Home courts to boost Orange Eagles' hopes in Molten-Waratah western finals

ORANGE District Basketball Association (ODBA) teams will turn out in seven out of eight divisions in the Basketball NSW Molten-Waratah Western Junior League (WJL) finals this weekend, despite never having the benefit of a home game after away trips in all three preliminary rounds.

But thanks to those strong showings on the road, in Saturday’s semi-finals and - hopefully - Sunday’s deciders the Orange Eagles will finally enjoy that benefit.

ODBA will host the finals at Orange PCYC and the Eagles’ under-12, under-14 and under-18 girls’ and boys’ sides will all take the court after qualifying for the post-season, as will Orange’s under-16 boys’ side.

Only the Eagles’ under-16 girls missed out, but ODBA president Gerald Power said their effort couldn’t be faulted.

“It’s exciting to have so many Orange teams in the finals but also to see so many other towns, players and their families coming along,” Power said.

“It’s as much about promoting the game of basketball in general as it is seeing Orange win.

“We were quite successful last year, we made plenty of finals and even took out a couple. We’ll hope for the best for everyone involved, but hopefully Orange can do the same again this year.”

Australian Country Cup and NSW Country representative Annie Miller starred during the preliminary stages, averaging a tick over 17 points a game as her Eagles under-18 girls’ side finished third. They take on the winless Griffith Demons in Saturday’s minor semi-final.

With a 5-4 record the Eagles under-18 boys’ side finished fourth and will also play the Demons in the minor semi-final.

Orange’s under-16 boys’ and under-14 girls’ units will also take on the Demons in their respective minor semi-finals, while the under-14 boys’ side is the only Eagles side that will line-up in a major play-off.

Led by the likes of Jesse Simons and Andrew Gogala, the Eagles finished second with an 8-2 win-loss record. They play the Lithgow Lazers for direct passage to Sunday’s decider.

Orange’s under-12 boys’ and girls’ teams finished third and fourth respectively and both will take on the Bathurst Goldminers in their respective minor finals - it’s also the first time Orange has fielded an under-12 girls’ team in the WJL

Saturday’s semi-finals kick-off at 9am before the preliminary finals that afternoon and the grand finals on Sunday.