Basketball New Zealand

A brutal foul-count and a determined four-time defending champion dynasty at home denied former Tall Blacks coach Tab Baldwin a championship in Romania last week.

Baldwin’s U Mobitelco Cluj-Napoca fell 82-66 to CSU Asesoft Ploiesti in game seven of the Romanian finals series on Friday.

Cluj-Napoca ended on the bad side of a 31-19 foul-count and went to the free-throw line just 10 times, compared with 45 for Ploiesti, who won their fifth straight Romanian title on their home floor.

Baldwin’s third-ranked Red Caps led 20-12 after the first period but were out-scored 50-28 in the middle two periods and shot just 29 percent on three-point attempts for the game.

In Australia Basketball Association (ABA) leagues last week, former Tall Fern Julie Ofsoski racked up 24 points (11/18 FG, 2/8 FT), five rebounds, a steal and block in 34 minutes of her Frankston Lady Blues 84-73 loss to the Ballarat Lady Miners in round 14 of the South East Australia Basketball League (SEABL).

Zane Meehl had 17 points (7/14 FG, 1/2 3pt, 2/2 FT), six rebounds, three assists and two steals in 35 minutes in the Leonard King-coached Mackay Meteors 115-94 loss to the Toowoomba Mountaineers in round eight of the Queensland Australia Basketball League (QABL).

Also in Queensland, Shannon Proffit compiled 12 points (5/8 FG, 0/1 3pt, 2/4 FT), 13 rebounds, six assists and two steals in 36 minutes as her Maroochydore Lady Clippers defeated the Brisbane Capitals 77-57, improving the Clips to 6-2.