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Otago Daily Times
3 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 The Nuggets last win was against the Indian Panthers, who have since withdrawn from the league.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
5 days ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Council votes to get behind Nuggets, Hoiho
Call it an assist — but the Dunedin City Council has offered $50,000 a year for the next three years to help keep the Otago Nuggets and Southern Hoiho basketball teams bouncing. At yesterday's council meeting, Deputy Mayor Cherry Lucas put forward the motion to help the struggling franchises. "This is a very small minor way to get the Nuggets back on court." In March, Australian-owners Sports Entertainment Network (SEN) announced its intention to end its involvement with the Southern Hoiho and Otago Nuggets basketball teams from the conclusion of the (men's) National Basketball League (NBL) season. The Nuggets run in the NBL has been fraught with financial challenges. They pulled out of the league at the end of the 2008 season, but re-emerged in 2010 before folding again at the end of the 2014 season. This time they spent five seasons on the sidelines before re-entering the league in 2020 for the NBL Showdown. Cr Lucas said the money would largely cover the cost to hire the More FM Arena at the Edgar Centre. There was a group working behind the scenes to put together a registration of interest for the Hoiho, while the money would also allow time for interest in the Nuggets licence, she said. "Basketball has the highest participation rates among young people in Dunedin — it exceeds rugby and cricket." Cr Andrew Whiley said it was important to keep the Nuggets and Hoiho if only to keep the levels of participation going. "This money is a drop in the bucket ... but I see this money coming back in spades. It's actually going to be invested and thrown back into the Edgar Centre." Cr Jim O'Malley said supporting the measure would have "multiple positive benefits" for the community at large. Cr Brent Weatherall said the Nuggets were a professional team and, as much as he supported basketball, professional sports could be "cruel" at times. "It just worries me this could be a revolving door that could be going on for years and years — if it were just for a year, I would support this deal, but I can't support it for three years." Cr Steve Walker said basketball was in a "lucky" position and there were more important needs for "our constrained dollar". Cr Bill Acklin did not believe it was council's role to rescue professional sports teams. Mayor Jules Radich said this funding would provide aspiration — "there would be a clear pathway for professional sport in Dunedin." "This is not an endless supply of money — it's only for three years to get them started again." Cr Lucas said this was a commitment from the city to ensure the licence would remain here, and a signal to the National Basketball League that the franchise could be trusted financially. The motion was passed nine votes to five.
Otago Daily Times
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Bardsley bringing up 100th game
Matthew Bardsley is a hustler. The Otago Nuggets bring him on when they need some energy. It is his role to disrupt, spoil, agitate and just generally do whatever it takes to force a turnover, create a mistake and change the momentum of the match. The 29-year-old guard is perfectly cast in that role. He is quick, he has great reactions, and he is tenacious. They are all attributes that do not always show up on the stats sheet. But he has made a huge contribution since the Nuggets re-entered the league in 2020 following a five-year absence. He added energy from the bench during the championship runs in 2020 and 2022. And tomorrow evening, he will bring up his 100th game for the franchise when they head south to play the Southland Sharks in Invercargill. "It has been a pretty cool journey since 2020, and to reach 100 games is something I'm pretty proud of," Bardsley said. Bardsley is the second player to reach the milestone this season. Josh Aitcheson brought up his 100th game late last month and point guard Darcy Knox is poised on 97 games and will also reach the mark, all going well. The trio has played a lot of basketball together, and just that simple joy has been one of Bardsley's highlights. He moved south from Palmerston North in 2017 and linked up with Aitcheson and Knox in the University of Otago basketball team. "We won a couple of national championships with Otago University, and then it kind of went from there. Our basketball journeys have been pretty aligned since then." The 2020 National Basketball League Showdown was a huge highlight in his career. The league was reworked that season because of Covid, and the entire tournament was played in Auckland. All the players stayed at the same hotel and formed their own Covid bubble. The Nuggets got lucky in the player draft. They were able to secure the services of the likes of Jordan Ngatai and Jarrod Kenny. "As a kick start to my Nuggets' career, it was quite an intense seven weeks up in Auckland. "But it was such a great experience for me and to play alongside some of New Zealand's best basketball players in JK and Jordan Ngatai ... was pretty cool. "And the championship in 2022 was special as well." It has been an unusual week for Bardsley. He has been in Christchurch for work and has not been around the team. But he was not expecting to be any more nervous than usual for the milestone match. "I'll be just treating it like another game. "In the context of our season, we probably need to get a win. Well, not probably, we definitely need to get a win, so that will be the main focus, not the 100th game per se." His wife, Sophie, and her family will travel to Invercargill to watch him play. His 100th was supposed to be against the beleaguered Indian Panthers in Dunedin last night, but that game has been postponed. The other major distraction this week has been the departure of Jose Perez. The American small forward and the Nuggets parted ways. "I don't think it has been a distraction. The club has made moves that it has to make, and we are just continuing to try and build together and make a late playoff push, I suppose. "The group is still very connected despite what has been going on."
Otago Daily Times
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Nuggets, Perez part ways
Otago Nuggets import Jose Perez has parted ways with the team. The Nuggets last night released a brief public statement saying the American small forward had been released from his contract and would take no further part in the NBL season. Perez, who last week was fined $500 for unsatisfactory conduct towards referees, averaged 20.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game for the 3-9 Nuggets. — APL
RNZ News
09-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Indian Panthers face ejection from basketball league
Photo: RNZ / Blessen Tom The Indian Panthers are facing termination from the National Basketball League in 10 days unless the new franchise can comply with a list of remedial conditions. A notice of termination issued by the league on Friday said the Panthers' upcoming games scheduled for May 14 against the Southland Sharks and May 16 against the Otago Nuggets had been postponed. The franchise had until 19 May to fully comply with all requirements set by the league, a statement from the Commission said. The league had been conducting a thorough investigation into the management of the team, including its financial backing, the statement said. The Commission said it was disappointed that the "required funding has not been delivered as expected". "Following a series of Commission meetings held over the past week and numerous deadlines set, the Panthers have not yet managed to remedy any of the breaches that would have allowed the Panthers' next two games to go ahead," the statement said. The team was suspended on 1 May after the league received allegations of contractual breaches, including unpaid salaries and internal unrest. The Indian Panthers players did not take the court against the Canterbury Rams on 29 April in protest of the late payments, with the match being postponed. The situation subsequently escalated when former Panthers player Alex Robinson Jr. posted a pointed message on Instagram alleging he had not been paid. Robinson left the Panthers and joined the Nelson Giants. The Panthers have faced a series of setbacks in their debut season. The team played without any of the 10 Indian players originally named in the squad in their season opener against the Hawke's Bay Hawks on 12 March due to international commitments. The Panthers faced another setback in March when head coach Miles Pearce resigned just two days ahead of their first home game. "Should the Panthers fulfill all conditions, the Commission will consider whether to lift the notice of termination, in which case the games against the Canterbury Rams, Southland Sharks and Otago Nuggets will be replayed," the statement said.
