooting from the floor and 2/4 from beyond the arc.

The common thread in each of Kalamunda’s wins this season has been that Davis and Viskovich have had big nights in each of them.

Kerrod Horn added 14 points, eight assists and five rebounds too for the Suns while Nathan Drown contributed 11 points, six rebounds and four assists, Ryan Blanchett eight points and Cooper Lowe eight.

Ben Purser tried to inspire Perry Lakes to the win finishing with 24 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals on 9/14 shooting. He also had eight turnovers.

Lochlan Cummings added 15 points, six rebounds and six assists for the Hawks, Dan Thomas 13 points and six assists, Jordan Hickert 11 points, Ryan Smith 10 points, 10 rebounds and four assists, Brian Carlwell 10 points and Cooper Hamilton nine points.

The other Friday night match saw the Magic host the Cougars in Mandurah and it was Cockburn who ended up prevailing to the tune of six points.

Despite scoring just 13 points in the opening quarter, Mandurah got going in the second term to go into half-time leading 37-33 on their home floor.

But the Cougars responded with 23 points to 14 in the third quarter and then held on for the six-point win.

Captain Gavin Field continued his hot start to the season for the Cougars showing he is fully over his horror elbow injury from the start of the 2016 playoffs. He had another 30 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and three assists on 10/18 shooting on Friday night.

Brandon Sebirumbi added 20 points and eight rebounds for Cockburn with Seva Chan adding 15 points, three assists, three rebounds and three steals.

Shaun Stewart finished with 23 points, six rebounds and five assists for Mandurah with Jamal Shabazz adding 14 points and five boards, Akau Deng 14 points and five rebounds, and Chudier Pal 10 points and 10 boards.

WEEK 5 MEN’S SBL FIXTURES
FRIDAY
Mandurah Magic 75 lost to Cockburn Cougars 81
Kalamunda Eastern Suns 109 defeated Perry Lakes Hawks 101

SATURDAY
Goldfields Giants v Willetton Tigers – Niels Hansen Basketball Centre 7.30pm
Geraldton Buccaneers v Joondalup Wolves – Active West Stadium 7.30pm
Stirling Senators v Mandurah Magic – Warwick Stadium 8.00pm
Perth Redbacks v East Perth Eagles – Belmont Oasis 8.00pm
South West Slammers v Lakeside Lightning – Eaton Recreation Centre 8.00pm

SUNDAY
East Perth Eagles v South West Slammers – Morley Sport and Recreation Centre 2.00pm
Lakeside Lightning v Rockingham Flames – Lakeside Recreation Centre 4.00pm