Ross stars as Saints fight back to down Falcons

The St Kilda Saints emerged with a hard-fought win over the Andy Bay Falcons on Saturday.

After trailing for much of the first half, a strong third quarter helped the Saints on their way to an 85-78 victory.

It was closer than that most of the way though, with a four-point margin at one point late in the fourth.

The win means the Saints jump to an 8-2 record, while the Falcons slump to 4-6, although maintain third place on the Dunedin club table.

Both sides were short of key players, although point guard James Ross was his usual dominant self for the Saints.

He scored 34 points, while at the other end Hamish Robertson was a constant threat off the dribble to have 23 for the Falcons.

It was big man Matt Bazsika who helped Falcons get away to a fast start though.

He had eight of the team's 21 first-quarter points, while they held the Saints to just 14.

The Saints began to fight back in the second, as Ross scored their first 12 points of the second quarter.

However, the Falcons were able to hold on to lead 37-34 at halftime.

At that point, the Saints heated up and poured in 28 third-quarter points, taking the lead and holding it for the rest of the game.

In the other game, the Mid City Magic routed the City Rise Bombers 102-72.

Both teams were short on players, although the Magic was able to adapt better.

Benoit Hayman led the way with 26 points, Brent Cheshire had 25, Richie Rodger 17 and Matt Dukes 15 as its range of threats proved too much for the Bombers to handle.

Varsity defaulted to the Mid City Magic Lions.

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