Powerful second half from Barking Owls helps them claim first victory in new ABA men’s A-grade season

A 15-point second half from teenager Jordi O’Neill helped Barking Owls pull away from The Sharks in their round-two clash of the Albany Basketball Association men’s A-grade competition on Tuesday night. As a result, the Owls notched their first victory of the 2020-21 season after falling to Denmark Magpies narrowly in round one. Owls led by five points at half-time and O’Neill had just four points to his name but they were able to skip clear in a commanding second half and outscore their opponents by nine. O’Neill did not register his first score in the second half until seven minutes in, but after that he made the floor his own. Owls went on a 10-point run to push the margin to beyond double figures and The Sharks reduced the margin to seven with nine minutes to play but that would be as close as they got. O’Neill finished the game superbly scoring seven of the last 12 points as he ended with 19 for the game to ensure Owls won 65-51. The Sharks dominated play in the first 10 minutes of the game getting out to a nine-point lead but through Luke McGuire’s three-point shooting and Justin Benson’s hustle on the offensive rebounds Owls were able to get back into the game. Benson was impressive in defence causing turnovers while working hard in attack to end up with 17 points while McGuire added 12 points and the spark of Tom Powell was notable. Jack Adams led the way for The Sharks with 14 points and was solid in defence along with Red Rogers. Denmark Magpies remain undefeated after two rounds in their inaugural season after a 35-point victory over Raiders under-18s. The win was set up in the first half after outscoring their young opponents by 23 before continuing on in the second half. Luke Wilson topped all scorers with 28 while Jed Finigan was also damaging with 20 points as Denmark won 66-31. Railways Tigers also remain undefeated after a tense four-point win over new club Sonics. There was just two points in the game at half time but Railways fought their way to a 45-41 win. Henry and Henrick Alforque led the way for the victors with 14 and 11 points respectively while Kye Griffiths top scored for Sonics with 17. Tigers notched their first win of the season after comfortably taking care of Infernos in the other men’s fixture. Mason Tion scored 15 points in the 46-29 win.