The third week of the 2023-24 Isle of Man Basketball Association season saw plenty of ruffled feathers in a close match between Ravens and Turkeys at the NSC on Thursday.

Vannin Coulter took flight from the three-point line to give Ravens an early lead which they held well into the mid-point of the quarter.

Pressure defence saw Ravens contain Turkeys and it wasn’t until the seventh minute of a 10-minute quarter that Turkeys found some momentum thanks to David Boyle and Wig Bregazzi.

The final minutes saw a flurry of baskets with 19 points scored between the two sides, as Coulter was joined on the scoresheet by Miltos Provatakis for Ravens while Boyle and Bregazzi repeatedly brought Turkeys level.

Solid shooting from Logan Glover in the dying seconds gave Ravens a slender two-point lead at the end of the first, 17-15.

The second period kept the momentum going for both sides, Zak Mitchell initially extending Ravens’ lead only for Brett Venables to join Boyle and Bregazzi in bringing Turkeys to level pegging.

It was Venables who started a mini run for Turkeys with a solid post move that helped them turn the tables and build their first lead of the game, 23-27.

It would have been easy for Ravens’ heads to go down and the tides to turn in Turkeys’ favour but, the younger side kept calm and tightened up on defence to stop the veterans’ momentum.

The patience and persistence paid dividends for Ravens in the last 90 seconds of the half with a series of steals and intercepts which, coupled with clever team play on the break, saw the Ravens turn a four-point deficit into a four-point lead, 33-29.

Turkeys opened strong in the third, quickly drawing level again, but the real story of the quarter was defined by Ravens’ pace. Again keeping their cool despite a rough start, Ravens managed to find steals and defensive boards that turned into quick conversions with some great play by Glover, Provatakis and Mitchell.

It wasn’t long before the Ravens were powering ahead and momentum was well on their side for the rest of the quarter.

Bregazzi and Boyle kept the game interesting, a late three from the latter cutting the Ravens’ lead in half, but another run by Jake Kinrade and Provatakis had Ravens soaring high 47-40 at the end of the third.

The final quarter opened well for Ravens with an immediate three from Coulter which extended the lead to 10 points.

Turkeys weren’t ready to be plucked though and a commanding inside performance by Venables brought the game back within reach, 54-52 to Ravens with two minutes remaining.

The final minutes were a battle of wills as each team worked hard on defence and probed for opportunities on offence. A break by Matthew Jones extended Ravens’ lead to four, only for Venables to cut it back to two on the return.

As the final minute counted down, Turkeys threw everything they had against Ravens defence, but it held firm and with the buzzer Ravens flew into their first win of the season, 56-54.

The other games of the night saw a convincing win for Wolves who beat Hoops 68-38, with a first-half run by Wolves stunted by solid Hoops defence in the second half.

Jets ground out a tough win against Cavaliers 52-34 as both teams struggled to find consistent form, but outside shooting from Revi Del Rosario and Paul Kilic made the difference.

The results mean Wolves and Jets are the last teams remaining with unbeaten records this season, with Jets topping the current league table on points difference.

l This Thursday sees three more games in the next round of the basketball season before a one-week hiatus on November 9.

Tipping off at 7pm, Wolves will play Cavaliers then at 8.30pm Turkeys face Hoops and Jets take on Ravens. All games are in the NSC Main Hall and seating is provided for spectators.