Category: National Basketball League

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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Andrew Gaze to step down as Sydney Kings Head Coach after NBL Finals

Brandon King

Kings head coach Andrew Gaze will step down following the NBL19 Finals. The club was planning to announce Gaze’s status at the series’ conclusion , but apparently late Sunday night, the coach changed his mind and decided to let the cat out of the bag , informing the team of his decision. The club and Gaze was insistant that the parting of the ways was mutual, and that Gaze wanted to spend more time with his family. However in a seeming contradiction, Gaze said the Kings wanted to conduct an…

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Andrew Bogut wins Andrew Gaze NBL MVP Trophy

Brandon King

Former NBA veteran, world champion Andrew Bogut capped off his successful inaugural season in the NBL by being awarded the Andrew Gaze Trophy, which is given to the Most Valuable Player. The former no. 1 overall pick in the 2005 NBA draft garnered 83 votes to beat out Melbourne United’s Caspar Ware, who finished with 77 votes and Bryce Cotton of the Perth Wildcats, with 65 votes. Bogut was not done racking up hardware and acclaim, as was also named the NBL’s Best Defensive Player as well as earning a…

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Sydney defeats Cairns 89-84

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : The Sydney Kings took care of business beating the Cairns Taipans 89-84 on Saturday at Qudos Bank Arena to give themselves a chance of ending the regular season in second position. Sydney had to beat the dangerous Taipans on their home floor on Saturday in their last game of the regular season to be any chance of finishing second to earn the home court advantage in the semi finals. That job was made more of a challenge when superstar point guard Jerome Randle didn’t suit still sore…

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Melbourne suffers costly defeat from Cairns

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : All season the Cairns Taipans threatened to take a big scalp and in the final round they did the job taking down Melbourne United at Melbourne Arena on Thursday night. The Taipans came in with only five wins but they held their nerve and rode their talents to a spirited 87-85 win and potentially reshaped the upcoming finals series. Melbourne staged a dramatic late comeback from 82-74 down with five minutes to play gaining the ball with 18 seconds left and a chance to take the lead.…

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Liam Santamaria’s Week 17 Studs and Duds

Brandon King

Written for nbl.com.au by Liam Santamaria Bryce Cotton is a gift from the Basketball Gods and Damian Martin is the hero we all deserve. STUDS Bryce Cotton (Perth Wildcats) What Bryce Cotton did across the final 16 minutes yesterday was one hundred percent pure basketball brilliance. As Perth’s clash with Sydney approached three-quarter time, and with the Wildcats trailing by 8, Cotton was 0-for-10 and had not scored a single point for the afternoon. That’s before a backcourt steal by Clint Steindl gifted him a rare open look, sparking a…

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Rob Beveridge addresses speculation on future with Hawks

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : Illawarra coach Rob Beveridge has addressed speculation surrounding his future, declaring he doesn’t know if tomorrow’s clash with New Zealand will be his final game in charge of the Hawks. Beveridge is out of contract at the end of the season, with his current four-year stint in Illawarra yielding a Grand Final appearance in 2017 and a Semi-Final berth in 2016. With the rumour mill heating up, Beveridge has provided an update on his future plans in a column published in the Illawarra Mercury. “It’s no secret that…

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Damian Martin helps save man from burning home

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : Written for NBL.com.au by Chris Pike Just hours after sending his Perth Wildcats top of the NBL and minutes after shaking off a death threat, Damian Martin added to his remarkable reputation by saving a man along with his dog from a burning down house. Martin is in the midst of some outstanding form on the floor over the past month and his renewed offensive aggressiveness combined with getting back to full health to be firing defensively is a big reason why Perth sits on top of…

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Adelaide 36ers re-signs Jacob Wiley

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au : The Adelaide 36ers have locked in star forward Jacob Wiley, re-signing the import for the 2019-20 NBL season. Wiley joined the 36ers during the off-season after spending last season as a two-way player with the Brooklyn Nets, making his NBA debut after being called up from the Long Island Nets, much like former Adelaide star Mitch Creek did recently. Since arriving in the NBL, Wiley has impressed both statistically and when it comes to highlights featuring regularly in the Top 10 Plays each week. The 24-year-old Wiley said is thrilled to…

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Cotton comes on late to lead Perth past Sydney

Brandon King

From nbl.com.au: The Perth Wildcats might hope for more scoreless first halves from MVP Bryce Cotton after he delivered 24 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter and overtime in Sunday’s come-from-behind 95-86 win over Sydney Kings. The biggest crowd of the season, 13,520, turned out at RAC Arena to watch the Wildcats and Kings battle over finishing Round 17 in top spot, but to also move a stop closer to an all-important top two finish. Coming off Friday’s home win over Melbourne, Sydney started full of confidence having…

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