Hobart Chargers v Kilsyth Cobras
Friday, August 3 @ Aurora Stadium (Hobart)
Tip-off 8:00pm
Referees – Todd Spain & Drew Meads

With a home court advantage and a 4-3 career record over their opponents at Aurora Stadium, Hobart will go into the match as favourites. Charger Daniel George (17.1ppg, 9.6rpg,) has performed consistently in both games against Kilsyth this season, averaging 20.5pts and 11rebs. He will be keen for another great performance in his 50th SEABL Game. Cobras all-time games leader DJ Taylor (12.6ppg, 6.8rpg) will likely get the task of containing his offensive talents, but coach Grant Wallace will be hoping he doesn’t exert too much energy on the defence, as DJ will need to produce at the offensive end as well. Taylor scored 21pts last week against NW Tasmania and has shown on numerous occasions this year he can dominate a game if given the opportunity.

League MVP favourite Anthony Stewart (26.7ppg, 5.2rpg, 6.6apg) is having a sensational season and will be a major threat to the Cobras' chances. Stewart has an array of skills and at age 37, still has an impressive athletic style of game giving the Cobras many defensive headaches. 1998 NBL Rookie of the Year and defensive specialist David Smith (8.8ppg, 7.4rpg) is the only Cobras player capable of containing his talents. Smith’s tenacious, in-your-face defensive tactics may trouble Stewart, and Cobras coach Grant Wallace will be hoping he can contain Stewart to another single digit performance. Anthony had a shocker last week against Bendigo, shooting 12% from the field and will be keen for an improved performance this weekend at home.

Hobart has a fantastic 13-0 playoffs record at home, which includes a victory over Kilsyth in the 2000 South Men's grand final. The Chargers have defeated Kilsyth in both playoff contests between the two teams, but the die-hard Cobras fans travelling down south for the contest will be hoping this streak is put to an end. Head to head is tied at 1-1 this season, with the home side scoring the victory in each game. But despite a 2-11 road record in the regular season, Kilsyth proved last week the playoffs are an entirely different game and they are determined to achieve their pre-season goal of a grand final appearance.

2007 Head to Head – Chargers 93-82 at Hobart (Round 16)
Cobras 93-75 at Kilsyth (Round 20)

Bendigo will host the SEABL South Men Grand Final at the Bendigo Schweppes Centre on Saturday 11th August @ 8pm against the winner of this game.

SEABL EAST MEN'S SEMI-FINAL PREVIEW

Canberra Gunners v Frankston Blues
Saturday, August 4 @ Belconnen Stadium
Tip-off 7:30pm
Referees – Sharon Arnold & Martin Parker

Canberra will go into the contest as favourites, having defeated Frankston 101- 94 at home in Round 9 and achieving a sensational 12-1 record at Belconnen Stadium this season. In fact the Gunners have successfully recorded a 43-13 record at Belconnen Stadium in the past four years since winning the 2003 SEABL East Men's title.

The Gunners’ MVP favourite Anthony Petrie (26.2ppg, 12.3rpg, 2.5apg) has averaged 30pts,11rebs and 2ass in the two games this season and his efforts will need to be contained this week by Frankston. Blues under-rated star Grant Dennis will likely get the task of containing his talents, but Blues coach Bill Runchey also has the luxury of former NBL finals MVP Marcus Timmons (16.9ppg, 8.7rpg) to help Dennis resist the Petrie domination. Timmons was outstanding last week against Southern Districts with 27pts, 12rebs and 8ass, and seems to play his best basketball during the playoffs. He will go into this crucial game as the Blues' x-factor.

The match-up in the backcourt between Blue Bart Strzebonski (17.7ppg, 4.4rpg, 2.9apg) and Gunner Zlatko Todorovski (15.2ppg, 3.8rpg, 2.9apg) will be a highlight, as both are valuable members to their team. Both will be hell bent on having a strong performance which will benefit their team. Both play different styles of game as Bart is a key offensive threat, and his team rely heavily on his production. A lot will be expected of Zlatko to contain the productivity of Strzebonski if the Gunners are to secure the victory. Bart destroyed the Spartans in the opening quarter last week, scoring 13 of the Blues' opening 17pts in the first four minutes of the game. His speed up the court troubled Southern Districts, and will need to be contained by the Gunners.

The Gunners' x-factor in this game could be Australian Emus forward Daniel Jackson (4.2ppg, 2.5rpg). Jackson had a superb tournament in Serbia at the World Championships, and will be keen to display his experience in this crucial contest. Jackson only played one game against Frankston this year, and should provide the Gunners with another valuable offensive threat.

This is the second time the Gunners and Frankston have met in the finals, with the Gunners recording a victory way back in 1996. Canberra has a 5-2 all time playoff record at Belconnen and will be determined to record another win this week and have another crack at Geelong after losing last year's grand final in disappointing style.

2007 Head to Head – Gunners 101-94 at Canberra (Round 9)
Blues 87-80 at Frankston (Round 15)

Geelong Supercats will host the SEABL East Men Grand Final at the Geelong Arena on Saturday 11th August @ 7:30pm against the winner of this game.

SEABL WOMEN'S SEMI-FINAL PREVIEW

Ballarat Lady Miners v Knox Raiders
Saturday, August 4 @ WIN Minerdome
Tip-off 7:30pm
Referees – Robyn Boyd & Andrew Manhire

For the third successive year two of the best teams in Australian women’s basketball, Knox and Ballarat, will renew their intense rivalry in the SEABL playoffs, and for the second straight year it is at the elimination stage. A win would take the Lady Miners to their fourth consecutive SEABL grand final and a chance to seek revenge against the Bendigo Lady Braves, who defeated
them last weekend. Knox is also hell bent on returning to the grand final after losing to Ballarat in 2005 after dominating the competition all year.

Ballarat have a talented frontcourt rotation consisting of clear MVP favourite Karen Ashby(21.1ppg, 10.0rpg, 4.0apg), Chantal Allgood (10.1ppg, 7.4rpg, 2.8apg) and Andrea Collins, who recently announced her retirement at the season's completion. However Ashby has struggled offensively against Knox in previous years, and averaged 15pts, 8rebs and 3.5ass this season, which should be a concern for the Lady Miners coaching staff. Ballarat average 81pts per game this season but have only managed a high of 69 against the Raiders this year.

Knox also has an experienced and highly talented frontcourt with Australian Opals Hollie Grima(24.3ppg, 12.3rpg), Emma Randall (21.7ppg, 8.7rpg, 2.2apg) and SEABL veteran Chelsea Laing able to match up well against the Lady Miners. Randall and Grima only played one game against Ballarat this year, and played a major factor in the Raiders 72-69 victory in Round 14. The x-factor, however, will be Chelsea Laing, who only played minimal games due to a knee injury. The Raiders dominated Kilsyth easily last week and therefore Laing was not required, but her presence in the paint this week could trouble the undersized Lady Miners.

Ballarat guard Kellie Abrams (14.6ppg, 5.4rpg, 4.9apg), has had a sensational year and is a vital component to the Lady Miners’ chances of securing a grand final berth. Abrams averages 17.5pts, 5rebs, 1.5ass and 2.5stls versus Knox this season, and is highly capable of driving her team to victory. Raiders’ coach Mark Holland is fairly confident he can guide his team to victory this week, but will require a solid defensive effort from Tan & McMahon to contain the impressive talents of Abrams.

Having held first place for the majority of the season, coach of the year candidate Kym Cassells will be hell bent on securing the win this week and travelling to Bendigo next week with revenge on their minds. Knox have a disappointing 1-2 SEABL playoff record against Ballarat, but have a 6-2 all-time record at WIN Minerdome and will go into the contest fully confident of gaining the much-needed victory.

2007 Head to Head – Lady Miners 57-56 at Ballarat (Round 3)
Raiders 72-69 at Knox (Round 14)

Bendigo Lady Braves will host the SEABL Women Grand Final at the Bendigo Schweppes Centre on Saturday 11th August @ 6:00pm against the winner of this game.