Category: National Basketball League

Perth defeats Melbourne 97-84 to win Grand Final

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : The Perth Wildcats are again the toast of the NBL winning their ninth championship on Sunday in front of 10,007 fans at Melbourne Arena. The Wildcats have won their record-extending ninth NBL championship but have clinched it on the road for the first time in 29 years beating Melbourne 97-84 in Game 4 making the statement on the road. The Grand Final Series began with strong home victories for both teams in the opening two games, but it was quite the statement Perth made on Friday night…

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Terrico White’s big night pushes Perth to 2-1 lead in Grand Finals

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : The home team dominance of this series especially after half-time continued on Friday night and it was quite the remarkably emphatic second half showing by the Wildcats in front of their rowdiest home crowd of 13,412 of the season. With both Perth and Melbourne winning their opening home games of the best-of-five series on the back of coming out and dominating the start of the second half, it was a similar story on Friday night. But this time the Wildcats really rammed home their advantage on the…

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Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : Game five of the Hungry Jack’s NBL Grand Final Series presented by MG between the Perth Wildcats and Melbourne United will be played on Sunday March 24 if required. The game will tip off at RAC Arena in Perth at midday local time or 3pm AEDT and will be broadcast live on 9Go! and Fox Sports from 2.30pm (AEDT). NBL Chief Executive Jeremy Loeliger said: “Scheduling game five on March 24 ensures adequate rest for both teams before the deciding game of the series. Sunday afternoon is…

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Five Takeaways from NBL Grand Finals games 1 and 2

Brandon King

Written for nbl.com.au by Liam Santamaria The Grand Final Series between Perth and Melbourne is all tied up at 1-1. What have we learned so far? Rebounding on the Road With two elite defensive units going head-to-head, rebounding was always going to be a key to this series but as it turns out, it’s even more important than we thought. Why? Because so far neither team has been able to hold down their defensive glass on the road. In Perth, United grabbed four more total rebounds than the Wildcats but…

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Melbourne ties Grand Finals at 1 with 92-74 victory over Perth

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au: Third quarters are proving pivotal this Grand Final Series with Melbourne United coming out of the half-time break a dominant force to bounce back and beat the Perth Wildcats 92-74 in Game 2 at Melbourne Arena on Sunday. After falling to Perth in Game 1, Melbourne dominated the rebound count and turned those extra possessions into baskets in the 18-point win in front of 10,062. The best-of-five series is now tied at 1-1. Remarkably it now means that 31 of the past 34 NBL Grand Final matches have…

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Warriors plan on signing Andrew Bogut

Brandon King

After Andrew Bogut broke his leg 58 seconds into his Cleveland Cavaliers, it seemed we might have seen the last of the veteran big man in the NBA. However, he returned to his native Australia and continued to ply his trade in the country’s National Basketball League, playing for the Sydney Kings. In his debut season Bogut averaged 11.4 points, 11.6 rebounds and and 2.7 blocks per game and took home the League’s Most Valuable Player, Defensive Player of the Year and also made the All NBL first team. After…

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Casper Ware and Chris Goulding lead Melbourne back to Grand Finals

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : Casper Ware and Chris Goulding turned it on in front of a massive Qudos Bank Arena crowd to send Melbourne United through to the NBL Grand Final winning Game 2 against the Sydney Kings 90-76. The Kings were always going to hit back hard after losing Game 1 of the semi-final series in Melbourne on Thursday by 22 points. With a 14,569 strong crowd behind them, they did start well too but once Ware caught fire once more and he was joined by Goulding with plenty of…

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South East Melbourne Phoenix adds Chima Moneke for NBL20

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au: The South East Melbourne Phoenix have added another player to their inaugural squad, signing forward Chima Moneke. The 198 cm (6’6”) Moneke is currently playing for Denain Voltaire in the French Second Division after starring at the University of California-Davis in the US collegiate system. Moneke (pronounced Mon-ECK’-ee) joins Mitch Creek and Ben Madgen on the roster of the NBL’s newest team. “I think we have recruited a player who will be one of the NBL’s most athletic,” said Phoenix head coach Simon Mitchell. “His aggression at the rim and ability…

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Liam Santamaria’s Round 18 NBL Studs and Duds

Brandon King

Written for nbl.com.au by Liam Santamaria The Snakes finished the season with some bite, the Wildcats claimed top spot and Lamarvellous fired Brisbane into the playoffs. Here, for the final time this season, is your weekly dose of studs and duds. STUDS Cairns Taipans After a rough ol’ season the Taipans finished NBL19 with a bang, upsetting Melbourne to essentially deny the defending champs a first-place finish. The Snakes narrowly lost to Sydney on Saturday but their efforts against United were enough to earn an end-of season shout-out in the…

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Rob Beveridge and Illawarra agree to part ways

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : The Illawarra Hawks have announced that Head Coach Rob Beveridge will not return to the club for the 2019-20 season. After four years as Head Coach of the Illawarra Hawks, the decision was a mutual one. Beveridge has concluded his contract with the Hawks after four seasons, reaching a number of milestones including coaching over 100 Illawarra Hawks games as well as over 300 games in the NBL. Hawks General Manager Mat Campbell said: “Rob Beveridge has been an integral part of the success of the Illawarra…

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