Tall Blacks Proud of Spain Effort

Tall Blacks Stand Proud on World Stage

September 9, 2014

The Tall Blacks bowed out of the FIBA World Cup in Spain yesterday but once again made more than an impression on the basketball world with their gutsy and tactically savvy game plan that for the fourth consecutive tournament took the New Zealanders to the knockout stages.

 While the story of the Tall Blacks is often portrayed as that of an overachieving underdog, the truth of their record over the past 12 years is one of a highly disciplined and respected international opponent, one that is capable of beating almost anyone on their day.

That was in evidence again in the five point loss against the world number four ranked nation Lithuania, with the Europeans only edging clear of the Tall Blacks in a frantic final 90 seconds.

Basketball New Zealand CEO Iain Potter says the organization is extremely proud of the team and what they have achieved.

“This has been a hugely encouraging campaign from the Tall Blacks, one that all of New Zealand can be proud of. On what can only be described as a shoestring budget compared to almost all of the other teams in Spain, the Tall Blacks have put together a superb and challenging tour that ensured they arrived in Spain as ready as they could be to take on some of the best teams in the world.

“And this is a team of high standards, a team that expects and more often than not delivers competitive performances against basketball powerhouses. The close and agonizing defeat against 2010 runners up Turkey, the wins over Ukraine and a fast rising Finland and the loss against world number four Lithuania when we held the lead in the final quarter have made the basketball world sit up and take notice again of a very proud and highly talented team that has been superbly coached and managed by Nenad and his support team.”

The Tall Blacks certainly garnered more than their share of following while in Spain – and indeed in the build-up tournament through Asia and Europe. And it wasn’t just their competitiveness on the court that generated attention, the cultural aspects as well ensured that New Zealand was strongly profiled during the tournament.

The Haka and subsequent performances against the might of the USA saw considerable footage air on the NBA website and on the NBC Network and USA Today programme in the United States. The clip on the official FIBA website has generated 1.5million views on YouTube, incredible exposure for the players and for the country.

Potter says the achievements of this team must not be lost in the aftermath of their round of 16 loss to Lithuania – going out of the tournament at the same stage as the highly fancied Australians who were beaten this morning by Turkey.

“Basketball is a truly global sport with the ability to reach into communities around the world, many of which are in key markets for New Zealand trade and tourism. The coverage we have achieved in the North American, Asian and European markets has been phenomenal, not only for us as a respected basketball nation but for the image and brand of New Zealand in a wider context.

“To think that this team has achieved all of this on the equivalent of the clichéd ‘smell of an oily rag’ is testament to the team and their passion. But it should not continue to define them or the game in this country. The Tall Blacks and the Tall Ferns who recently toured into China will continue to put their hands up and perform on the world stage in the hope that we can convince government funding agencies and commercial sponsors to join us for future ventures.”

And that future certainly looks bright. While long serving head coach Nenad Vucinic and manager/trainer Claire Dallison have made no public comments about their ongoing involvement (Vucinic is contracted to the end of the year), they can ponder those decisions safe in the knowledge that a new generation of players is ready to take the Tall Blacks to another level.

Corey Webster, Everard Bartlett, Isaac Fotu, Tai Webster and Tom Abercrombie are the future leaders of this team. Add to the mix those not in Spain such as Steven Adams, Alex Pledger, Jack Salt and Tai Wynyard and the future is indeed a bright one, one that will be craving the attention of commercial partners and government funders to ensure the game continues to grow and develop throughout the next World Cup cycle.

Potter reserved final praise for Vucinic.

“As an exciting generation of players emerges to take us into the next four or five years, Basketball New Zealand pays tribute to our head coach Nenad Vucinic and long term manager Claire Dallison. Nenad has been a part of this team as a player, assistant coach and head coach for 23 years and has been at every World Cup since 2002, first as assistant and since 2007 as head coach. His dedication to this team knows no bounds and he along with Claire have been a huge part of our success. If the test of a coach is the health and long term prospects for their team, Nenad can hold his head high on the back of our efforts in Spain.”

 September 8, 2014

Lithuania held on to beat New Zealand 76-71 in the Round of 16 at Barcelona’s Palau Sant Jordi on Sunday and reach the Quarter-Finals of FIBA’s flagship event for the third consecutive time while the Tall Blacks depart the tournament.

The Tall Blacks are known for never giving up and have further enhanced that reputation at these World Championships. Down by double-digits early on, they clawed their way back to fight an even battle but Lithuania did enough to edge them out.

A 15-4 run, including eight unanswered points, in the latter part of the first quarter proved enough evidence for the early Lithuanian domination of the floor, the boards and the scoreboard. The Tall Blacks would finish the game even in the rebound count in a sign of their ability to compete with a much bigger team, something they have done throughout the tournament.

New Zealand, who made a gnawing effort to cut the deficit in the third quarter, took the fight to their opponents by scoring the first nine points of the final period, with Isaac Fotu and Corey Webster hitting on three successive three-pointers.

Jonas Valanciunas, the key enforcer of the Lithuanian plans early in the game came back to take charge of the proceedings leading the Jonas Kazlauskas-trained team out of danger.

The Toronto Raptors center had 22 points and 13 rebounds.

Jonas Maciulis, who got a couple of stitches above his right eye-brow following a first-quarter freak accident with Thomas Abercombie, then sealed the issue for Lithuania by hitting from long range.

New Zealand didn’t throw in the towel as yet, but Lithuania proved far too sturdy to give away the advantage.

Corey Webster led New Zealand with a game-high 26, 17 of them coming in the second half and eight in the third period when the Tall Blacks began their resurgence. The Tall Blacks won the second half battle by 5 points against the world number 4 ranked team but were left to rue a quiet start, in which they only scored 9 first quarter points.

Tall Blacks 71
C Webster 26, Fotu 11
Lithuania 76
Valanciunas 22

Box Score

 

Tall Blacks Win Thriller!

 

September 5, 2014

The Tall Blacks won a thriller in Bilbao to give themselves a shot at progressing to the knock out stage of the FIBA World Cup, defeating Finland 67-65 in a game of hugely contrasting fortunes. At the time of writing the New Zealanders are now just awaiting other results in Pool C, with the United States needing to defeat Ukraine to ensure the Tall Blacks safe passage to Barcelona.

 

It was a game of swings as first the New Zealanders came out and took charge early in the game to establish a lead of 20 points early in the third quarter as the Fins had no answer to the Tall Blacks energy and all round contribution from a fiercely determined roster fighting for their lives. The second half however was to prove a wildly contrasting affair, with the Laplanders dominating without ever retaking the lead in a frenetic final few minutes.

Isaac Fotu was the spark that fired up the first half bench led effort from the Tall Blacks, with his 14 points and 6 boards leading an incredible 35 point contribution from the Tall Blacks second unit. With Mika Vukona in early foul trouble with two soft calls against the Tall Blacks defensive leader, Fotu was called from the bench and answered as only he knows how, crashing the boards and finding his range from inside and with a number of soft hand finishes.

The Finnish defence was shutting down New Zealand’s go to outside shooter in Kirk Penney, but the Tall Blacks kept the ball moving and looked to other options, with Everard Bartlett, the Webster brothers and Lindsay Tait all taking responsibility in a balanced first half effort.

The Fins at times proved too much for New Zealand’s defence in the low post, with Lee winning most of his physical confrontations, but they were otherwise forced into less than ideal looks at the basket by the Tall Blacks smothering defence.

Rebounding again proved to be a good barometer of the game’s fortunes, with New Zealand dominating the first half boards to the tune of 17-9, in the process scoring 12 second chance points to frustrate Finland and halt any hint of a run, in the process keeping the large Finnish crowd quiet.

The Tall Blacks threatened to take the game away from Finland early in the third, opening up a lead as big as 20 points on the back of five early points from the up until then quiet Kirk Penney. But the Fins came back strongly at the end of the quarter, closing back to a 12 point deficit heading into the final quarter, knowing it was to be a final ten minutes for one of these two teams in the tournament.

That momentum stayed with the Finland team early in the final quarter, on the back of two Lee layups and some offensive misfiring from the Tall Blacks, the lead was down to eight points and the noise in the arena went up behind the Europeans. The energy stayed with the Finnish side from that point as they finally found some focus on defence against a now tiring New Zealand offence.

The final few minutes had more than its share of big moments, from Kirk Penney’s clutch three to missed layups, a huge charge call against Finland (Vukona putting his body on the line), and an unsportsmanlike foul called on Jarrod Kenny that handed the Fins the chance to take the lead on the next possession. They couldn’t however breach that mental and scoreboard barrier, despite having the last possession of the game and a contested look to take the game into overtime, the ball came up short and the Tall Blacks came up big when it counted most.

Isaac Fotu led all scorers in a coming of age performance for the 20 year old, with 18 points and 8 rebounds while Mika Vukona was a constant warrior in the face of the Finnish team, playing (as always) like his life depended on it for 12 rebounds, 5 points and 3 assists. This was again though a trademark deep effort from the Tall Blacks, with Lindsay Tait huge at crucial times with 6 points and 5 assists.

With the win in the bag Nenad Vucinic will forgive his team the second half wobbles as the intensity of the past few days took a toll, this being the 5th game in 6 days in a crazy schedule that is testing all sides physical and mental toughness at this World Cup. All eyes will now be on the Ukraine v USA match up and hopes that a hotel booking is required in Barcelona for a match up in the round of 16.

New Zealand 67
Fotu 18, Penney 11, C Webster 8
Finland 65
Lee 17, Koponen 13
H/T 44-32

Box Score

 

Tall Blacks Are Alive!

September 4, 2014

The Tall Blacks World Cup remains alive after a strong 73-61 win over Ukraine this morning NZT, ensuring they go to their final pool game against Finland with a chance of progressing to the knock out stages of the tournament.

This was the performance that was hinted at in the loss to Turkey and in an improved showing against the United States but unlike the Turkey clash, the New Zealanders took this one to the final buzzer in keeping the Europeans at bay.

There were contributions from across the roster, with bench players Everard Bartlett firing some critical threes in his 14 points and Isaac Fotu in perhaps his best showing as a Tall Black with a double/double of ten points and ten boards.

Kirk Penney led all scorers with 17 and Corey Webster chimed in during the second half with a critical 11 points while on the boards the Tall Blacks were supreme over their much bigger opponents 48-25 – in truth they smashed Ukraine in what is always a key effort area.

Kirk Penney spoke of the determination in the group to come out and play well.

“The coaches challenged us last night, we had a meeting last night at the hotel they challenged us to play much better, execute much better and the guys came out and responded which is a great credit against a team like Ukraine. We feel like our tournament is still alive depending on other results, our sole focus now is to win against Finland.”

Head Coach Nenad Vucinic was pleased with the way his players fought back after a tough start to the tournament.

“It was great to get our first win at the World Championship, we had our backs to the wall and the players responded well. Unfortunately we still have our backs to the wall as we have to win against Finland in our last game, that will be a tough proposition, like a home game for them with the crowd but I believe it is up to us and the way we play to decide if we can win the game.”

New Zealand 73 (Kirk Penney 17, Everard Bartlett 14, Corey Webster 11, Isaac Fotu 10)
Ukraine 61 (Maxym Kornienko 15, Pooh Jeter 14, Ihor Zaytsev 10).1Q: 18-19; HT: 36-30; 3Q: 53-45.

BOX SCORE HERE

 

TB’s compete with USA

September 3, 2014

The Tall Blacks have taken on the might of the USA and come away beaten but now bowed, losing the game 98-71 but doing enough to take confidence into their final must win pool games against Ukraine and Finland.

The Americans are the hot favourites to take another World Cup and are unbeaten in pool play while the New Zealanders lost their opening two games against Turkey and Dominican Republic.

This though was a performance were minutes were spread (no one played more than 20) and the focus was already on games against Ukraine and Finland, knowing that regardless of the result in this one the Tall Blacks will have to win those two games.

Kirk Penney has played the Americans before and knew what a challenge it would be for many of the young players in the Tall Blacks.

“For us this was going to be a big challenge, they came at us early and it was a wonderful challenge for everyone to play but we wanted to fight to the end and I think the guys did and played until the last minute, that is all we can ask of the team. The true challenge for us to stay in this tournament as it stands right now starts tomorrow.

“At home in New Zealand we don’t watch Europe, we watch the NBA on TV at home, that is just how it is. They were thrilled to play and be on the same court but I don’t think anyone backed down, every step of the way everyone worked hard and tried to make our system work and defend that is all we can ask until the last minute, when you play a team like that it can snowball at any point in time and become unstoppable. It would be nice to have competed even more but right now we have to move on to our next two games.”

With the score at 57-35 the threat of a USA romp after halftime was present, but the stars won the last two quarters by a narrow 41-36 margin, leaving the young New Zealanders with a degree of confidence to take into tonight’s game against Ukraine.

BJ Anthony brought plenty of energy in his 11 point contribution and was supported by an even effort throughout the roster.

USA 98 (Anthony Davis 21, Kenneth Faried 15, James Harden 13, Steph Curry 12, Klay Thompson 12, Kyrie Irving 10)
Tall Blacks 71 (BJ Anthony 11). 1Q: 27-20, HT: 57-35, 3Q: 75-54

BOX SCORE

Flat Tall Blacks defeated by Dominican Repbulic

 

MARC HINTON IN BILBAO

 

Last updated 00:30 01/09/2014

 

The Tall Blacks' World Cup campaign has hit crisis point after plunging to a near-fatal Group C 76-63 defeat this morning against the Dominican Republic.

 

The flat New Zealand basketballers never managed to reproduce the fire they showed in the previous day's 76-73 defeat to highly-favoured Turkey, and paid the price as they sunk to 0-2 after two days of group play at Bilbao's Bizkaia Arena, Spain.

 

With the NBA stars of the United States (NZT 3.30am Wednesday) among their remaining three opponents after tomorrow's rest day, the Tall Blacks would have to defeat both Ukraine (NZT 1am Thursday) and Finland (NZT 1am Friday) after that to have any hope of qualifying for a fourth straight appearance in the knockout round.

 

It looks a long shot at best.

 

The New Zealanders never managed to put the brakes on the scoring of Dominican NBA star Francisco Garcia who torched them for a game-high 29 points on 11-of-15 shooting and five-of-seven from beyond the arc.

 

Tom Abercrombie found his best form after an indifferent effort against the Turks and led the New Zealand effort with 22 points and four rebounds, while Kirk Penney added 16 points and Mika Vukona 11 in a scoring effort that lacked much in the way of support.

 

This was always going to be a tough turnaround for the Tall Blacks, given the deflating nature of their near miss against the Turks just 18 hours earlier.

 

Somehow, they needed to park that and recapture the verve and drive they showed through the first three-and-a-half quarters against the world's No 7 side.

 

The first half reflected the difficulty of that task, with the Dominicans taking a 34-27 lead into halftime as the New Zealanders shot poorly (33 per cent from the floor and just two-of-13 from deep) and fell behind on the back of a 13-0 second-quarter run by the Caribbean nation.

 

A red-hot Abercrombie was a one-man show in the first quarter for the Tall Blacks as he scored 13 of their 16 points on a sizzling five-of-seven shooting, and Vukona and Penney showed flashes of their abilities in the second. But there was a general flatness about the Tall Blacks that suggested a switch needed to be flicked at the break.

 

The previous night's star, Corey Webster, also couldn't find any rhythm at all through the first twos periods as he went scoreless on five shot attempts. Worryingly, the Tall Blacks had just four scorers in the first half, including Rob Loe's solitary free-throw.

 

Things got better in the third as the New Zealanders closed the deficit to just a single point (50-51) at the final break behind a 10-point outburst from Penney and another nine to Abercrombie's tally.

 

But it was the Dominicans who came out with the greater urgency in the closing quarter and as Garcia continued to pour in the points, and his team-mates able to ride his confidence, the lead grew to double figures and the Tall Blacks found themselves looking up out of a very deep hole.

 

Dominican Republic 76 (Francisco Garcia 29, Jake Martinez 12) Tall Blacks 63 (Tom Abercrombie 22, Kirk Penney 16, Mika Vukona 11). 1Q: 14-16, HT: 34-27, 3Q: 51-50

 

 

 

Late meltdown sees Tall Blacks fall to Turkey

MARC HINTON IN BILBAO

Last updated 05:55 31/08/2014

The Tall Blacks are vowing to put a crushing, dramatic and controversial opening day FIBA World Cup defeat behind them as they look to regroup for a short-turnaround before facing Dominican Republic.

The New Zealand team blew not just a 12-point fourth-quarter lead to fall 76-73 to Turkey in their opening Group C game in Spain's Basque city of Bilbao on Saturday (Sunday NZ time), but also the chance to tuck away a massive upset and take a giant stride towards the knockout round.

By their own admission they "froze" at the offensive end after leading by a dozen (64-52) early in the final quarter and by 11 (72-61) with just under five minutes remaining.

It was very much one that got away from the Tall Blacks as they imploded over the run home - letting a marginal foul call on star player Corey Webster knock them off their stride.

Webster, who finished with a game-high 22 points, and star shooting guard Kirk Penney, who had nine points, both missed three-point attempts in the closing seconds to force overtime.

They should never have been in that position, though, as the New Zealanders missed nine straight field-goal attempts over the run home and allowed the Turks to go on a 15-0 run that salvaged an unlikely victory.

The controversy came late when New Zealand coach Nenad Vucinic picked up a costly - and, he thought, unjust - technical foul when Webster was whistled for an offensive foul on Turkish guard Sinan Guler as he won possession in a tussle for the ball. The Turks slotted both free-throws and scored on the ensuing possession to close to within two points and set up the dramatic finale.

Tai Webster turned the ball over on the next possession and was called for an unsportsmanlike foul, leading to two Turkish free-throws and a three-pointer, putting them up 75-72 with 3:25 to play.

There was also controversy early when the Turkish team walked off the court right when the Tall Blacks were starting their Tu Kaha O Pango Te Kahikatia haka, reintroduced this year after a seven-year hiatus. If it had been rugby there would have been an international outcry, but the Tall Blacks later shrugged off the show of disrespect as they were forced to re-align their challenge towards their opponents' bench.

Really, another haka hoops snub was the least of their worries. They have to face the Dominican Republic in 18 and a-half hours' time in a second-day clash that Vucinic tagged "must-win".

"It was a very disappointing finish for us - offensively we froze and made some bad decisions," Vucinic said. "It's the nature of the tournament we have to forget about this game and move on towards the crucial game against Dominican Republic tomorrow.

We spoke about this [situation]. We are mentally prepared for this. We know we have to forget wins and losses very quickly because if you don't it's going to hurt you the next day. We are prepared for it, we will deal with it in the right way and come back and play tomorrow."

Corey Webster, whose game-high offensive explosion deserved a much better result, repeated Vucinic's assertion that the team froze over the run home.

"It's done now and we've got to prepare for tomorrow. It's disappointing but it's not the end of the world. We've got another game and we've got to start preparing for that right now."

The slick guard, who had the crowd chanting "MVP, MVP" in his honour near the end, said he felt the referees got it wrong when they made that contentious late foul call.

"I didn't think it was an offensive foul, we were both hustling for the ball and I guess we were both holding each other. At the time I was pretty surprised. It was a tough call and sort of changed the rhythm of the game a little bit."

Webster had a sizzling offensive game, going 10-of-22 from the floor as he mixed some dazzling drives to the hoop with a series of sweet jumpers. But he would have been disappointed to go just two-of-10 beyond the arc, and especially to see his late attempt to tie the scores rim out - as did Penney's soon after.

"I thought both of them were good actually," Webster said. "We've got to start knocking those down. When the game's on the line that's what wins you games."

Big Rob Loe also produced a solid night's work for the Tall Blacks, finishing with 11 points (4/7FG, 3/4 3pt) and six rebounds (all off the offensive glass) as his pick-and-pop ability forced the Turks to bench NBA centre Omer Asik for the entire second half.

The Turks did a great job limiting Penney to just nine points on three-of-11 shooting, while Isaac Fotu (eight points, four boards), Tai Webster (seven points, five rebounds, two assists), Mika Vukona (a game-high eight rebounds) and Casey Frank (five points, three boards and one superb block at the end of the third quarter) all chipped in at various times.

Tom Abercrombie looked a little shy of his best at the offensive end, but did snaffle seven rebounds as the New Zealanders thrashed the sizeable Turks 47-31 in the battle of the boards.

But in the end it was a massive opportunity lost to secure a huge upset against the 2010 tournament runners-up. After leading 38-28 at the half and 56-52 heading into the final period, the New Zealanders looked in an unassailable position before their offence completely dried up. Freeze-dried, if you listened to a clearly disappointed Vucinic afterwards.

Earlier, the Dominican Republic were beaten 72-62 by the Ukraine. The Caribbean nation paid the price for a slow start to the third quarter, allowing the Europeans to go on a 14-0 run after being locked at 27-27 apiece at the major break.

Ukraine point guard Pooh Jeter, who led his team with 16 points, said it had been a  case of his team eventually finding its feet after halftime. "Both teams in the beginning were a little nervous, a little too excited. But in the second half we started getting in the groove and making our shots," he said.

Turkey 76 (Oguz Savas 16, Emir Preldzic 14, Baris Hersek 11) Tall Blacks 73 (Corey Webster 22, Rob Loe). 1Q: 8-17, HT: 28-38, 3Q: 52-56

The Tall Blacks open their FIBA World Cup campaign against Turkey on Sunday morning NZT.

Tall Blacks Game Schedule
All times below are NZT

Sunday 31st August
2:00am v Turkey

Sunday 31st August
10:30pm v Dominican Republic

Wednesday 3rd September
3.30am v USA

Thursday 4th September
1:00am v Ukraine

Friday 5th September
1:00am v Finland

The Tall Blacks are drawn in Group C at the FIBA World Cup alongside Turkey, Dominican Republic, USA, Ukraine, and Finland.

Game one against Turkey is on August 30th in Bilbao, Spain, the complete draw can be found at  http://www.fiba.com/basketballworldcup/2014

The tournament will be covered live in New Zealand on SKY SPORT, check guides for details.

 

Tall Blacks Defeat Serbia

August 25, 2014

The Tall Blacks have given themselves the best possible preparation in their final hit out before the FIBA World Cup in Spain with a 102-96 win over European powerhouse Serbia.

 

“This is a big win, personally as well for the team. This is down to the work we have all done, it was a great occasion, the stadium was full and it is very rare that any team in the world wins here, we did that and the boys performed superbly.

“I had a lot of friends and family at the game, after the first game everyone was talking about how well we played but after this one everybody is acknowledging the strength of the Tall Blacks and the way we played the game. It is exciting, I told the guys before the game there was no pressure on them, they came out and played the best game so far on tour, it is very pleasing for me but at the end of the day it is a preparation game for the World Cup.”

The game was not without its hiccups though, with Vucinic having to work his roster without one of the best performers of the tour so far.

“We did not play Corey Webster at all in this game, he sprained an ankle in training, it is nothing serious, we think he will be out for 3 or 4 days and we are hoping to have him back on track for the game against Turkey. That was a big blow, he is playing very well. The sprain itself is not bad but the timing is bad.”

Vucinic says the win will be great for the team’s confidence but it was not something they were overly sweating on.

“European teams are tough and it is always good to get over the line, but even if we didn’t win this game the performances are encouraging. We are also aware that World Cup is the World Cup, with must-win games, we are building well towards game one and expect good things, I am excited about the game today but we will come down quickly from this as we fly tomorrow to Spain and get straight back into training.

“We have had a good preparation, a good schedule and we are ideally placed at this point. We now have must-win games ahead of us in the World Cup. This Tall Blacks roster is a good mix of youth and experience, the younger players are stepping up and the experienced players are leading well, we are in a good place now.”

Kirk Penney led the Tall Blacks scoring with 29 (5/7 from 3 point range) while Mike Vukona picked up 22 on 10/13 shooting and Tai Webster had arguably his best game in a black singlet, with 21 points.

Tall Blacks 102
K Penney 29, M Vukona 22, T Webster 21
Serbia 96

The Tall Blacks have taken world number 11 Serbia to the wire in a 79-83 loss in Vrsac this morning in their penultimate game before the FIBA World Cup in Spain.

 The New Zealanders proved more than competitive against their higher ranked opponents in front of a vocal sell out home crowd and some good old fashioned home town refereeing in another strong hit out before travelling to Spain.

 The Tall Blacks led at halftime 45-42 and had their noses in front heading into the final five minutes, but couldn’t convert down the stretch while Serbia went to the line on multiple occasions and drained their free throws to edge a close encounter.

 Assistant Coach Paul Henare described the game.

 That was bitter sweet for us, we came really close and that after having a good crack at Lithuania and Slovenia and falling off the pace against Greece last week. This game we were poised and in control for the majority of the game and came close, but we spoke afterwards about not being satisfied with coming close, we are trying to beat these teams on their home floor and we are desperate to get over the line. With how the game played out and the way the boys played however there are very important and positive signs heading into Spain.”

 The Tall Blacks again won the rebound count against bigger opposition, taking control of the boards 41-30 with Casey Frank (9), Mika Vukona (8) and Isaac Fotu (7) leading the way in the muscle department.

 Henare says the vibe at the game was fantastic and a great lead in to Spain.

 “The atmosphere and game was awesome, we were told this might be a closed game with no fans, but as we were coming to the stadium we were told it was sold out and on TV, 4000 fans in the gym, really vocal and behind their team and a fantastic atmosphere in the stadium.”

 Henare said the team had to encounter some ‘interesting calls’ throughout, especially down the stretch.

 “There were some dubious calls towards the end, one with about 3 minutes to go was called on Mika and he was nowhere near the play. The referees are very good at knowing who the key players are and that one hurt Mika and us down the stretch. There were a few others you shake your head at but you have to expect that in these games on enemy shore, it is a very real thing and tonight was one of those occasions with a few calls you shake your head at. But we address it before the game and expect it but it doesn’t make it any easier.”

 The Tall Blacks did address a problem area by reducing their turnovers, but then found another area of the game that let them down.

 “We had 15 turnovers tonight which is three or four too high but we have shaved 10 off what we have been averaging, and in the last quarter it was only three so we made some good strides there. We shot the ball well at a good clip and defensively we did a good job but they shot the lights out on the free throw line and we fell short in that area.”

 The Tall Blacks played without Tom Abercrombie, who sat this game out as a precaution with a minor abdominal strain.

 The two teams will play again on Sunday New Zealand time before the Tall Blacks long journey towards the World Cup finds them at last in Spain on Monday of this coming week.

 Tall Blacks 79
C Webster 18, Bartlett 13, Penney 12, Vukona 12
Serbia 83
Raduljica 21, Bogdanovic 16

 

Schedule for FIBA 2014 WC
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: Tall Blacks V Turkey 31/08/2014 02:00 SKY Sport 1
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Tall Blacks V Turkey 31/08/2014 09:00 SKY Sport 2
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: Dominican Rep. V Tall Blacks 31/08/2014 22:20 SKY Sport 2
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Dominican Rep. V Tall Blacks 1/09/2014 09:00 SKY Sport 2
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: USA V Tall Blacks 3/09/2014 03:20 SKY Sport 2
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: USA V Tall Blacks 3/09/2014 06:00 SKY Sport 1
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: USA V Tall Blacks 3/09/2014 16:00 SKY Sport 3
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: Tall Blacks V Ukraine 4/09/2014 00:50 SKY Sport 1
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Tall Blacks V Ukraine 4/09/2014 06:00 SKY Sport 2
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Tall Blacks V Ukraine 4/09/2014 15:00 SKY Sport 1
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: Finland V Tall Blacks 5/09/2014 00:50 SKY Sport 4
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Finland V Tall Blacks 5/09/2014 06:00 SKY Sport 2
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Finland V Tall Blacks 5/09/2014 13:00 SKY Sport 3
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: Semi-Final 1 12/09/2014 06:50 SKY Sport 3
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Semi-Final 1 12/09/2014 15:00 SKY Sport 4
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: Semi-Final 2 13/09/2014 07:50 SKY Sport 3
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Semi-Final 2 13/09/2014 20:00 SKY Sport 4
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Live: Final 15/09/2014 06:50 SKY Sport 3
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Final 15/09/2014 18:00 SKY Sport 3
FIBA Basketball World Cup – Replay: Final 17/09/2014 10:00 SKY Sport 1

 

 

Nenad Vucinic has made the decision no coach likes to make and cut his Tall Blacks roster down to 12 for the upcoming FIBA World Cup in Spain, ending the dreams of two players who have been part of the wider roster for the past month.

The two players not to be going on to Serbia for the final warm up games and then on to Spain for the tournament itself are Nick Horvath and Tai Wynyard – and the two couldn’t be a greater contrast in stories.

Horvath was fighting Casey Frank for the one naturalized player spot allowed by FIBA on the roster and is already able to look back on a stellar career, a career that has seen him clock up plenty of miles on the training court and in game time in both the Bartercard NBL and the Australian National Basketball League, earning a reputation as a great team mate and contributor to many successful campaigns.

Wynyard by contrast this year made history as the youngest ever Tall Black at just 16 years of age and has a long career full of opportunities stretching out ahead of him.

Vucinic says the decision was both easy and difficult for very different reasons.

“This was a very tough decision to make between Casey and Nick. Both can contribute and do contribute a lot to our team. Tai Wynyard is part of the future of the Tall Blacks but at just 16 years old, he is just not ready yet. Tai wasn’t a tough decision he is very young and has done very well in our camps, he is the future of Tall Blacks and will be a force to come, and it was worthwhile taking him with us on this trip.

“We tend to forget how young he is, he still wants to play, and he is probably the most talented player for his age in New Zealand that I have ever seen. We hope he grows a couple more inches so he can be a genuine inside force, but even if he doesn’t he has so much ability.”

If the decision around Wynyard was ‘easy’ for Vucinic in the context of his fledgling career, the one to release Horvath from the roster was at the other extreme.

“Nick was the toughest decision I have made ever in terms of the Tall Blacks, we have gone with Casey as much because of what we know, a player that is proven at international level. Nick has been very good, a good team mate on and off court. Both have been up and down a little in their performance, just a case there wasn’t enough reason to leave Casey out as the incumbent. This wasn’t a normal trial, it was between the two of them, they were both very nervous and have underperformed because of this situation, and the pressure has been enormous. During the 14 games it has been hard to tell, but we decided to go with what we know, Casey has proven himself at this level and can make an impact on the court.

“Some players have been relaxed because they know they have made it, but Nick is devastated not to make it. We coaches were meeting and always one of the subjects was this decision. It was very difficult for us, I cannot imagine how difficult it is for Nick. He took it well though, we had a meeting and the boys did the best ever Haka I have ever seen in my life, it was very emotional but Nick took it like a man and wished us well, my heart goes out to him.”

The Tall Blacks are drawn in Group C at the FIBA World Cup alongside Turkey, Dominican Republic, USA, Ukraine, and Finland.

The tournament will be covered live in New Zealand on SKY SPORT, check guides for details.

New Zealand's Pool C games: Aug 30 v Turkey; Aug 31 v Dominican Republic; Sept 2 v USA; Sept 3 v Ukraine; Sept 4 v Finland.




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