Brock Motum signs with the Adelaide 36ers

Brock Motum who was recently released from the Utah Jazz was picked up by the Adelaide 36ers. This is a huge signing for the 36ers who now have two world cup boomers team mates in Adam Gibson and now Brock Motum. Brock Motum is a 6 foot 9 inch power forward who shoots at a decent clip from the 3 point range. The 36ers have been looking for a shooting big after losing the teams MVP Daniel Johnson who decided to take his talents overseas.
With this recent acquisition the 36ers had to release a player with a 10 point rating from the squad. This means their import forward Dequon Montreal had to be released from his contract. Montreal the former SEABL star was fully aware of the negotiations.
The Adelaide 36ers today won their game against the New Zealand breakers 93-86 and moved to a 3-2 win record. Adam Gibson had a big game finishing with 34 points, 9 assists, 6 steals and 6 rebounds. Gibsons partner in the back court Brandan Teys also had a good game tallying a personal record of 23 points. A lot of the scoring responsibility was put on their shoulders with injured players Jamar Wilson and Mitch Creek out injured.
Brock Motum will join the team and hopefully suit up with the 36ers in their next game against the Sydney Kings which should also see Josh Childress rejoin the Kings after his suspension.

Cairns go down to the unbeaten Perth wildcats at Perth Arena

The Perth Wildcats have kept their 7-0 unbeaten record alive at home in a win over the Cairns Taipans 75-68. Damian Martin was a monster on defense making life miserable for one of the best back courts in the league in Demetri McCamey and Jamar Wilson. Cairns were having trouble just getting the ball over half way for most of the match and Martin just kept picking up steals and intercepts finishing with 12 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. James Ennis continued to show his skill making some big highlight dunks and some classy moves around the rim finishing with 22 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. For the taipans Alex Loughton top scored with 14 points followed by McCamey with 13 points and 4 assists but had 5 turnovers.

Despite some big effort plays from Jamar Wilson the Cairns Taipans looked stagnant and didn't want the ball as much the Wildcats.  The play of the game happened late in the first quarter when Damian Martin made a steal and got the ball up to Jermain Beal who lobbed it up for a big James Ennis dunk. 

For the last points in the half James Ennis breaks Steven Weigh’s ankles with a nice fake going to the rim and has an easy little lay up and the score is 40-36. Cairns have been lucky for the score to be as close at it is with Martin dogging the Taipans on defence and Jermain Beal and James Ennis filling in the offence. 

Shawn Redhage got his 4th foul in the first minute of the third quarter and i think he played as many minutes as he had fouled through the game. The refs may finally be picking up the rough play he has been famous for. The Taipans did well on defence to try to keep James Ennis from using his exceptional athleticism by keeping him on the floor but some nice fakes from Ennis and he keeps getting his shots up.

The Cairns Taipans again come out hitting shots in the start of the last quarter with Cameron Tragardh hitting a jumper and Alex Loughton hitting a 3 and the score was tied 60-60. Each quarter Cairns played well in the first 2 minutes and died through the quarter mainly due to the smothering defense from Damian Martin. Tom Jervis had a big game with at least 4 blocks that weren't attributed to him. Between him and Matt Knight the Wildcats are going to be strong at the center position. In the dyeing minutes of the game Cairns were down and had to foul to stop the clock but had 0 fouls at the time so they lost preciouce mintues to get up to five fouls. When they finally get to the fifth foul the ref lets an arm grab go and martin gets the ball to Matt Knight for a jump shot to seal a game that must have been painful for the Taipans. 75-68. 

The Perth Wildcats in my opinion are becoming the Miami Heat of the Australian NBL. They have the big 3 in Damian Martin, Jermain Beal and James Ennis and they play a very exciting style of basketball, also unless your from Perth you want them to lose. But i dont mind watching them. Im really looking forward to the Sydney Kings vs Perth wildcats game next week with the supposed Ennis stopper in Sam Young coming into the lineup for the Kings.

Perth Wildcats 75 (Ennis 22, Beal 13, Martin 12)
Cairns Taipans 68 (Loughton 14, McCamey 13, Weigh 10

Here's a link to the alley oop highlight.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8oPwqQdFOc&feature=youtube_gdata

Chris Goulding leads the Tigers to defeat the Cairns Taipans in a spectacular display of skill with 34 points

The Melbourne Tigers managed to defeat the Cairns Taipans at Cairns on Saturday night lead by Chris "Bubbles" Goulding who showed his array of offensive skills across the game with some excellent drives, post ups and shot from long range, he finished with 34 points, 2 assists, 5 rebounds and 1 steal. The Tiger's walked away with the win 86-74.

Chris Goulding game out firing from the start with some strong offense, but Cairns had all the answers they needed with some nice inside passes from Demetri McCamey into Mitch Young and Cam Tragadh. The Tigers managed to hold the lead to close the quarter with a nice drive by Mark Worthington who passed it to Ayinde Ubaka who drained the 3 pointer closing the quarter 23-27.

The second quarter had some nice plays with a second decent dunk from Cairn's Mitch young and Lucas Walker nearly did a Tiggs attempting a big dunk but he at least managed to get it to roll in. But it was Gouldings play making that kept the Tigers in front with some nice spin movies around Jamar Wilson. 2/3 of Melbournes scoring was coming from either Chris Goulding or Mark Worthington who also had abig game with 13 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocked shots
. Goulding was showing his potential with some great penetration into the key way and excellent passes to the open shooters. Again Ubaka closed the quarter with a nice drive to hole keeping the Tigers with a 4 point lead 41-45.

The third quarter was when Goulding stepped it up getting 14 of his 34 in this 10 minute stretch and the Tigers had a 10 point lead by the half way point of the quarter. Cairns on the other hand only managed to score 16 for the quarter. Jamar Wilson who finished with 17 for Cairns managed to keep them alive but the onslaught from Goulding continued with 2 back to back 3 point plays.

The final quarter was played out with Cairns trying to hold on but couldn't pull back the 10 point defecit to much less then 8. Mark Worthington made a huge block on a Sean Bruce fast break which it looked like he lined up from the half way line. The Taipans missing Cam Gliddon looked a lot shallower and lacked the outside shooting that they can be so deadly from. Lets hops he can come back as strong as ever and help the Taipans with some confidence they looked to be lacking on Saturday.

In a post game interview referring to his time with the Cleveland Cavaliers summer camp Goulding stated, "it let me know where my game needs to go"
It looks like it really has as he is developing into one of the great NBL players of this generation, if he can keep up the consistency. Maybe Andrew Gaze has been giving him some pointers in Melbourne.

Melbourne Tigers 86 (Goulding 34, Worthington 13)
Cairns Taipans 74 (Wilson 17, Tragardh Weigh 10)

Adelaide 36ers down Cairns Wildcats in a game of quarters

The Adelaide 36ers defeated the Cairns Taipans in Cairns last night in a game that swung on quarters. The taipans lead by 18 points in the first half and by 11 at the final break but weren't up to stop a re-surging 36ers squad. Mitch Creek had a big game hitting the important shots to finish as the 36ers leading scorer at 14 points followed closely by Adam Gibson and Anthony Petrie with 13. For the Taipans Alex Loughton looked unstoppable finishing with 22 points and Jamar Wilson was firing from all cylinder finishing with 17 points and 6 rebounds.

Cairns started off making no mistakes as they headed to an easy looking 29-15 lead at the end of the first quarter. Adelaide couldn't make a shot to start the game and Cairns were doing everything right hitting their shots and pulling down the scrappy rebounds while Adelaide just looked slow on defense. Demetri McCamey had a huge block on Gary Ervin who just couldn't get his game going with 0-5 shots.

The first quarter was owned by the Taipans but as we saw it was game of quarters and Adelaide came to play in the second. Jarrid Frye started his hot streak with the first 4 points after the first break and was very dangerous on offense finishing the game with 13 points. Adam Gibson got going in the second quarter and made some important defensive stops as well as some big plays and the 36ers were back with 1 minute. On the Buzzer Gibson makes a 2 with some good defense from Perth and the half closes 44-45.

Perth picked up their game in the 3rd quarter and Demitri McCamey came out pumped off a nice three pointer and they took a 7 point run. Gary Ervin finally gets his shot as the commentators comment on his poor play but Cairns just too good behind exceptional offensive plays from McCamey and Alex Loughton and hold the lead 66-55.

Anthony Petrie and Adam Gibson make some nice 3 point plays to get the 36ers back to only a 4

point deficit and Adelaide are pushing it with Mitch Creek getting another 3 point play to get them down by 1 with 4 minutes left in the game. At this point 10 fouls have been called in the quarter and both teams see a lot of the free throw line to close it out. Mitch Creek continued his break out performance with a long 3 to take the lead 79-76 with 1:35 left in the game. Following this Gary Ervin makes a nice floater and the 36ers are up by 4 and maintain the lead to close it out from the free throw line. Cairns kept trying to pull it back but Gary Ervin free throw shooting just holds them in front and the Adelaide 36ers win 84-87.

Cairns are looking good this season and they were missing the sharp shooting of Cam Gliddon who is a rising star in the league and got rookie of the year last year. This was a tight game that played out in a swinging control of the 4 quarters but Adelaide having the better final quarter to win it.

Cairns hold off New Zealand for their first match up win in 3 years

The Cairns Taipans held off the New Zealand breakers for the first time in 3 years behind a spectacular performance from Cam Cliddon.  Gliddon shooting at 82% finished with 24 points with 13 of them in the third quarter. Cairns held onto a tough win 86-85. It was a tight game with the Breakers never letting the Taipans get too far away from them. Cairns held the lead after a blistering start from Cam Tragardh who finished with 13 points in 12 minutes. Breakers held them close with the lead getting to a high of 8 points for the Taipans, but the breakers kept pulling it back. It was a physical battle with several players hitting the floor across the second half. Mika Vukona got called for a foul as Demitri McCamey drove past him and Vukona gives a little tackle as he goes to the floor and McCamey postures for a fight. I'm not sure the refs in North Queensland got the memo on the rule revisions. Jamar Wilson chipped a tooth and acted like it didn't happen as he played on. Wilson has stepped up to show what a force he can be in the league, as he controlled the tempo in the game. His stats of 3 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists doesn't correctly show his impact on the floor, but his play making was impressive to watch. Cairns head coach Aaron Fearne made an excellent decision getting a second import guard in Demetri McCamey who could take some of the pressure off Wilson as a play maker to open up his already impressive shooting line up. He made some big plays driving to the hole picking up 17 points in total.

New Zealand's import guard Kevin Johnson filled the stat sheet with 18 points, 5 assists, 3 steals and 2 rebounds and CJ Bruton had a big game with a lot of minutes finishing with 15 points. CJ had the shot for the win with an open 3 but missed on the buzzer. That shot has and will sink several teams hopes in the dyeing seconds. I think CJ is what the Breakers were missing on Friday's game against Townsville. His impact for the Breakers as a leader and for his cool shooting can not be underestimated. The breakers were down by 3 in the final 30 seconds as Wilson got called for a techincal foul on a breakers inbound. CJ Bruton sinks the 2 free throws but the Breakers miss on the possesion. Up by one point Cairns use the whole shot clock and McCamey takes a step back 2 but missed, Mitch young brings down rebound for Cairns but missed. With 5 seconds left the Breakers bring down the rebound, get it to Johnson who ran the flloor getting it to CJ for an open 3 but missed giving Cairns the win 85-86.
It was an exciting game and showed some big things for both teams. I'm expecting to see both of them in the top four at the end of the season.

NBL Round 2 Weekend Preview

This weekend we see Round 21 of the NBL season with 2 teams playing 2 games across the weekend
for 5 games to watch for the fans on NBL.tv.

Friday night we have 2 games to watch with the first being the New Zeland Breakers playing the Townsville Crocodiles. This should be a relatively easy win for the Breakers who were looking their the goods against Wollongong last week and i dont think the Crocodiles will have enought to take down the defending champs this early in the season. The Breakers are a team that has on majority not changed much over the last 3 years and their expereince playing with each other should be enough to get them win.

The Second game for Friday is the Perth Wildcats playing the Sydney Kings in Perth. This should be pretty close match up. With the Kings winning their game last round against the Melbourne Tigers i think they will have some confidence going into the Perth Arena but in the end i dont think they will have enough to get the win. It should be close game and AJ Ogilvy should run rampert in the post but unless James Harvey and Ben Madgen are both nailing their shots James Ennis and the Wildcats should have enough to get the win at home. Should be the pick of games to watch on Friday with it being played on ONE HD at 9.30pm.
Saturday night again has two games being played with the first being the Adelaide 36ers vs Wollongong Hawks in Adelaide for thier fisrst home game of the season. The 36ers being down two

starter last round showed off their depth of bench and the level they will playing in the close defeat Perth. It will be great to see a full strength 36ers play against a hopefully full strength Hawks. The Hawks have added their second import who might play if his immigration and FIBA paper work goes through in time. The Hawks have the potential to be a very strong team but this early in the season with a new import to adjust to, i dont think they will be able to keep up with the new run and gun Adelaide 36ers. Adelaide should easily get the win this time.
The second game on Friday is the Cairns taipans playing against the New Zealand Breakers in Cairns.

This should be a great game with the Taipans showing how strong an offensive threat they have become this season with 100+ point 40 minute game in their win against Townsville. If Jamar Wilson can perform how he did last week Cairns should get the win. The breakers will be tired after their game the night before against Townsville and if Cairns are hitting thier shots they should get the win but it will likely be a tight game. I doubt the Breakers will let them get their own way like they did against the Crocodiles.
The Final game of the weekend is on sunday with the Perth Wildcats taking on the Melbourne Tigers in Melbourne. The Tigers may play Chris Goulding for limited minutes floowing a fitness test which may give them a bit more on offense but unless they can contain James Ennis Perth might get their second win for the weekend. For Melbourne to get a win in this game Mark Worthington must stay out of foul trouble and make his mark on the game like he did last week against Sydney. I think this should be a close game and is probably the most difficult to call. Id like Melbourne to get a win but i think Perth may still be too much for them untill they have a full strength Chris Goulding. As it stands they dont have enough of an offensive presence to keep up with Perth but given this is the Wildcats second game of the weekend it may be a close one.

Weekend Recap

Over the first round of the NBL we got an insight into what we can expect from the teams this season.
New zeland Breakers defeated Wollongong Hawks
Perth Wildcats defeated Adelaide 36ers
Cairns Taipans trounced Townsville Crocodiles
Sydney Kings defeated Melbourne Tigers

Even though it was only the first round it was great to see where each team is looking to sit on the ladder this year with the league having more parity then last year. For me it looks like Perth, New Zealand and Adelaide should be in the top four for most of the season. It will be a tough fight for the fourth spot with Cairns and Melbourne looking like they could get very strong.
Cairns look to be a well built team with some great guards surrounded by excellent shooters. Jamar Wilson excploded to 27 points coming off the bench for Cairns and if he continues to come off the bench is a guaranteed best 6th man. After their first games performance possible MVP candidate. However this was against the weakest team in the league in the NBL and round 1 really showed many of their flaws. Having clawed their way back into the NBL this season if Townsville notch up some wins it will be by shear hard work. But thats what Townsville is know for and i think they can fight their way to a few wins, but will mostly likely remain as the cellar dwellars on the ladder.
Perth look very good and their star import James Ennis will explode as a star in the league, if he remains all year a MVP favourite but he will likely return to the NBA should the Miami Heat get any injuries. Adelaide showed off the depth of their bench being able to contend with a nearly full strength Perth team (missing Matt Knight) missing two starting players in Adam Gibson and Jarryd Frye.
New Zealand showed their everpresent strength in the win over the Hawks and the depth of their bench will also be a big factor to their progress through the season. This however wil be where Wollongong falters their bench is not as deep as other teams in the league and they will heavily rely on the starting 5 players. However when Rhys Martin gets healthy and if he can play like he was last year and with the precise shooting of Rotnei Clark they can still be threat to any team they play.
Sydney defeated Melbourne but it was a close game and emphasised the strength Melbourne would have been had they still had Stephen Dennis and a healthy Chris Goulding. Mark Worthington showed off why he was a boomer in the last two olympics and looked like he could do what he wanted on the offensive end and made some important stops and blocks on the defensive end. James Harvey had a great game for the Kings and brought home the victory with some hot shooting finishing with 19 points. It will be great to finally see a healthy James harvey this season, lets hope he can stay that way.

From what we have seen in Round 1 it should be an great season with some very exciting imports and with the altered style in reffing we may finally get to see them show off their skills without being hampered down with a rubgy style basketball the NBL has been renowned for.

Jamar Wilson re-sign with Cairns

The Cairns Taipans star point guard Jamar Wilson has resigned for another 2 years. This is a big signing for Cairns, Wilson has had a big impact on the league this year coming 2nd in the MVP race behind Kevin Lisch. He also lead his team in points and assists for the season. This was his first season in the NBL and is keen to stay on for another 2 yearsI fell in love with Cairns the first week I was here."
"The sunshine, the people, the place - and that was even before I got onto the playing court."
 Wilson has lead his team to many close games and is known as one of the best closer in the league.
At the back end of tight games, I knew we had the advantage of having him (Wilson) there," said taipans coach Aaran Fearne.
"He is our go to man in those situations and I feel more than confident to put the ball in his hands if the game is on the line."
Congrats on the Cairns taipans for signing there extremely talented young player Jamar wilson for another 2 years.