Basketball New Zealand

Wellington have nailed down the capital division’s second finals spot and Western Bay Suns have handed defending national champions Waikato Titans their first loss of the season inthe latest round of Conference Basketball League play.

With Porirua already assured of victory, Wellington entered the final weekend of capital tournament play in a dogfight with Palmerston North and Hutt Valley for the other berth and their 2-1 record was enough to prevail. They wrapped up the position with a 106-78 win over Palmerston on Saturday, led by Matt Doggettís 20 points and six other players scoring in double figures.

Hutt actually went unbeaten through the weekend, defeating Porirua 87-78 and Wellington 99-66, Forward Darryl Jones averaging 24.0 points, but his team fell just short of their fifth straight national finals appearance.

Meanwhile, the Suns overwhelmed the Titans 25-15 in the fourth quarter on the way to their 85-74 home win over the central division leaders. Canadian import Mike King had a ìdouble doubleî of 26 points/10 rebounds, including three three-pointers, while NBL Rookie of the Year Charlie Piho had 25 points for the winners, who can now win the conference if they win both their remaining games and Waikato lose both theirs.

In the north, Mexicali Fresh Harbour Heat Reserves gained an import 83-76 top-of-the-table win over Auckland, while Burger King Northside remained in contention with a 94-65 result over Te Wananga.

With two weeks remaining in the regular season, only three finals spots are set – Porirua and Wellington as one-two out of the capital and Turanga Health Rising Suns are assured of third in central.

The Line-Up

How the CBL finals are shaping up …

Section A

1st Northern – Mexicali Fresh Harbour Heat Reserves
1st Capital – Porirua
2nd Central – Western Bays Suns
3rd Northern – Auckland

Section B

1st Central – Waikato Titans
2nd Northern – Burger King Northside
2nd Capital – Wellington
3rd Central – Turanga Health Rising Suns