Latest news with #2020Showdown
Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
No great surprise for tenth consecutive loss
And one more makes 10. The Otago Nuggets have slipped to a tenth consecutive loss in the National Basketball League this season. It is just outside their top five most barren runs in their history. The latest loss was no great surprise. They were up against the Wellington Saints (11-4) who are at the other end of the competition standings — the good end. The Saints were perhaps guilty of coasting along in patches. But they pulled away late to win 91-79. Nicholas Marshall (24 points, 7 rebounds) and Hyrum Harris (15 points, 13 rebounds) starred. Jordan Ngatai, who won a banner with the Nuggets in the 2020 Showdown, banged in 18 points. Nicholas Muszynski posted a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds. For the Nuggets, Jaylen Sebree (22 points, 9 rebounds) and Jonathan Janssen (15 points, 6 rebounds) stood out on the statistics sheet. Caleb Smiler made a positive contribution from the bench. But import Don Carey jun had a cold shooting night, landing five from 16 from the field. Both teams struggled from range. But that was more costly for the Nuggets, who do not have a genuine big to mix it up in the paint. They were out rebounded 47-35 which is a big advantage to overcome. The Nuggets last win was against the Indian Panthers, who have since withdrawn from the league. That win has been subtracted from their total, leaving the team 2-12 for the season. It is not a good return considering they are fighting for their future. Their owners, SEN, have signalled they will pull out at the end of the campaign. Ngatai spun his way to the hoop in the opening seconds of the match to highlight how hard it would be for the Nuggets to get stops close to the rim. The Nugget's first play, by contrast, completely lacked direction and ended with Carey throwing up an air ball. It was not a good omen. Matthew Bardsley brought some early hustle for the Nuggets. But the Saints had no problem splitting the defence and started to take control late in the opening period. Marshall banged in a three to help them get in front 22-15. He got busy early in the second and the lead blew out to 12. The Nuggets were putting up some passive defence. Sebree connected from deep and Janssen muscled his way to the hoop for a brace of buckets. He has really lifted his game in recent weeks. The Nuggets got back to within three. It was a terrific rally, but the challenge faded in the second half of the period. Harris made some successful drives to the lid to give his side a 47-37 lead at halftime. Muszynski bullied an offensive rebound partway through the third and made the lay-up to give the Saints their equal biggest lead of the game — 14 points. Darcy Knox got to the hoop in his 100th game. But his side was stuck in catch-up mode and did not have the firepower to bridge the gap. They were down 71-58 with 10 minutes to go. The Nuggets surged again. Sebree hit a couple of lovely jumpers and Bardsley cut the lead to just three again when he slipped in under the hoop and got a cheap basket. They gave themselves a chance to win but the Saints had more composure in the final minute and iced the win. The Nuggets won the Rapid League game 31-30. NBL The scores Wellington Saints 91 Nicholas Marshall 24, Jordan Ngatai 18 Otago Nuggets 79 Jaylen Sebree 22, Jonathan Janssen 15 Quarter scores: 22-15, 47-37, 71-58, 91-79.
Otago Daily Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Knox to notch a hundred
Darcy Knox used to sweep the floor at the Edgar Centre. This afternoon he will bring up 100 games for the Otago Nuggets when they play the Wellington Saints in Porirua. It has been quite a journey for the Nuggets captain. "Oh, it's really special," he said. "It was never a particular goal I set out to accomplish or anything like that. But it has been very easy to keep coming back because I love playing for our city and for our region. "I started this six years ago in the Showdown but also before that ... I was a development player. "And looking back even further, I first started coming as a kid to watch the games ... and I was a floor sweeper as well — so going from being a floor sweeper as a kid coming to the Nuggets camps to reaching 100 games as a player is pretty cool." The 30-year-old point guard is the third Nugget to reach the milestone this year, so he has had some mates along for the journey. He joins Josh Aitcheson and Matthew Bardsley in the 100 club. The trio have played a ton of basketball together over the years. They have won two championships together, flatted together and roomed together, so it was only fitting they bring up 100 games just weeks apart. "Josh I've played with since 2016 and we grew up playing reps. He's my flatmate as well, and then Bards, we've been great mates. We were roommates at the 2020 Showdown." The Nuggets won the 2020 Showdown. The tournament had to be reworked because of Covid and the entire competition was played in Auckland. All the players stayed in the same hotel. It was an intense time, and is one of Knox's favourite basketball memories. The 2022 title was up there as well. But in terms of individual games, the win against a full-strength Saints side in the capital in 2023 really stood out. "We had a couple of other guys out and you know we were really up against it. I remember the commentators cutting us down big time. "We played our hearts out. We played together and we left everything on the floor. "It was one of those rivalry games, and to get the win when we were up against a full-strength Saints squad in Wellington in front of 4000 people was really cool. "But some of the most memorable stuff is actually in those down moments as well. "You know, when you keep it together as a group or when it's tough and the things you learn from that. "I think that's where you build as a player and as a person, in those kind of valleys more than in the peaks. "The peaks kind of come from going through those tough times and being able to stick with it as a group." The Nuggets will need to do that this afternoon. They are on a nine-game losing streak, and the Saints are one of the form teams in the competition. It might be another one of those learning opportunities Knox mentioned. They have struggled to contain teams, but their defence has improved since the departure of Jose Perez. They lost some scoring power with his exit. But Jonathan Janssen stepped up in his absence and Don Carey jun remains a major threat. NBL Nuggets v Saints Otago Nuggets: Patrick Freeman, Jonathan Janssen, Don Carey jun, Joshua Aitcheson, Jaylen Sebree, Michael Ruske, Matthew Bardsley, Darcy Knox, Caleb Smiler, Liam Boomer, Noah McDowall. Wellington Saints (possible): Nicholas Marshall, Izayah Mauriohooho Le Afa, Jordan Ngatai, Hyrum Harris, Nicholas Muszynski, Samuel Gold, Hassan Munir, Rangimarie Dougall-Mita, Lukah Richards, Kazlo Evans, Arthur Pilcher
