Golden Nuggets seize national crown
CHAMPAGNE soaked Brent Matehaere as he swung open the locker room door.
The head coach was the last of the Otago Nuggets squad to return from the court.
By that point, the celebrations were already under way.
And who could blame the players for not waiting?
The Nuggets had capped a dream playoff run in Auckland, beating the hometown Auckland Tuatara 8173 in Saturday night’s National Basketball League final.
Winning alone was enough cause for the ecstasy.
But it was the fact this team had been written off by so many earlier in the week that made it all the more sweet.
It was only eight days earlier that the Nuggets clinched their playoff spot, which left them to win three games in four days to clinch the title.
‘‘It’s just the guys tuning in and having that desire, wanting to prove the pundits wrong,’’ Matehaere said, still dripping wet and with the championship net around his neck.
‘‘I know there’s a few people going to be celebrating tonight. From what I understand, we were very long odds to win this.
‘‘We’re pretty excited that we could get that done.’’
American forward Keith Williams topscored with 34 points, named Finals Most Valuable Player in an outstanding showing.
He came up with two big baskets late in the game, allowing the Nuggets to pull away after leading by just one point with three minutes to play.
It was the first championship for the Nuggets since they entered the league in 1990, though they won the Covidadapted NBL Showdown in 2020 after returning from a lengthy hiatus.
❛ It’s just the guys tuning in and having that desire, wanting to prove the pundits wrong