Basketball On The Internet.

LOGAN Thunder coach Jason Chainey, Basketball Australia, basketballers in and out of Australia, sponsors, the community and social media have played their roles today in saving the WNBL club.

Finally a good news story out of south east Queensland, where elite national league calibre teams have been disappearing since Gold Coast Rollers left in a sea of green 17 years ago to the day yesterday.

Where Brisbane Blazers' WNBL team died late last century, and the highly regarded three-time NBL champion Brisbane Bullets bowed out a few years ago, not to mention the Gold Coast Blaze just 12 months ago.

Logan's financial plight, brought to light so very late in the piece, has in the 48 hours of its death-bed deadline, proven to be a wonderful story of triumph against the adversity of financial mismanagement.

Thunder co-captain Kristen Veal, who received her belated shot at an international career this year when new Opals' coach Brendan Joyce threw her a lifeline, and who would instead now have most likely had to hang up her boots, summed it up best.

"So many people have come to the party to help the team, and the amount of people who stepped up to donate money has been amazing," Vealy said.

“In particular, I’d like to thank Jason Chainey and Natalie Taylor, who have been the real driving force in getting us over the line in the last 48 hours. Their hard work has kept us in the league – and kept the Thunder family together.”

BA CEO Kristina Keneally and pro league ops manager Chuck Harmison hit the ground running in Brisbane this week when the extent to which Logan management had misrepresented the depth of their financial plight came to light at the preseason Spring Shield tournament in Dandenong.

A Facebook page drew more than $10,000 in donations within six hours as players took to social media to rally support, which came in droves.

Andrew Bogut responded with a pledge and players as diverse as Patty Mills, Jenni Screen and Abby Bishop jumped into the groundswell.

Local firm OPD stepped up as naming rights sponsor and season 2013-14 will go ahead now as scheduled.

“This is a fantastic result for the Thunder, for basketball fans, and indeed, for the entire WNBL and every club in it,"Keneally said.

"The 2013-14 fixture remains as is, all clubs’ home games are guaranteed and our expanded TV schedule is unaltered.”

BA has taken back Logan's license and will administer the club, with Basketball Queensland supplying ground staff for home games.

In effect BA becomes the club licensee, contracting the players directly and managing the sponsorship agreements for the Thunder.

Chainey, who was very active through social media, was grateful OPD owner Bill Henderson jumped into the fray to take up naming rights.

“Bill and OPD’s support have been invaluable to us, alongside all of the corporate partners and community members who have pitched in to help the team,” Chainey said.

“The community support this week has just been unbelievable - from basketball clubs locally to basketball clubs Australia-wide, families, individuals, and our other sponsors BDS, Logan City Council, and the Australian Franchising Corp who run Wok Me and Urban Burgers.

“Basketball in south-east Queensland has lost three professional teams over the last 10 years and we just couldn’t afford to lose another.

“The reach the Thunder girls have with the community, not only in Logan but also Brisbane through working closely with schools, young female athletes and the indigenous community is a powerful presence that we need to keep.”

Henderson said: “OPD is happy to play a part in keeping the team on the court and ensuring the current and future stars of basketball have a chance to compete professionally in one of Australia's biggest female sporting leagues.

“After listening to head coach Jason Chainey talk this week about the role the Thunder play in the local community and with indigenous players, we were delighted to come on board.

“The Logan Thunder are role models in our community. OPD is pleased to have the opportunity to support the team, and to support women’s basketball in south-east Queensland.”

And so it goes.

Life for the WNBL continues unabated, despite what was a massive hiccup this week.

And finally basketball averts another in a long line of untimely black eyes and, instead, has a good news story to spread.

IF you are in the region and you haven't bought your tickets to tomorrow's NBL preseason game between Wollongong and Sydney at the Snakepit at 3pm, what in Naismith's name are you waiting for?

Last night at Sutherland, the teams played out a double-overtime thriller before the Hawks prevailed 107-99.

To close the Blitz, it was Wollongong import Rotnei Clarke hitting a game-winner against Melbourne at the end of overtime.

This time it was fellow import Durrell Summers stroking a jumpshot to save the Hawks and put the game into the second O/T.

That was the second time the Hawks were off the hook, a three-pointer by Oscar Forman sending the game beyond regulation at 82-82.

Summers finished with 28 points and 9 defensive boards, Clarke had 25 points and six assists while the Big O had 21 points at a wicked 80 per cent, including 4-of-4 threes. (Suspect there might be a little in-house 3-pointer rivalry developing between Rotnei and Oscar and no, I won't be joining the queue making "Durrell Summers and Ossie" gags ... but only because there already have been so many!)

Charles Carmouche had a 27-point, 10-rebound double for the Kings, ably supported by AJ Ogilvy with 16-and-12.

Tommy Garlepp and Brad Hill both put away 14 points and the Colonel mustered 12, with 5 rebounds and 6 assists.

The best news for Sydney though - and we did predict it here during the Blitz after talking with Kings coach Shane Heal and his newest Boomer, Ben Madgen - was that The Madge got 12:30 of game-time into him.

It may not seem like much but remember, after his ankle dislocation with the Boomers in Perth - an injury so awful several teammates had to receive assistance of their own - early-to-mid December were the most optimistic predictions for his return into the regal purple.

Benny is meticulous and as hard a worker in rehab as he is at anything else he puts his mind to, so to have him back on the hardwood this early is something exceptional.

"Great to have Ben Madgen play some mins. He is amazing to come back so early. Still feeling his way & is still 8-10 weeks away from his best," Heal tweeted.

Let's hope Chris Goulding at the Tigers similarly makes a mockery of his return date.