Defence to the fore as Nuggets hit their straps at precisely the right time NBL final

The scores

Otago Nuggets ......................... 81

Keith Williams 34, Tray Boyd 19

Auckland Tuatara .................... 73

Siler Schneider 16, Rob Loe 13

Quarter scores: 1722, 4342, 6459.

THE realisation swept over the arena as Brent Matehaere called his final timeout.

Just 11 seconds were showing on the game clock, and the Otago Nuggets were holding a sixpoint lead in the National Basketball

League final.

They had just got the crucial defensive stop to put themselves in a winning position, and there was a sense of celebration as Matehaere signalled for the timeout to close out the game.

The Nuggets found Tray Boyd from there, the import guard draining two free throws to cap an 8173 win over the Auckland Tuatara in front of a raucous crowd in Auckland.

With that, the Nuggets secured their first NBL championship and a second trophy in three years, following the Showdown win in 2020.

‘‘I think it’s like comparing children,’’ Matehaere said when asked how the NBL championship compared with the Showdown.

‘‘It was so special back then. To achieve what we achieved in that competition was amazing.

‘‘And this one, too, they’re different. I guess the only analogy I’ve got is it’s like babies.

‘‘This is our baby this year. It’s the 2022 Nuggets NBL champions and we’ve got the chip.’’

Keith Williams led the Nuggets with 34 points, the American forward attacking aggressively and coming up with two big plays down the stretch to clinch victory.

He did that on 13of23 shooting as well, while hauling in eight rebounds in a performance which was acknowledged with the final’s Most Valuable Player award.

Boyd had 19 points himself, while the duo of Todd Withers and Sam Timmins were imposing all night defensively.

That defensive intensity was notable, as it had been the whole playoff run in Auckland, having lifted several levels from where it had been during the regular season.

Williams carried the Nuggets through the early part of the game with 10 points in the first quarter.

However, they fell behind 2217, as Tuatara duo Siler Schneider (16 points) and Taki Fahrensohn (10 points) got to the hoop.

Williams went quiet in the second quarter, and for a patch noone filled that void.

That allowed the Tuatara to stretch their lead to 3827 midway through the quarter, on the back of several quality baskets from Dontae RussoNance.

But Boyd sparked a comeback, scoring 10 points in a row by himself to put the Nuggets ahead 4342 at halftime.

From there, the Nuggets rallied.

A Matthew Bardsley slam dunk helped spark another strong patch, while Williams began attacking aggressively to get back into his scoring groove.

The Nuggets led 6252 at one point, but the Tuatara finished the quarter strongly.

They hung around and drew to within one point at 7473 with three minutes to go, when RussoNance hit two free throws.

But the Nuggets, particularly Withers, locked in defensively.

They held the Tuatara scoreless through the final three minutes of the game.

Boyd hit a free throw, before Williams made a tough finish in transition to put it to 7773 with less than a minute to play.

He effectively iced the game shortly after, hitting a tough pullup low in the shot clock with a hand in his face.

The championship was the Nuggets’ first in a fullleague format.

The competition win capped a dream run in which they won three games in four days to claim the title.