Wildcats ready to pounce on grand final berth

Corbin Middlemas, Gold Coast

Updated April 04, 2012 17:12:45

The Perth Wildcats will try to ignore the lagging effects of a horror road trip tonight as they attempt to become the first team through to the NBL's grand final series.

Having taken game one from the Blaze on Sunday, victory tonight on the Gold Coast would ensure direct entry to the NBL's showcase series, while the hosts face sudden death elimination.

Flight problems at Perth Airport delayed the Wildcats over three hours, as their scheduled flight to the Gold Coast (via Sydney) was cancelled at short notice.

The team later boarded a connecting flight to Melbourne, before eventually arriving on the glitter strip after midnight on the morning of the game.

But Perth coach Rob Beveridge was not concerned about any potential impact it may have on his chargers.

"When we found out the flight was cancelled, it's just shrug the shoulders, alright boys, we got in late last night but that's the way it is," he said.

Perth trained strongly this morning at the team's shoot around as they ran through final set play scenarios.

"The guys seem very focussed and very switched on," Beveridge said.

"I think tonight we've got to play edgy and I think we're at our best when we're that way because we know the Gold Coast are going to throw everything at us. It's make or break for them tonight."

The Wildcats took a squad of 11 to the Gold Coast, all of whom made it through the session.

Jeremiah Trueman stood out of Perth's five-on-five drills and is expected to be the unlucky 11th man on the roster.

Mark Worthington was fouled out in game one and was held to just eight points.

The Australian representative will be pivotal for the Blaze if they are to keep the series alive, with Beveridge expecting Worthington to bounce back.

"I suspect that he'll get 15-20 shots tonight. I think he's their best player with [Adam] Gibson and [Adris] DeLeon," Beveridge said.

"He didn't get too many open looks the other night and he was a bit shitty about that.

"It's not often Mark Worthington plays two average games in a row. This is do or die for them, so we have to make sure we're switched on with him."

Gibson has been hampered by an ongoing calf injury over the past month which restricted him to just 18 minutes in game one.

The Boomers guard has also been troubled with his long range shooting of late, hitting just 7 of his past 37 three-point attempts.

All indications on the Gold Coast is he will be more prevalent on court in game two.

The Blaze have an impressive 10-2 record this season at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, including two wins against the 'Cats, while Perth boast the best travelling record in the NBL, 9-5.

Listen to tonight's semi-final on Grandstand Digital from 7:30pm EST, or via streaming online.

Tags: nbl, basketball, sport, southport-4215, perth-6000, wa, qld, australia

First posted April 04, 2012 17:05:45

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Wildcats dowse Blaze to reach final

Updated April 08, 2012 08:22:41

Perth Wildcats will meet the New Zealand Breakers in the NBL grand final series after downing the Gold Coast Blaze 88-67.

The victory gave the Wildcats a 2-1 series victory.

Shawn Redhage (19), Kevin Lisch (16) and Jesse Wagstaff (14) led the way for the five-time NBL champions.

Adris DeLeon (20) was the game's leading scorer but did not receive a great deal of scoring support from his team-mates.

After a competitive first quarter, which ended 29-23 the home side extended the lead to double figures at the break and continued to pull away in the second half.

The Wildcats will now play the Breakers in a best of three final series beginning in Auckland on Thursday.

Tags: sport, basketball, nbl, perth-6000

First posted April 08, 2012 08:18:59

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Wildcats force grand final decider

Updated April 20, 2012 23:37:56

Shawn Redhage pulled off a last-second rejection to hand the Perth Wildcats a nail-biting 87-86 victory over the New Zealand Breakers in game two of the NBL grand final series at Challenge Stadium on Friday night.

In a bizarre finish to the match, the Wildcats hit the lead with a minute remaining after Breakers forward Gary Wilkinson accidentally tipped the ball into his own basket.

Then, with the clock counting down, Breakers guard CJ Bruton charged in for what he hoped would be the game-winning lay-up, only for Redhage to come over the top with a massive block to secure the win.

Redhage had endured a dirty night up until that point, but the forward erupted in pure joy after pulling off the game-deciding move in front of a sell-out crowd.

Perth's win levelled the series at 1-1, with the decider to be played in Auckland next Tuesday.

Wilkinson top-scored for the Breakers with 28 points, while CJ Bruton (20 points) and CJ Pledger (14) were also important for the visitors.

The Wildcats hit just one of 18 three-point attempts, but still managed to come away with the win courtesy of an even scoring load.

Star guard Kevin Lisch and Jesse Wagstaff each scored 15, while Matthew Knight (13), Greg Hire (12) and Redhage (12) also chipped in.

Wilkinson was unstoppable in the first half, with the centre nailing 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting to silence the Perth crowd early.

Bruton was deadly from long range as the Breakers opened up a 46-33 lead midway through the second quarter.

Tempers threatened to boil over late in the half as the teams engaged in a push-and-shove, and the extra heat seemed to help the Cats as they closed the deficit to six by the main break.

However, the half ended on a controversial note when Wilkinson was awarded a basket on the buzzer despite Wildcats players believing time had already elapsed.

The Wildcats failed to hit a three-pointer in the opening half, and it took them until the dying minutes of the third term to finally register one.

Several bombs from Bruton in the final term looked to be enough to give New Zealand the win, but the Wildcats kept plugging away and eventually wore down the Breakers.

Star Breakers swingman Tom Abercrombie managed just six points in his first game back from an ankle injury.

AAP

Tags: nbl, basketball, sport, perth-6000, wa, australia, new-zealand

First posted April 20, 2012 23:12:35

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NBL grand final preview: Breakers v Wildcats

Corbin Middlemas in Auckland

Updated April 12, 2012 16:20:21

Game one of the NBL grand final series has arrived. After 126 regular season matches and six play-off games, tonight the two premier teams in the competition face off at Auckland's Vector Arena.

The rivalry between these two teams is anything but manufactured. It has been built on engrossing tussles and mutual respect.

These sides have shared the past two championships while New Zealand holds a 2-1 series split over the Wildcats this season, separated only by a thrilling overtime result in Perth in which the Wildcats blew a nine-point lead in the last quarter.

Adding to the hostilities, the Wildcats have not forgotten it was the Breakers who ended their championship defence 12 months ago.

"Last year I truly believe if we'd had (Shawn) Redhage we would have won the championship," Perth coach Rob Beveridge told ABC Grandstand.

"We won game one over here in the semi-final series and it was an incredible game by (Kirk) Penney and (Kevin) Braswell at home. We were very much disappointed we didn't go through to the grand final."

The Breakers have again provided an injury byplay to the week, this time centred around star swingman Thomas Abercrombie.

The reigning finals MVP landed awkwardly on his ankle late in game three against the Crocs, and the injury has been the most talked about topic in the lead up to tonight's fixture in Auckland.

It is a sight the Wildcats are all to familiar with, following Mika Vukona's starring comeback from a knee injury to pull in 10 rebounds in last year's semi-final in Perth.

"I'm not buying into it at all," Beveridge said.

"Right now I know Abercrombie will be playing, simple as that. We've prepared as if Abercrombie is going to be there. We haven't changed any game plan whatsoever."

Tonight will also be the first time the Wildcats have played at Vector Arena.

The stadium hosted five Breakers fixtures this season, of which the home side won four.

Their only loss came in game one of the semi-final series against Townsville.

The NBL has declared tonight's game a sell out. Vector Arena seats 9,190 spectators, and tonight's crowd is almost certain to set a new Breakers club and New Zealand basketball attendance record.

Coach Beveridge was impressed when Wildcats had their first look at the arena during today's shoot around.

"I keep saying to our players, this is a very special moment, six of us have experience winning a championship but for the other five players it's going to be fantastic for them to absorb this atmosphere."

Among those five players is Matthew Knight, who celebrates his 100th game, and Luke Nevill who reaches the 50-game milestone.

The Wildcats understand the importance of claiming game one as the traveling team.

"We think if we can win today, we feel fantastic about going home and closing it in two," Beveridge added.

"But that's the Cinderella story, we'd love to do it on our home court."

Of the past 26 grand final series, just four times has a side recovered from defeat in game one to win the championship.

Moreover, it has happened only twice in 20 attempts where travel is such a factor.

In the last 20 best-of-three series in the NBL, the team ranked higher has won 19.

Tickets for game two in Perth on Friday, April 20, sold out within minutes of going on sale to the general public yesterday.

Live coverage of game one can be heard on ABC Grandstand Digital and streaming online from 5:30pm EST, 3:30pm WST.

Tags: nbl, basketball, sport, new-zealand, perth-6000, wa, australia

First posted April 12, 2012 13:54:29

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Martin return boosts Perth ahead of final

Corbin Middlemas

Updated April 24, 2012 18:15:16

Two-time NBL best defensive player Damian Martin is playing in game three of the grand final series tonight in Auckland despite spending the past few days in a moon boot.

Martin tore ligaments in his ankle during Perth's come from behind victory in game two last Friday but the Boomers guard trained with the group this morning in a shoot around after missing yesterday's session due to the injury.

Martin completed a fitness test on his troublesome ankle under the watchful eye of Cats' physio Dave Philpot.

"We ran him today in the shoot-around, it's noticeable that's he got an injury there but he did function reasonably well," Philpot said shortly after practise.

"He's got a mild to moderate strain of a couple of ligaments high up in his ankle, which really stabilise the whole joint, and as a result it's obviously very painful. We had all the scans done which showed the instability there is only very minor, which means that's he able to play."

In contrast to what was initially thought, Martin will not have an injection to numb the pain before tip-off.

"Unfortunately because the ligament is a weight baring one, so you really cant inject it with a local because if he does anymore damage you really want to know about it," said Philpot.

"You can't afford to let him run around on a ligament that's busted, and at any stage there is that risk he's going to go out and do more damage, hopefully we've done enough to keep that risk pretty low. But it's always there. I'm pretty confident that he'll play and have his usual impact."

The Wildcats appeared in good spirits after arriving at the arena this morning, as Cameron Tovey and Shawn Redhage re-enacted the latter's game winning block from game two.

Compounding coach Rob Beveridge's injury concerns though is the health of Greg Hire, who played a pivotal role off the bench in game two.

"Right now, Greg (Hire) is very sick," Beveridge said six hours before tip-off.

"He couldn't train yesterday, he's had migraines and been vomiting, things like that, again this morning he couldn't do a whole lot either."

Hire hit a season-high 12 points, and played considerably greater minutes after Tovey found himself in early foul trouble.

Victory tonight for Perth would deliver the club a record sixth NBL championship in its 26th consecutive play-offs campaign.

Coverage of game three from Auckland can be heard live on ABC Grandstand Digital and online from 5:30pm AEST.

Tags: basketball, sport, perth-6000, wa, australia, new-zealand

First posted April 24, 2012 15:38:18

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Breakers advance to grand final again

Updated April 07, 2012 20:18:46

New Zealand will chase back-to-back NBL titles after winning through to the grand final series with a 97-80 game three win over Townsville in Auckland on Saturday night.

The best-of-three series was tied at 1-1 coming into the clash after both sides grabbed road victories in games one and two.

A tight affair was eventually taken by the defending champion Breakers after the hosts pulled away in the fourth period to win.

CJ Bruton led New Zealand with 20 points, while Tom Abercrombie and Daryl Corletto chipped in with 19 each in front of nearly 7,500 fans.

But in a sour note for the Breakers Abercrombie limped off in the dying minutes after a hard foul by Peter Crawford, who was called for an unsportsmanlike foul.

Crawford was the best of the Crocodiles with 24 points, with Luke Schenscher adding 19 and eight rebounds.

Tags: nbl, basketball, sport, new-zealand, townsville-4810, qld, australia

First posted April 07, 2012 20:18:46

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Breakers Wildcats pull up sore after first final

Updated April 13, 2012 18:21:20

New Zealand and Perth are sweating on the health of key players in the wake of the Breakers' victory in the first match of the NBL grand final series.

The home side prevailed 104-98 on Thursday night without their NBL All-Star swingman Thomas Abercrombie, while Wildcats forward Matthew Knight picked up a thumb injury which forced him off court during overtime.

"We need to get some scans, but right now he can't buy a trick," Wildcats coach Rob Beveridge said of Knight.

"When he does something he does it pretty good."

The left ankle Abercrombie injured in the third semi-final in Auckland became a major talking point leading into the game and is likely to remain so as the Breakers try to get him fit for game two in Perth next Friday.

"Obviously eight days gives us a bit of hope," coach Andrej Lemanis said.

"It's shown improvement each day and if it shows that same sort of improvement then hopefully he'll be able to at least contribute something."

The first final added another chapter to a sometimes fractious rivalry and Beveridge promised even more passion as they try to prevent the Breakers securing the title in game two.

"I think that we'll be a lot more consistent with our effort levels and intensity levels (in Perth)," he said.

"If we don't we're going to lose the game."

Meanwhile, Basketball Australia (BA) announced late Friday that Larry Sengstock had resigned as chief executive officer of the organisation.

He took on the job in 2009 after NBL clubs and state and territory associations passed a unanimous vote for the unification of basketball at all levels under the governance of BA.

AAP

Tags: nbl, basketball, sport, perth-6000, wa, australia, new-zealand

First posted April 13, 2012 18:21:20

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Rangers advance to prelim final

Updated February 26, 2012 18:28:14

The Rangers overturned a seven-point deficit in the last quarter to defeat Townsville 77-66 in the WNBL minor semi-final in Dandenong.

The hosts trailed 65-58 with just over seven minutes to go, but outscored the fading Fire 19-1 over the remainder of the game, notching the last 13 points.

The Rangers, who have won seven straight games, will play the preliminary final against minor premier Adelaide, which they beat by 20 and 31-point margins in their past two encounters.

The Fire, coming off a midweek elimination final home win over Sydney, missed their last nine field goal attempts.

Jenna O'Hea topscored for the Rangers with 24, but it was Canadian centre Krista Phillips who shone brightest for the home team.

She tallied 17 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks.

Phillips also shut down Shanavia Dowdell after half-time, the American scoring just two of her 16 points after the long break.

With Dowdell and Jess Foley (six points from two of 11 field goal attempts) struggling, it was teenager forward Nadeen Payne who kept the Fire competitive.

The Australian junior representative scored 18 points in just under 22 minutes.

The Rangers led by three at the first break and one at half-time.

There were seven lead changes in the first three and a half minutes of the third quarter before the Fire logged nine straight points and led by six at three-quarter time.

AAP

Tags: wnbl, basketball, sport, dandenong-3175

First posted February 26, 2012 18:28:14

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Rangers sink Boomers in WNBL final

Updated March 12, 2012 09:03:32

Dandenong Rangers have won the most unlikely of WNBL crowns, beating defending champions Bulleen Boomers 94-70 in the grand final on Sunday.

The Rangers, who looked unlikely to even make the finals two months ago, won their ninth successive match to win their first WNBL title since 2005.

Point guard Kath MacLeod was immense in a sensational team shooting performance, with 22 points and nine assists - shooting at 67 per cent from the field and winning the MVP.

Backcourt partner Jenna O'Hea was equally brilliant with 20 points, while Steph Cumming had 19 off seven-from-11 field goal shooting.

"I was sitting in the crowd last year, and I was drinking - I wanted to be out there," MacLeod said.

O'Hea remembered: "It's probably the drunkest I've ever seen her. She was sitting on the sidelines, hands in the air cheering for me, so to win it with her this year was amazing."

MacLeod's eventful match included giving coach Mark Wright a half-time spray, then limping off the floor at three-quarter-time after a Bulleen player fell across her leg as the pair tussled on the ground.

Wright admitted MacLeod's remarkable passion was part of what he wanted at the Rangers - players having their say and helping drive the team on to better things.

"She was angry. She was telling the coach we needed to fix some [stuff] up," Wright said of MacLeod's emotional outburst at him at half-time.

"We had some breakdowns (in play) and we needed to fix it.

"That's what's been going on in this group. they have a say, and they have an ear. It makes sense, and we do it."

While Bulleen's national team star Liz Cambage led her side with 22 points and 14 rebounds at a sold-out State Netball Centre in Melbourne, there were patchy contributions from her team-mates.

In contrast, the Rangers recovered from a rocky start to get the absolute maximum out of both stars and bench.

Bulleen shot out to an early 11-4 lead, before the Rangers dragged themselves back into the match with a 12-0 run - eight from Cumming - to hold an eight-point quarter-time lead.

Shooting as high as 60 per cent from the field during the second quarter, the Rangers kept their foot down as the Boomers struggled to get anything going offensively and led 41-33 at half-time.

Bulleen crept to within five points early in the third quarter, but the Rangers kept lifting.

MacLeod, who ran the floor to perfection, gave her side a late third-quarter scare when a Bulleen player fell on her leg as the pair tussled on the ground for a ball.

But heavily strapped, she returned to the court a few minutes into the final term and helped her side parlay a 14-point three-quarter time lead into a championship few expected.

Dandenong's nine-match winning streak after a poor start to the season included three wins over minor premiers Adelaide Lightning, whom they knocked out in the preliminary final, as well as the second-placed Boomers.

For Wright, it was the first top-level championship of a long coaching career at both men's and women's level.

"It's really big. I'm just so pleased I've been able to coach a team that enjoys being together, and I enjoy being with them," Wright said.

"I enjoy the whole week, every single week. It's refreshing being around them."

AAP

Tags: wnbl, basketball, sport, dandenong-3175, vic, australia, bulleen-3105

First posted March 11, 2012 17:20:41

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Rangers edge Lightning to book final berth

Updated March 04, 2012 20:14:38

Dandenong's Jenna O'Hea can look forward to playing her former side Bulleen in the first all-Victorian WNBL grand final in 25 years, after starring in a 91-78 preliminary final away win over minor premier Adelaide on Sunday.

The red-hot Rangers posted their eighth straight victory and their third in four matches this season against the Lightning, who went out of the finals in straight sets.

Adelaide looked in control after a 14-2 run either side of half-time gave the hosts a 48-35 lead early in the third quarter.

Dandenong's revival was sparked by former Bulleen junior and Adelaide player Tegan Cunningham, who scored 10 of her 18 points in the third quarter.

Trailing 60-58 at the last change, Dandenong scored the first six points of the final term and outscored Adelaide 33-18 in a one-sided quarter.

O'Hea, who was part of Bulleen's title winning team last year, almost amassed a triple double, tallying 28 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.

Adelaide centre Suzy Batkovic hit a match-high 34, but her only real support came from Amy Lewis who scored 17, eight of them in the final quarter after Dandenong established a double-digit advantage.

Dandenong has not won a WNBL title since 2004-05 and its last grand final appearance was the following season.

The Rangers were languishing in seventh spot before beginning the late season surge that has carried them to next Sunday's grand final in Melbourne.

"Our greatest fans probably wouldn't have thought this was possible, it's very exciting for us," O'Hea told Grandstand.

Dandenong shot at 55 per cent for the game and at better than 60 per cent after quarter time.

O'Hea had plenty of help apart from Cunningham, with Canadian centre Krista Phillips tallying 14 points and 14 rebounds, Kathleen MacLeod scoring 13 points and six assists and Stephanie Cumming netting 12 points.

Cumming appeared to suffer a corked thigh.

Adelaide lost veteran Jo Hill with a calf injury in the the second quarter and finished the season with three straight losses.

"This is a wake-up call, but it's also sad, we're a better team than what we showed the last few weeks," Batkovic told Grandstand.

Bulleen beat Dandenong by margins of five, six and 10 in their three regular season encounters.

"We haven't beaten Bulleen this year, so it's going to be another torrid affair," Dandenong coach Mark Wright said.

"I think they are desperate to hang onto the crown and we are just as desperate to take it off them."

AAP

Tags: wnbl, basketball, sport, vic, dandenong-3175, adelaide-5000

First posted March 04, 2012 17:28:04

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Boomers lose Stankovic Cup final

Updated August 05, 2011 12:19:03

The Australian men's basketball team failed to recover from a shocking start in going down to Angola 85-66 in the final of the Stankovic Cup in China.

Mark Worthington was the Boomers' best with 11 points, but he was no match for Angolan pair Carlos Morais and Joaquim who dominated the Australians.

Morais led all scorers with 26 points on six of nine shooting from beyond the arc, while Joaquim added 21 points.

The Boomers, who beat Angola only two days ago, were unable to match the aggressiveness of the African nation, which never looked back after heading to the first break up 24-8.

Australia attempted to beat its opponent with speed as it went to a smaller line-up midway through the second term, but having closed to within 10 points, Angola again pushed away with some long-range baskets.

Again the Boomers came at their opponents in the third quarter but were unable to cut the deficit to single figures, the game as good as over heading to the last period with Angola up by 23.

AAP

Tags: basketball, sport, china, angola, australia

First posted August 05, 2011 12:11:23

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Breakers book spot in final

Published:Wednesday, April 13, 2011 9:23 AESTExpires:Tuesday, July 12, 2011 9:23 AEST

The New Zealand Breakers used home advantage to take an emphatic win against the Perth Wildcats in its NBL semi-final decider.

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