Gallery ∣ Swamp Fever: Gators get funky in last home game before finals

On a fast break, Wright found himself with an open court to run into and just one defender to beat.

He disposed of his defender by going behind the back, doing his best Harlem Globetrotter impression, before flipping the ball up through the net.

The Southern Peninsula defender and crowd at the Swamp were united in their disbelief.

“That was a funny one, it took me back to my under-12 days, I remember doing that back then,” Wright said with a laugh.

“This is my last season, so that brought back a lot of memories, it was good to play well in that bit at the end.”

In 11 minutes of action, Wright was a scintillating blast from the past, combining a tip in, an alley-oop finish and a long-range three to tally nine points in what may be his last regular season game for the Gators after more than 15 years.

This was just one of the many stellar performances on display for a packed-out stadium in the Gators’ last game before the finals.

With first place on the Big V division one ladder secured, Shepparton welcomed the bottom-ranked Southern Peninsula Sharks on Saturday for the final round of the regular season clash.

With nothing to play for and finals on the brain, you could forgive the home side for taking it easy.

Instead, it decided to put on a show for the Shepparton faithful, piling on 102 points to the Sharks’ 66.

Southern Peninsula came out with a point to prove, taking it to the league leader from tip-off to secure an early lead.

Coach Josh Waight said the visitor took it to the home side early on and that a poor defensive effort was to blame for the early deficit.

The Gators’ chomp quickly proved too powerful though, getting out to a 53-36 lead.

“We were much better after a timeout,” Waight said.

“It was good to see the boys make the adjustment, but we can’t be having that come finals time.”

The Gators never looked back from there.

The rest of the squad followed in Wright’s footsteps, with behind-the-backs and no-look passes a plenty.

Derek Murphy got a fast-break opportunity of his own and chose athleticism over finesse, taking off for the two-handed dunk, his defender putting up a respectable, but ultimately, futile effort to block it.

Southern Peninsula had no answer for Murphy, who had had his way in the paint all night long.

The Detroit import put up an efficient game-high 22 points and an astonishing 17 rebounds.

Fellow import Joshua Kooiman did his best to match Murphy’s output.

The Kiwi put up 20 points of his own and grabbed a double-double with 11 assists.

Both players made the Big V division one starting five for the last round of the season.

Skipper Matt Bartlett matched Kooiman’s playmaking effort, with 11 as well.

Coach Waight pointed to this unselfish play as a key factor in the win.

“They were having fun, just being basketball players,” Waight said.

“Let them be them, show their true colours and just play.

“We had 40 assists and just seven turnovers, so with a ratio like that we can live with some of the flair plays.”

Waight said he was impressed with the pace the Gators played at, opting to go against their usual methodical and tactical approach to the game for a more free-flowing play style.

“We pride ourselves on the defensive end and sometimes that approach doesn’t lead to a lot of fast-break opportunities,” Waight said.

“We did a really good job tonight of getting the rebounds and really pushing the pace.

“In particular Sam Beks, he was great and the guards did a great job as well.”

Beks was feeling himself in the game, showcasing his prowess from the mid-range.

He started with a drive into the paint, before adding a spin move, and double-clutching the ball in mid-air to avoid the defenders before banking it through the net off the backboard.

He backed that up with a similar play, going behind the back before some nice footwork led to another pull-up jump shot, this time requiring no bounce off the glass.

Beks was storming down the court all night, grabbing rebounds before advancing up the court as far as he could.

This led to open kick-outs to teammates for three or an easy bucket on the interior.

This formula provided the vice-captain with another incredible rebounding night, with 14, along with five assists.

Waight said overall, it was a great team performance, with six of the nine players who played more than 10 minutes tallying double digits in points.

Waight and Wright thanked the home crowd for its support all season, but stressed how much the side still needed its energy heading into finals.

Shepparton finish the season with an impeccable 17-3 record, but none of the rainbow matters if it can’t reach the pot of gold at the end.

It has a week off, while RMIT and Gippsland duel for a spot in the grand final and Pakenham and Warrnambool face-off in a bid to keep their seasons alive.

The Gators will return to the Swamp on Saturday, August 5 at 7pm for their first finals game.

They will play the winner of Gippsland and RMIT for a chance to secure home court for the final and an opportunity to make history at the Swamp.