The Tall Blacks got things off to a promising start in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers in Manila last night, with New Zealand dominating from start to finish against India to rack up an impressive 101– 46 score line.
The Kiwis set the tone in the first quarter, racing out to an early 16-2 lead thanks to the play of their bigs Rob Loe and Tom Vodanovich. The Tall Blacks were also able to generate multiple second chance points in the quarter – thanks in part to their 6 offensive rebounds and 5 steals – and ended the first up 32-8 on a buzzer-beating three by Dion Prewster.
While India was able to keep things respectable in the second and third quarters, scoring 29 points in those periods against New Zealand’s 38, the wheels well and truly fell off for India in the fourth as Ethan Rusbatch – aided by the solid play of several Tall Blacks rookies – caught fire in the fourth.
In the end, New Zealand would run away with the 55-point win; New Zealand’s largest ever margin of victory against their Asia Group A foes.
New Zealand relied heavily on their outside shooting (12-35) in this game with seven players registering a triple; the Kiwis shooting an impressive 53% overall, compared to 37% (including 10% on threes at a 2/19 clip) for India. The Kiwis also dominated on the boards with 45 rebounds (14 offensive) to India’s 29, with the latter also turning the ball over 25 times to the Tall Black’s 13.
In the post-game conference, Assistant Coach Daryl Cartwright talked about the team’s performance.
“First of all, it’s just nice to get back on the court again, as this is our first international in two years,” says Cartwright.
“We are happy despite the limited practice time we had – we only had two practices [before this game]. Our players were hungry and were keen to represent the country, so we are happy with the win overall.”
The Tall Blacks will return to the Araneta Coliseum on Sunday 27th February to face their next opponents – 33rd ranked Philippines – in a match that is expected to be a much tougher test for New Zealand. They will then play India again on 28th February, before returning home from the bubble.
Stats:
New Zealand 101 – Vodanovich 21, Rusbatch 18, Loe 15, Britt 11, Fahrensohn 9, Prewster 6, Gold 6, Cook-Green 6, Samuel 5, Bezzant 4, Harris 0, Wynyard 0.
India 46 – Sekhon 10, Bhriguvanshi 8, Singh P. 7, Singh A. 5, Krishnan 4, Prince 4, Hafeez 2, Rawat 2, Brar 2, Annadurai 2, Kumar 0, Manjunatha 0.
Quarterscores: 32-8, 52-25, 70-35, 101-46.
Let’s have a look at how the 12 Tall Blacks – including the four rookies – fared in this game:
Starting Five a.k.a. the Veterans
Robert Loe was a monster in this game, ending the first quarter with 7 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists while routinely taking on the Indian big men in the paint. By game’s end he’d have 15 points, a team-leading 10 rebounds (5 on the offensive glass) and six assists in under 22 minutes – while also showcasing his ability to stretch the defence with his outside shot (2/5 from downtown).
Tom Vodanovich spearheaded the Tall Black’s impressive first quarter onslaught, collecting 16 of his team’s 32 points along with a pair of offensive rebounds. He ended the night with a team-leading 21 points, four rebounds and three assists, while also shooting 50% from beyond the arc (3/6) and 62% overall.
Ethan Rusbatch shook off a slow start to register a solid 18 points on 7/16 shooting, including a trio of threes, two rebounds and five assists in a team-high 29 minutes. Rusbatch was particularly impressive in the 4th quarter, scoring 8 straight points in a torrid 56-second stretch.
Taylor Britt was one of the more efficient players on the night, collecting 11 points on 5/7 shooting (71% shooting) along with 2 rebounds, 3 assists and a team-high four steals.
Dion Prewster was a steadying presence throughout this one, playing almost 28 minutes and tallying 8 rebounds, 5 assists along with six points – the captain also shooting 50% from the field.
The Bench Mob
Hyrum Harris played the role of high-energy, defensive menace to perfection against India – registering 3 steals (2in the first quarter alone) along with 5 rebounds and 2 assists, routinely frustrating India’s players.
Ben Gold showed off his offensive talent in his 12 minutes on the court; his 6 points coming courtesy of a three and a tough and-1 layup, to go along with 2 rebounds. The youngest player in the squad at 18 years, this was only the 2nd appearance for Gold in the black singlet.
Tai Wynyard was quiet offensively in this one, but was able to use his size and strength to good effect against the taller Indian team; almost all his minutes coming in the fourth when the Tall Blacks dominated their opponents.
The Rookies
Taki Fahrensohn showed what we could do in his first Tall Blacks appearance, the 6’7” shooting guard racking up 9 points in the game – including as tough three and a driving dunk in the final seconds of the game.
Joe Cook-Green played well in limited minutes; the 6’0” guard showing some poise on the court in scoring 6 points on a perfect 3/3 shooting night, along with 2 rebounds and 3 assists.
Taane Samuel was an effective presence against the Indian big men, collecting five points and 3 rebounds in almost 12 minutes – including a tough layup plus the foul in the 2nd quarter.
Jayden Bezzant picked up four points in this one, including the team’s first fourth quarter points when we grabbed a defensive rebound and took it all the away to the other end for a layup.
