NBL Basketball

The Perth Wildcats have squared the ledger against the Melbourne Tigers at Challenge Stadium this season following their 100-93 victory on Wednesday night.

Shawn Redhage was awesome for Perth with a game-high 26 points (9-of-13 shooting), 10 rebounds and six assists, and was well supported by import David Bailey and rookie Cameron Tovey who each netted 16.

Dave Thomas was the best for the visitors with 19 for the game (7-of-9 from the field), while Darryl McDonald worked hard with 16 points and 10 assists, with big man Chris Anstey, dropping 15 points and grabbing eight boards.

With Redhage again the linchpin for the Wildcats offence, Perth coach Scott Fisher recognised the importance of the American in the absence of Paul Rogers and Matt Burston.

"Tonight he was pretty damn important," Fisher said. "He played great last week and he's played outstanding this week. I think he's still been feeling his way around the NBL, but tonight I think he certainly nailed it on the head."

Both teams tried their hardest to force each other to shoot from the field in the opening quarter, with the hosts cracking under the pressure as they shot one from nine from behind the arc.

At the other end, the Tigers shot 13-of-20 from the field, with Thomas giving Matthew Shanahan the run around as he sank 10 points in the opening nine minutes.

Perth captain Tony Ronaldson had the unenviable role of starting on Anstey, with the Tigers big man affixing himself to the offensive keyway. Ronaldson was assisted by team mates when, at times, Anstey battled against three Wildcats.

The visitors looked to have a problem on their hands when former Wildcat Rashad Tucker headed to the rooms with a sprained ankle midway through the quarter, but managed to hold a 30-21 lead at quarter time.

Tucker returned to the court for the start of the second term as the Wildcats went about reducing the nine-point quarter time deficit. The Tigers continued to force their hosts to the outside, while Bailey tried his hardest to draw the foul every time he drove the lane.

Tovey entered the game to drop nine points for the quarter – including consecutive triples that brought the crowd to its feet. Daryl Corletto replaced Thomas as the danger man for Melbourne as he netted nine points in eight minutes.

Despite Perth outscoring the visitors 30-22 in the second term, Melbourne took the 52-51 lead into half-time.

Redhage ran the offence for the Wildcats in the third, landing another nine as the Cats took the lead. Anstey did his best to stem the flow of baskets for the hosts, dropping seven points and putting up two big blocks.

Despite bringing the margin within three points with five minutes remaining in the final period, the visitors couldn't get any closer to snatching victory.

Redhage was fouled as he pulled down a defensive board and was sent to the stripe with just under two minutes to go, putting the result was beyond doubt.

Tigers coach Al Westover said he was disappointed with the result, but was satisfied with his charges' intensity.

"I can't fault our effort," he said. "If we keep playing hard like that and stick together, we'll be in good shape."

Both Melbourne (6-4) and Perth (4-6) have home games this Saturday night, with the Tigers playing host to the Brisbane Bullets, while the Wildcats take on the West Sydney Razorbacks.

Perth Wildcats (Redhage 26, Tovey 16, Bailey 16)
Melbourne Tigers (Thomas 19, McDonald 16, Anstey 15)
@ Challenge Stadium, 19/10/05. Crowd: 3,900