The Tall Blacks have begun the FIBA Olympic Qualifiers on a high note, with a convincing win over Croatia in their first game. In an entertaining game from start to finish, the Tall Blacks relied on some hot shooting from their star guards – combined with rousing defence – to earn this valuable win, which inches them one step closer to the Paris Olympics.
As a team, New Zealand shot 48% from the field, including 43% from deep (13-30), a drop off from their scorching first half where they nailed 10-15 threes. Despite Croatia winning both the rebounding and assist battles, two other statistics stood out for the Tall Blacks on the night – just four total turnovers, and a 31-13 advantage in bench points.
Five Tall Blacks scored in double figures against Croatia, led by veteran guard Corey Webster who racked up 21 points on 8/14 shooting; the always-dangerous guard responsible for some clutch baskets throughout the game to keep the Kiwis within reach.
But it was the play of Shea Ili that helped to put New Zealand back in the lead in the pivotal final quarter; the guard scoring six straight points late in the fourth – including a pair of tough layups in traffic – to win New Zealand to the win. Ili deservedly picked up the TCL Player of the Game Award for his efforts.
Two other players stood out for their stellar efforts off the bench; Izayah Le’afa (14 points on 3/7 shooting from downtown) and Tom Vodanovich (11 points, 2/5 shooting from outside), while Yanni Wetzell racked up 10 points and 5 rebounds. Finn Delany also added 7 points & a team-high 9 boards.
For Croatia, their production came – predictably – from their trio of stars. Centre Ivica Zubac scored 29 points on 12/15 shooting while hauling down 16 rebounds, and Dario Saric racked up 19 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Mario Hezonja scored 16 points along with 9 rebounds and 6 assists, but was held to just 6-22 shooting.
Arguably one of the biggest plays of the game came not from the athletes, but from Coach Pero and the high-IQ of his coaching staff. Following a layup by Ili with a minute left, the team elected to challenge a call on the ensuing play. With the call subsequently overturned, it allowed Ili to soon score again to put New Zealand ahead by two; a lead they would not relinquish.
Coach Pero gave praise to his team following the game, in particular for their defensive intensity in the pivotal fourth quarter.
“Proud of the team, but we’ll need to move on as we have another game tomorrow – it’ll come around quick,” says Cameron.
“I’m really happy for how our team played defence down the stretch, especially in that fourth quarter. There’s two sides of the ball, and our defence is something we’ve really worked on; because we feel we can always score like this – shooting is shooting – but we’ve added a couple of players who have been really good for us tonight.”
Tall Blacks captain, Reuben Te Rangi says that having Corey Webster back in the squad for this campaign has given the squad some firepower that they were missing at last year’s FIBA World Cup.
“Corey is one of the best players in New Zealand, he brings a scoring punch and something we’ve been missing. I think this team as a whole, we’re a lot deeper than our World Cup squad. While tonight was a team effort, Corey just brings an amazing punch for us.”
With the victory over Croatia under their belt, the Tall Black’s attention now turns to the next game; a clash with Slovenia at 2.30am NZT on Friday 5 July. If New Zealand can win this game, they can cement their place as top of the pool and proceed to the semi-final round.
FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, Greece: NZL vs SLO, 2.30am NZT, Friday 5 July. Watch it live on TVNZ+, or catch the reply on DUKE from 9am.
Tall Blacks Schedule – FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, Greece
4 July – Croatia vs New Zealand; won 90-86
5 July – New Zealand vs Slovenia; watch live on TVNZ+ from 2.30am, replay on Duke at 9am
