Wolves unbeaten run came to an end as a five-man Jets team hit the afterburners in basketball’s first ‘Super Sunday’ of the season at the Roundhouse.

Both teams were missing key players and carrying injuries, but the advantage lay with Wolves who had fresh legs on the bench and opened the game well with some quick breaks and drives from Ben Campbell and Kyle Mills to build an early lead.

Jets struggled to break through initially but kept the intensity high and as the quarter wore on, they started to break through Wolves press, taking full advantage of open shots and lanes to level the score with three minutes to go.

A flurry of baskets followed, with Paul Kilic opening up in the mid-range and Peter Boussougou swishing from the three-point line, as Jets flew into the lead 28-20 at the end of the quarter.

Jets continued to fly in the second quarter, Tom Dalton-Brown hitting outside the arc, Logan Glover using solid movement to find space for clean shots and Mattie Jennings mopping up inside.

Wolves were well and truly grounded with mistakes on defence opening clear runs to the basket, while errors on offence saw plenty of steals and intercepts for Jets, who were ahead by double digits 39-22.

Wolves made some progress in the latter half of the quarter, Ross Wilson on the drive and Ben Takken working the inside, but it only stopped Jets advance and they continued to lag 17-points behind going into half-time with Jets ahead 48-31.

The second half was a more balanced affair, with both teams finding some routes to the basket and shooting success.

Glover continued to give an impressive display for Jets, cutting through the defence to free space at the top of the key and draining multiple shots that combined with outside shooting from Dalton-Brown and Boussougou to keep Jets on level pegging throughout the third quarter.

Wolves defence continued to falter but some consolation was found on the offensive end with outside shots by Oscar Lace and inside moves from Takken.

Consistency and composure eluded Wolves though and they struggled to breakthrough Jets 3-2 zone defence and find the energy needed to reverse Jets early lead.

The teams continued trading baskets throughout the fourth, but the pace visibly slowed as Jets sought to run the clock and protect their lead. Back-to-back threes from Harry Brindle gave a short-lived boost to Wolves but came too late to impact the outcome.

With the final buzzer Wolves were left licking their wounds as Jets soared to an impressive 73-53 win that keeps alive hopes of entering the play-offs as top seed.

Next on the hardwood was a commanding performance from Cannons as they sunk Pirates in the second Super Sunday game, with quick pace tempered by good control for an impressive offensive display.

Pirates had some impressive ball movement and sought to crack open Cannons zone defence with some inside play and drive and dish options. Baskets came early on for Andy Holton and Mike Brew, though the lead never extended beyond four as Gabe Thatcher locked in from outside the arc for Cannons.

It was this outside shooting that proved effective for Cannons in the first half as Thatcher was joined by Jack Wilkinson, Rowan Coulter and Oliver Hamilton in raining three-pointers.

Traditionally this is the core of Cannons’ offence, and while their shooting was on full display here, they also displayed some solid drives and effective pass and cut moves to crack open the Pirates defence for lay-ups and mid-range shots.

Pace kept Pirates off balance, as Wilkinson and Hamilton did solid work in pushing the ball through transition to apply immediate pressure on the defence.

Better decision making from the Cannons side also saw them finding the right options rather than rushing early opportunities.

This led to plenty of offensive boards and second chances, as well as finding free shots around the short corner that Alfie Garrett hit with ease.

Pirates struggled for a response but picked up some outside shots of their own courtesy of Neil Domingo, while Jordan Brew hit some nice breaks and mid-range jumpers.

The game was controlled by Cannons throughout though and when the final whistle came, they had a 67-42 win and advanced to fourth spot in the league table.

The final game of the day saw another forfeit for Ravens who have struggled to field a team in recent rounds because of injury and work commitments.

While disappointed not to have played, the 20-0 forfeit result gives Cavaliers another notch in the win column and keeps them well in contention for the top spot as the league heads into the third and final round robin of the regular season.

The results sets up two solid fights for positioning in the final round with Wolves, Jets, and Cavaliers, all one solid win away from securing top spot.

Meanwhile Pirates, Cannons and Ravens have been in a pitched battle for middle ranking – each having beaten the other in previous rounds and all showing solid form.

Cannons are the strong favourites having posted an impressive debut season that has shown growing discipline that is paying dividends in tight games.

Similarly, Pirates have improved their standing since the addition of veteran Wig Bregazzi, while Ravens are the dark horse given their bench troubles, but still capable of strong performances.

The final round robin runs for the next six weeks ahead of the Easter break, with the seeded play-offs starting in just before Easter and leading to an arena court final on May 8.

- This week sees three more games as the league enters the final weeks of round robin games before the seeded play-off finals.

Tipping off at 7pm, Wolves will hope for an improved performance as they take on Hoops while at 8.30pm Pirates take aim at Jets while Cannons seek to win the series as they face Ravens for the third time.

All games are played on Thursday evening in the NSC main hall with spectators welcome courtside.

MARTIN DUNNE