Crocs punish 36ers in Blitz Adelaide 36ers coach Joey Wright talks to his players tonight. ADELAIDE came back to earth with a sickening thud tonight at North Sydney Indoor Sports Centre as Townsville doled out a hefty 105-86 beating in the NBL's pre-season Blitz. The 36ers, who started so well by conquering Perth 102-91 on Wednesday, ran out of offensive options against the Crocodiles' zone with only Daniel Johnson (24 points, 13 rebounds) a consistent avenue. In contrast, the Crocs - who had looked a little ordinary in their 70-81 loss to Sydney on Tuesday - had import Josh Pace with 26 points at 67 per cent and Brian Conklin working his way back into the contest to finish with 16 points. Down Adam Gibson (hamstring) and Luke Schenscher (back), the 36ers still were back in stride early to take the first quarter Blitz championship point, winning the first period 26-23. Jarrid Frye got the 36ers started by going strongly to the hoop but Russell Hinder quickly erased that with a triple and the Crocs had the better of the early play. Hinder only lasted the opening three minutes before feeling a twinge and needing to sit but in his absence, Greg Vanderjagt stepped up with a game-high 14 rebounds. Pace was especially effective as Townsville rattled up a 12-6 buffer before Anthony Petrie brought the Sixers back with an aggressive attack on the offensive boards. The Crocs restored their six-point buffer when Jacob Holmes connected on his bullet-jumper, Pace went hard to the basket and Vanderjagt turned an offensive board into a three-point play. But from 13-19 down, it was all 36ers for the next three minutes as they produced an up-tempo assault and a 10-0 run. Mirko Djeric drove hard to the basket and handed Vanderjagt the ball on a platter, the big-man doing the rest, Adelaide ahead 26-23 at the first break. BJ Anthony, the star of Adelaide's win over Perth, pushed the 36ers' lead to five before Pace again went to work and Vanderjagt tied it at 29-29. The issue for Townsville was its penchant for fouling at inopportune times, Conklin picking up a silly third foul slapping at a ball Anthony had pinched from him, then his fourth barrelling into Gary Ervin. With Johnson consistent and the Crocodiles struggling to deal with the tighter officiating regime, Adelaide pulled to 51-47 by the main break, while banking their second championship point. But that was where its joy ended as Townsville seized the game after halftime, Todd Blanchfield and Holmes joining Pace in attacking Adelaide's zone while Vanderjagt continued to be a significant presence. After Townsville picked up a point for its 25-18 third period, timely threes by Mirko Djeric helped it open a double-digit lead which the Sixers never again seriously challenged. Scott Kenny also stuck some big shots as the Crocs won the final quarter to take three championship points for the win and the additional two for claiming both second half quarters. At the WNBL's Pre-season "Spring Shield" tournament in Dandenong, Adelaide Lightning put on a shooting clinic to smash the Victorian All Stars 95-43 last night, Angela Marino (16 points), Jo Hill (15), Nadeen Payne (13), Jess Foley (12), Lauren Mansfield (12) and Amy Lewis (11) leading the onslaught. Two late buckets from US import Amber Hegge sealed a thrilling 64-63 win for Melbourne Boomers over Townsville Fire.