Newcastle Falcons aim up in front of club legends

With many of the club's legends, headed by Michael Johnson, in the stands for "Reunion Night" the Falcons produced a tireless defensive effort to hold out Central Coast 77-68 at Newcastle Basketball Stadium on Saturday.

NBL East 2018 championship-winning coach Darren Nichols addressed the group in the sheds before the game.

"Nicho spoke about some of the former players and their contribution to the club," said Morgan, who was captain in 2018. "He also said what they look for in the current guys. Rather than wins and losses, it is all about the character and ripping in. The guys responded. They played hard from the tip off.

"Defensively we have been up for a few weeks now. It is about rewarding themselves at the other end. The last couple of games we have made a few buckets which makes a massive difference. That comes back to making sure it is the right shot. Our ball movement was really slick at time. I hope that continues to get better and better."

In a see-sawing contest, the Falcons trailed 57-56 at three-quarter time.

Kobe Shannon drained a three-pointer to grab the lead, and from there, the home side tightened the screws, going on an 11-3 run in the final three minutes to close out the game.

Centre Myles Cherry dominated at the low post and finished with 20 points and 15 rebounds.

"Once Myles is in that mood, he is hard to stop," Morgan said.

Francis Wineera-Mulvihill dropped 18 points, including seven in the final quarter.

"Late shot clock and late clock, that is Francis' world," Morgan said. "He knows exactly when he is going to shoot it and where he wants to shoot it from. He is awesome in those situations."

For the Crusaders, Robert Heath had 28 points in the first half but added just five after the break.

"The defence in fourth quarter in particular was unreal," Morgan said. "They rely on Heath so much. Once he gets the ball, there is a fair chance it is going up. Everyone has to adjust."

The Falcons women bounced back from their first lost of the campaign to overpower Central Coast 90-78.

Isla Juffermans dominated in the paint with 34 points and nine rebounds. It was the Australian Gems power forward's third game back from a knee injury.

"The more games and fitness Isla gets, the better she will get," Falcons coach Kristy Bultitude said. "We are also learning to play with a true low post. Our attack was all perimeter or quick up the floor."

Nicole Munger scored 25 points, while Kingham (15) and Oni Nichols (11) also posted double figures. The Falcons led 43-41 at half-time and 66-60 at the three-quarter time.

"We really put some effort into our defence in the fourth quarter and got some early stops," Bultitude said. "Then we were able to make good decisions in transition."

The Falcons are away to Sutherland on Saturday before backing up at home against Norths.