Sharks surface top after see-saw
It was a game where you lost count of the lead changes.
But the Southland Sharks led when it mattered most to record a 91-80 win against the Otago Nuggets in Invercargill last night.
Keylan Boone drained consecutive deep triples and Caleb Asberry finished things off the glass, and then swung from the hoop to extend the lead 85-77 in the fourth.
The Nuggets struggled at the end of the fourth for the scoreline to flatter the Sharks.
Boone finished with 31 points, Asberry notched 26 points and Josiah Allick had a big double of 12 points and 19 rebounds, 14 of those on offence.
The Nuggets, in their first game since parting ways with Jose Perez, looked like they had more flow offensively and grew throughout the game.
Don Carey jun, who finished with 26 points, got things started.
The Sharks found themselves on the back foot, conceding several fouls to let the Nuggets in.
It was a messy start from both sides and a low-scoring affair for much of the quarter, but the Nuggets clogged the paint to make it tough for the home side.
Allick was the big target for the Sharks and Asberry banged a triple to level.
The Nuggets moved the ball about the arc, had some nice touches, and their balance caught the Sharks on the hop.
But the accuracy was slightly awry from both sides.
Sam Timmins, in his first game for the Sharks after returning from Japan, swung the ball to the corner, finding Boone alone for another triple.
Carey jun drove hard to the paint with two seconds left on the clock and tied the game 16-16.
The Nuggets muscled up on defence and made the passage to the paint hard for the Sharks.
But neither team helped themselves, leaving shots short in what became a frustrating period.
Darcy Knox finally banged down the Nuggets first triple — after they had been 0 for 13 from deep — and opened the second quarter scoring nearly three minutes in.
Caleb Smiler came up with a big play, stealing the ball off the Sharks restart. He dished it off to Bardsley and the centurion made no mistake to lead 21-16.
The Sharks knuckled down on defence with Allick picking up offensive crumbs.
Boone added a couple from the stripe to regain the lead and Jonathan Janssen, who finished with a double of 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Nuggets, banked a tough finish in the paint for another lead change.
Carey jun drained a corner three, Christian Martin came up with a steal and Patrick Freeman finished with the dunk.
Nothing could separate the two heading into the break 37-37.
Asberry found Timmins in the paint for the former Nugget to find his first of the night to drop.
Burton found a mid-range jumper to jump out to a seven-point lead, the largest for the Sharks of the game.
Freeman banked a triple and Carey jun dropped it off to Janssen in the paint to close things up.
The Nuggets broke the deadlock at the break for the first time and led 62-59 at the third-quarter break. NBL The scores
Southland Sharks 91
Keylan Boone 31, Caleb Asberry 26
Otago Nuggets 80
Don Carey jun 26, Jonathan Jassen 21
Quarter scores: Otago Nuggets 16-16, 37-37, 62-59
kayla.hodge@odt.co.nz
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