Shepparton Gators developed a ruthless mentality on Saturday night much to the pleasure of coach Josh Waight.
The Gators romped home to score a 107-67 thrashing of Collingwood at Shepparton Sports Stadium in round six Big V division one men action.
Star imports Josh Kooiman and Derek Murphy dazzled in front of the home fans with sublime shooting performances and notched 22 and 24 points respectively.
The former’s hot start to the contest caught the eye as he landed some big buckets to help extend the margin in the second term, while Murphy exploited the defence and found easy points at the free throw line.
Faced with a 29-point buffer at the main break, the Gators “put the foot down” as they continued to extend their lead out past 40 points.
Waight said he was rapt with how his charges were able to show “ruthless mentality” against Collingwood All-Stars.
“It was a really solid win. The boys did a good job setting the tone early and continued to push throughout and didn’t hold back,” he said.
“It was super pleasing because in the past we’ve taken the foot off and let teams back in once we have built a bit of a lead.
“We saw a little bit of that ruthless mentality that was the most pleasing aspect of the win. That’s how we want to play.
“It was really pleasing to be ruthless and extend the lead like we did.”
Kooiman hit three of his beyond the arc attempts in the second term as the Gators got on a killer roll.
The New Zealand import finished with five made threes from eight attempts at 62.5 per cent.
The talented guard contributed with six dimes and six rebounds in one of his most important games of the year.
Murphy chalked up a classy double-double as he registered 10 rebounds.
Gators stalwart Nick Dodd was influential with 11 points and 10 boards as he pencilled in a double-double.
“I thought Josh was excellent. He had 22 points in the first half and he hit some really big shots for us early which helped build our lead,” Waight said.
“It was pleasing to see him shoot well and then Derek did a really good job of finding the foul line and he has put work into his free throws lately, so it was great to see.
“We know what we’re gonna get out of Doddy; he’s rock solid, he shoots the open shot, he plays his role and he did a good job of running the floor.”
There was some cause for concern for the Gators with gun talent Sam Beks not suiting up in the round six affair.
Waight said it was a precautionary measure to sit Beks out of the contest due to calf tightness.
“We didn’t want to risk it, so we thought we would rest him now and he’ll be back for next week against RMIT,” he said.
The Gators now improve their season record to 6-1 and sit second on the ladder.