Winning weekend for Roller Hawks

Tied at 33-all with their opponents at half-time in Friday night’s clash, the Roller Hawks dominated the third quarter to set up a 70-57 triumph.

Dual Paralympian Stibners was the standout with 28 points on 12/17 shooting, nine rebounds and six assists.

Nick Taylor added 16 points and Luke Pople finished with 10.

The Roller Hawks were expecting a tougher game in Sunday’s return meeting but it never eventuated.

After racing to a 22-7 quarter-time lead, Wollongong stretched the margin to 20 at the main break and cruised to an 80-38 win.

The visitors connected on 55 per cent of their shots and restricted the Spinning Bullets to 22 per cent.

Stibners did most of the damage with 22 points, five rebounds and three assists.

Pople was everywhere with 19 points, six assists and five rebounds, though he wouldn’t have been happy with his eight turnovers.

Taylor tallied 13 points, five rebounds and five assists, while Michael Auprince worked hard for his nine points and game-high 14 rebounds.

The Rollers Hawks also received a solid contribution from the bench, with Andrew Tarrant and Tim Markcrow combining for 14 points and 16 rebounds.

Wollongong’s record stands at 5-2 after three rounds.

‘‘They pushed us and made it hard for us in the first game but we did a good job of getting in top in the second half,’’ Stibners said.

‘‘We thought they’d be out for revenge on Sunday so it was crucial that we came out with a really strong start. We had a very good first quarter and just went on with it. Probably the best aspect of the weekend was having so many players contributing.’’

Wollongong take on Sydney Metro Blues in a triple-header this weekend.

The Roller Hawks host the Blues on Friday night at Shellharbour before they square off on Saturday afternoon at Minto.

On Sunday they return to Shellharbour for a 12pm tip-off against the Blues.