The second set of Isle of Man Basketball Association round robin games tipped off on Thursday evening at the NSC.

There was a hard-fought game between Ravens and SOS Cannons, the latter hoping to repeat their success of the first-round encounter.

Ravens had a dominant opening as Matt Jones and Zak Mitchell sliced through the defence to push them into a solid lead.

Cannons misfired in the early stages, struggling to find a consistent way through a solid Ravens defence but a late three-pointer from Raf Turla kept them in contention, 10-13 at the end of the first.

Ravens again found success early in the second quarter, Mitchell and Jones joined by Seb Smith as they extended their lead.

It was the latter who had a standout performance throughout the game, Smith dominating with lockdown defence and powering a significant part of the Ravens offence with aggressive drives and solid shooting.

Cannons managed to gain momentum as the second quarter wore on, with inside drives picking up foul free throws and some solid offensive boards allowing for putback points. Half-time still had Ravens crowing though, leading 22-30 at the break.

The third quarter continued to favour Ravens whose 3-2 zone denied Cannons their preferred outside shots and disrupted the offensive flow.

Exploiting the breaks continued to serve Ravens well but was coupled during this quarter with swish three-point shooting to lead them to an 18-point lead, their largest of the game.

It could have marked the death knell for Cannons’ hopes but they continued to fight and found new form in the final minutes of the third.

Gabe Thatcher, Jack Wilkinson and Rowan Coulter all hit the mark outside the arc, while Oliver Hamilton hit a quick break in a bruising few minutes for Ravens. Cannons still trailed by eight points, 37-45, but had managed to win the quarter and the momentum going into the fourth.

Matt Jones opened the final quarter with a swish three-pointer for Ravens and was joined in short order by Seb Smith with another three.

Again, a standout performance on the defensive end of the court saw Smith powering Ravens ahead as he disrupted the Cannons offence and secured some key rebounds.

Hamilton and Coulter delivered outside the arc as the quarter wore on, but it only served to help Cannons’ match pace with Ravens rather than grind down the lead.

Further tit-for-tat scoring in the final minutes aided Ravens as the clock wore down and their lead held. Cannons played through to the buzzer but a final basket from Miltos Provatakis secured the quarter for Ravens and a 10-point win in the game, 51-61.

JETS V PIRATES

On court two, Jets were grounded by Pirates in the opening minutes of their match-up as a deep three-pointer by Romas Kvedys put wind in their sails. Jacob Glover and Tom Dalton-Brown kept Jets in contention, with solid drives picking up fouls and free-throws.

It was late in the first that Jets finally took off, Peter Boussougou and Wayne Mears leading the charge. It started a run that lasted the rest of the game, Jets flying past Pirates in each subsequent quarter.

Some solace came for Pirates in the three-point shooting of Lance Davidas and Mike Brew but it was Jets who were soaring high at the end though, winning 72-26.

WOLVES V HOOPS

The final game of the evening was an enjoyable affair between Wolves and Hoops.

Quick breaks and solid movement defined the Wolves game as Oscar Lace and Ben Campbell ran the floor, while Cameron Scott dominated on the inside.

Hoops found success outside the arc and with some nice mid-range pull-ups, Danielle Murphy and Gemma Kirkham featuring. It was Wolves pace that won the day though, coming out on top 77-33 at the whistle.

- This Thursday evening sees the final set of league games before February, with the Christmas break and January Cup filling the schedule in the coming weeks.

Hoops will take on Ravens in the first game of the evening at 7pm, then at 8.30pm Pirates will face Cavaliers while Jets take on SOS Cannons.

All games are in the NSC main hall, with courtside seating available for spectators wishing to attend.

MARTIN DUNNE