Saints & Stars Get Wins
Tagged in: NBL
In Friday night Round 13 NZCT National Basketball League action the Century City Saints have beaten the 0800 Easy LPG Hawks 85-84 at Te Rauparaha Arena in Porirua while in Taranaki the Youthtown Auckland Stars have beaten hosts the Devon Dynamos Taranaki 94-84 at the TSB Arena.
In Porirua, the Saints left it till late to get in front of the Hawks and record their eleventh win of the season. In a scrappy first half the Hawks took a slender 38-36 lead but extended that lead to as many as 13 midway through the third quarter with the Saints offence struggling to fire. A late rally by the Saints in the third saw them close to within four of the Hawks to be down 64-68 heading into the fourth.
The Saints came out firing at the start of the fourth and a quick five points had them in front by one but the lead would go on to change five more times and be tied up 80-80 with just over three minutes to play. After some nervy play by both side Mike Efevberha put the Saints ahead with a layup with 1:35 to play. Both teams then traded a free throw made each and Damon Thornton came up with a decisive play to steal the ball of Mark Morrison with .06 seconds to play and Reece Cassidy dunked the ball home to open up a four point lead. Mark Morrison hit a three on the buzzer to get the Hawks within one for 85-84 shoreline to the Saints.
Mike Efevberha again stood out for the Saints with a game high 29 points. Arthur Trousdell stood up for the Saints with a 17 point, 10 rebound double double. No other saints player hit double figures in what was really a scrappy offensive display.
For the Hawks, Chris Daniel top scored with 16 followed closely by David Cooper and Ben Hill with 14 each. The Hawks will be disappointed not to have killed the Saints off when they had a chance in the third quarter.
In a battle of the league’s cellar-dwellers, the Auckland Stars have defeated the Taranaki Dynamos 94-84 at TSB Stadium in New Plymouth on Friday evening. The Stars laid the foundation for their victory making all the hustle plays, out-rebounding the Dynamos 41-30, while also collecting 12 steals in forcing 16 Taranaki turnovers.
The Stars got off to a quick start with an 11-4 lead early in the first quarter, and led 21-16 after one quarter. On the back of a 27-point second quarter, the home team took a 43-42 lead into the halftime break. The first half was a shooting duel between Hayden Allen and Phillip Gilbert, as Allen had scored 20 points at the halftime break for the Stars (including 4 three-pointers), while Gilbert had 16 (including 3 three-pointers) for the home team.
The Stars had a dominant third quarter, winning the period 29-18, and holding a 71-61 advantage heading into the final stanza. Incredibly, the Stars out-rebounded the Dynamos 15-3 in the third quarter, including 9-0 on the offensive boards. The visitors had numerous second shot opportunities off tip-outs to team mates.
The Stars consistently held a 10-point advantage for the majority of the fourth quarter, and at 87-76 with just over two minutes to play, the game was well in hand for the visitors.
Allen led the Stars five double-digit scorers with 30 points, while impressive contributions were also made by Casey Frank (24 points, eight rebounds), Blagoj Janev (19 and 12), and Dillon Boucher (10 points, 10 rebounds and four assists).
Phillip Gilbert led the Dynamos with 30 points, six rebounds and four assists; while James Paringatai had 18 points and five rebounds; and Aaron Bailey-Nowell compiled 15 points and six rebounds.
The winless home side will be disappointed to outshoot the visitors 56% to 45% from the field, but it was all in vain as the Stars offensive rebounding and steals gave them 16 extra field-goal attempts.
Friday, June 5
At Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
Century City Saints 85 (Mike Efevberha 29, Arthur Trousdell 17, Reece Cassidy 9) v 0800 Easy LPG Bay Hawks 84 (Chris Daniel 16, David Cooper 14, Ben Hill 14), FT
Referees - Alan Godden, Joe Hemi, Yalla Edwards
1Q: 16-18
HT: 36-38 (20-20)
3Q: 64-68 (28-30)
FT: 85-84 (21-16)
Saints v Hawks Boxscore (html 22KB)
At TSB Stadium, New Plymouth
Devon Dynamos Taranaki 84 (Phillip Gilbert 30, James Paringatai 18, Aaron bailey-Nowell 15) v Youthtown Auckland Stars 94 (Hayden Allen 30, Casey Frank 24, Blagoj Janev 19), FT
Referees - Melony Wealleans, Colin Dowling, Tony Eldershaw
1Q: 16-21
HT: 43-42 (25-21)
3Q: 61-71 (18-29)
FT: 84-94 (23-23)
Dynamos v Stars Boxscore (24 KB html)
