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EXPECT Wollongong to shortly reveal CJ Massingale will fill Lance Hurdle's NBL shoes upto and until the star Hawks import makes it back from a serious knee injury.

Hurdle crashed to the floor with five minutes of regulation left against Cairns and while initial fears were of anterior cruciate ligament damage, it now appears he could be back within two weeks to six.

His Wollongong starting backcourt partner, Rhys Martin, was far less fortunate, indeed suffering the dreaded ACL tear and out for the rest of the season and possibly even some of the next.

Hawks coach Gordon McLeod said development players would have to pick up some of the slack but expect a Massingale announcement within 24 hours.

Massingale, the SEABL superstar prematurely cut by Adelaide this season without ever being given a decent shot at stepping up to NBL level, will relish the opportunity to show he does belong in the big league.

Ironically, Massingale will play one of his early games as a Hawk against the 36ers at Adelaide Arena, on February 1 and if Hurdle is out for as long as feared, will play two additional matches against the Sixers in Wollongong.

Meanwhile Massingale's replacement import at Adelaide, Scott Christopherson, has now played three games and scored six points on 2-of-12 shooting (1-of-7 threes).

WHAT a round that was for injuries and mayhem but on the upside, at least the Adelaide teams broke their respective droughts.

For the 36ers, it was the end of their all-time record-equalling eight consecutive losses but beating Sydney also made it 2-2 and gave the Sixers that series on points percentage.

It may not seem important now but with Wollongong having lost seven of its past eight, tragically down Martin for the rest of the season and with Massingale probably needing a week to pick up the Hawks' structures, the top four now only looks the stronghold of New Zealand and Perth.

Sydney is vulnerable (hence the split may become important) and the Hawks assuredly also have to be shaken up by recent developments.

The question though is with Melbourne on nine losses, Cairns on 10, Adelaide and Townsville on 11 apiece, can any of them find the consistency to seriously make a concerted challenge?

The further good news for Adelaide is Luke Schenscher's fall against Sydney, which saw him cough up blood and require hospitalisation, will not keep him off the court this round.

"I'm a little banged up but nothing serious," Schensch said, confirming he had the medical all-clear to suit against New Zealand this week.
 
I KNOW I am a little biased but what a difference The Batgirl makes.

The reigning league MVP has been hamstrung by a persistent neck injury - I've told her reckless necking is dangerous - and Adelaide's WNBL fate is closely linked to her presence on the pine.

A round back the Lightning suffered road reversals at Townsville and Logan without the London Olympian but just her return to the Adelaide line-up against Canberra made a whopping big difference.

Suzy finished with 14 points and seven boards but her teammates played with the assurance her presence guarantees in a 98-67 rout.

"She was a little restricted because she hasn't been on the training track," Lightning coach Peter Buckle said. "Her first half was very good but in the second half she fatigued."

Even a fatigued Suzy is better than none and while she has missed too many games to claim back-to-back MVP awards this season, she remains the pre-eminent force in the women's game.

HOW big was the technical foul against Hawks veteran Glen Saville as Wollongong battled to keep Cairns from over-taking it?

With 3:28 left in regulation, Wollongong was out 69-63 when Sav copped a T after being called for a foul as Taipans veteran Aaron Grabau attempted a triple.

Grabau made all five free throws (three for the shot foul, two for the tech) for 68-69, then with the additional possession, nailed a three-pointer to put Cairns ahead 71-69.

The only man with his number retired in Cairns stuck a further three to quickly score 11 points in his game-high 22, his biggest haul since 2005.

It's history Cairns went on to win in overtime.

 

REVIEWS

Lightning v Capitals (W)

SUZY was back and so was Adelaide, spanking Canberra 98-67.

The Lightning bolted from tip-off with a 25-11 first period which left no doubt this one would be academic fairly quickly.

Laura Hodges with 17 points led five Adelaide players in double digits, fellow London Olympian Jenni Screen with 12 points, eight boards and eight assists.

Brigitte Ardossi led Canberra with a 12-11 double-double and Jessica Bibby worked hard for her 15 points.

Crocodiles v Breakers (M)

LET'S not be sheepish here, New Zealand knows how to come from behind, firing back from 21 down to beat Adelaide on the road and this time in Townsville getting away with an 82-78 success.

The Crocs led by as many as 15 on a Gary Ervin (29 points) triple just before halftime and were still out by 14 late in the third.

But in the last 1:11 of the third, Will Hudson scored and Leon Henry nailed consecutive triples to slice the deficit back to six.

Inside the last four minutes, Townsville still had a grip on a 76-67 buffer but Cedric Jackson and Hudson started the fightback, then Tom Abercrombie raised his level to score nine of his 19 down the stretch as the Breakers closed on a 15-2 run.

The Crocs had been death-rolled.

Flames v Spirit (W)

SYDNEY is a good team if all you want is a terrific half or three quarters.

But Bendigo has its eyes on an inaugural WNBL championship and had Gabrielle Richards back to lead the 77-69 win with 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting, and nine rebounds.

After a tight first half which saw the Flames nudge ahead, a 23-14 Bendigo third quarter set up victory, Kristi Harrower with 10 assists and Kelly Wilson 15 points.

Ro Cox led Sydney with 17 points, including 9-of-10 free throws, April Sykes and Sarah Graham with 16 points apiece.

But if Sydney was to truly challenge for a top-four spot, this was precisely the type of game it needed to win, not nudge.

Hawks v Taipans (M)

LARRY Davidson's return had many anticipating Wollongong heading back to greener pastures but it certainly didn't look that way early.

Inspired by a week of positive support and earnest introspection in Cairns, the Taipans took a 10-point lead to the first break before the familiarity of failure began to assert itself.

Shaun Bruce was hit with a technical foul for flopping - Shaun, there's some traits you don't need to copy from your brother - and the momentum was shifting.

Rhys Martin went down with a season-ending knee injury but the Hawks were rallying and by halftime, had taken the lead. In the third, they bumped that out to 64-53 with a quarter left.

But then came the Lance Hurdle injury. The Sav tech foul and 8-0 run by Aaron Grabau as a consequence turned the game on its ear and it needed Davidson to beat the buzzer to force this into overtime at 79-79.

But from there, it was all Cairns, winning 94-81, the officials jeered off the floor to a chorus of boos.

Boomers v Rangers (W)

ANYONE who played at the London Olympics was allowed to shoot like a stone-mason in this one, hence Jenna O'Hea went 3-of-17, Kath MacLeod 6-of-18 and Rachel Jarry 4-of-13.

Dandenong eventually inflicted Bulleen's fifth straight loss 83-72, Krista Phillips with a 16-12 double-double and MacLeod still with nine assists. Tegan Cunningham rolled up her sleeves too, adding 13 boards to her 15 points.

Alice Kunek (2-of-12) felt she should have gone to London, hence the miscues.

36ers v Kings (M)

PRESSURE continues to mount on Adelaide externally but the team held it together to beat Sydney 82-64 and had to do it despite losing big Luke to a sickening fall to the floor in the second quarter.

As he did two seasons back when Adam Ballinger got hurt, Daniel Johnson stepped up and topped the scoring with 24 points, Jason Cadee attacking the hoop strongly en route to 13 points.

Adelaide held Sydney to 14 points in the second period and 10 in the third, the 36ers' defence resembling what it had in the season's early stages when the Sixers looked threatening.

But for everyone, including a decent-sized crowd at Adelaide Arena for a Sunday with "live" TV coverage, it was a relief to finally add a win.

No chairs were hurt in the filming of this match, either.

Waves v Capitals (W)

HAVING lost previously in Perth, Canberra came out fired up and raced to a 25-14 lead at the first break.

Backed by a 15-10 second period for a 40-27 halftime lead, the Caps had West Coast on the ropes before finally delivering the KO blow 72-60.

Jess Bibby with 21 points and Brigitte Ardossi with a 12-point, 14-rebound double, again led the Caps assault.

It ultimately took a three by Carly Wilson to ensure the Waves went winless again, the victory Canberra's first since Remembrance Day, 2012.

Wildcats v Tigers (M)

WHO says you can't pull a crowd on a Sunday?

Perth flew in the face of that, producing a WA record for a basketball game with 12,336 in attendance as it sent Melbourne home with a 73-58 smacking from Perth Arena.

It hadn't started that way, the Tigers out 7-0, then 9-1 and 11-3 before Shawn Redhage - again showing how much he likes coming of the Wildcats' bench - hit eight of his 18 in the first quarter.

By the break, Perth led 16-14, then held the Tigers to 6 second-quarter points.

"Six???" several WNBL coaches (and possibly one northern-based NBL coach) just sniggered.

A 33-17 third period just made this embarrassing, considering Perth had 33 in a quarter and Melbourne 37 in three.

At least the Tigers went down scratching with an inexplicable 21-7 final term, Jonny Flynn with 19 points, six boards and five assists. 

Thunder v Spirit (W)

THE Logan spoilers almost did it again this round, digging their way out of a 23-point hole to get within six of league-leading Bendigo with just four minutes to play.

But right when they needed it, Kelsey Griffin stepped up for Bendigo with a three-point play and the Spirit would finish ahead 80-71.

Logan scorer Natalie Taylor went down early with a knee injury, Kristen Veal left to lead the Thunder comeback.

Chelsea Aubry was solid for the Spirit with 19 points and six offensive rebounds and while Logan was feisty, Bendigo went on for its 16th win, a club single-season record.

Rangers v Flames (W)

AN unprecedented 21-0 run by Dandenong to start the final quarter against Sydney turned this game upside down and closed it as another Rangers "W", this time 78-72.

Flames coach Karen Dalton burned two time-outs trying to stall the run but this thing was over, Jenna O'Hea leading the way with 23 points at 75 per cent, including 3-of-3 threes.

Steph Cumming had 16 points at 60 per cent, Tegan Cunningham 14 at 64 and Krista Phillips had 15 rebounds despite having slept poorly the night before.

April Sykes had 17 for the Flames as they were reduced to Fumes.
 

BEEF of the WEEK

BEN Madgen was hit with a further $1,000 fine this past week for being guilty of chair assault.

Which reminds me how many Kings and Tigers were hit with fines for their previous feisty encounter.

So really, my beef this week is with the NBL.

Has anyone paid their fine yet?

Anyone?

Anyone at all?

Anyone?

Bueller?

I fear Chuck Harmison may be better at issuing fines than he is at collecting them.

Should anyone who has been fined be allowed to play before that fine is paid?

Better yet, should the league even be issuing fines?

Do we still think we are an NBA subsidiary, because we sure as hell aren't.

So what's up with all this posturing?

What purpose is it serving other than to incite debate?

Is an unpaid fine still a fine? Or is it all just fine by the NBL?

The Biggest Winners/Losers

HATE to say it but anytime you pull 12,336 fans to see a game on a Sunday makes you a winner so it is the Perth Wildcats who, yet again, can take a bow.

The round's big loser was Wollongong but only because it is unheard of to lose your starting backcourt to knee injuries in the same game. Crazy and tragic.

The biggest WNBL winner was Bendigo, which created club history when it won its 16th game this round.

With its fifth straight loss, Bulleen's finals hopes are dim at best, making it the round's biggest loser. But Bulleen is only a loser if you don't count those great Christmas hams and the all-you-can-eat-pasta nights at the Veneto Club. 

PS

ADELAIDE 36ers icon Brett Maher, who before the NBL season tipped-off said the 2012-13 line-up was the best Adelaide team since the 1998-99 champion, has amended that again to the 1991 Farewell to Apollo All Stars.