The Canterbury Rams have upset the Southland Sharks 89-77 on Friday night.

A big third quarter by the Rams, outscoring the Sharks 25-14, proved to be the difference as they held on for a big victory on the road.

Julian Washburn led the way for Canterbury with 21 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in 40 minutes of work, shooting 8-of-15 from the field and 2-of-4 from three.

Winston Shepard dropped 17 points, six assists and two steals on 7-of-12 shooting, while Xavier Thames had 14 points and seven rebounds (5-of-21 FG).

Tony Tolovae added 14 points, five rebounds and four steals for the Rams.

The Sharks had two players record double-doubles but it just wasn’t enough.

Conor Morgan posted 14 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and one steal on 6-of-13 shooting, and James Hunter managed 11 points and 10 rebounds in just 19 minutes.

Orlando Coleman reeled in 13 rebounds but had just seven points on 3-of-10 shooting, and Jarad Weeks scored 13 points in 28 minutes.

The Sharks struggled with their shot all night long and it was a big reason why they couldn’t keep up. They finished with a 39 per cent clip from the field and were 4-of-19 from deep.

Canterbury now jump to 6-4 and bounce back after last night’s loss to the Nelson Giants, while Southland, who had won their last five games by 20 or more points, drop to 7-3.