Cooks delivers goods as Saints stay in finals hunt
The Wellington Saints still have a heartbeat in the National Basketball League finals race.
With their season effectively on the line, the 12-time champions delivered when it mattered, toppling the Otago Nuggets 100-88 in the capital yesterday.
It has been a rotten 2022 season for the defending champions, but with a 5-8 record they still remain alive with five round games left.
Saints’ Australian star Xavier Cooks put up the finest all-round individual showing of the season, producing 26 points, 17 rebounds, six assists, five steals and three blocks.
New American forward Reggie Upshaw had a strong first game for the Saints, providing 19 points and six rebounds in 25 minutes. Upshaw, who played college ball at Middle Tennessee State, last played professionally in Germany.
The Saints still find themselves in a tough spot. They play Hawke’s Bay twice in a row, then finish with the Manawatū Jets and the NBL’s top two teams, the Nelson Giants and Auckland Tuatara.
They will probably need to win four of five to avoid the embarrassment of missing the finals for the first time since 2007.
The Canterbury Rams caused the upset of the round, knocking over the Tuatara 92-84 in Auckland yesterday, behind 31 points and 12 boards from centre Mike Karena.
Imports Sunday Dech (17 points, eight rebounds, four assists) and Matthew Moyer (15 points, 11 rebounds) were also influential for the Rams, who move to 7-7 and stay in finals contention.
Nelson bounced back from a subpar home loss to Taranaki the previous weekend, beating the bottomplaced Southland Sharks 89-81 in Nelson.
The Giants played with greater intensity and accuracy, but would have been disappointed with the way they finished, outscored 23-11 by the Sharks in the final quarter.
With his arm still in a sling, Southland’s Australian coach Rob Beveridge made his return to the sideline following a horrific roof fall at his Sydney home last month.
Beveridge fell 6m from the roof of his house while cleaning gutters, with doctors telling him he was lucky to be alive. He broke his scapula in three places and suffered six broken ribs, remaining in hospital for 12 days.
Southland, usually one of the NBL’s strongest teams, have had a miserable season, with the loss dropping them to 3-10. They look poised to finish last for the first time in team history.
Taranaki made it four straight wins to continue their charge towards the finals.
The Airs, who are having their best season in decades, triumphed 84-67 against the Franklin Bulls in New Plymouth on Wednesday.
American trio Anthony Hilliard (23 points, five rebounds, four assists), Javonte Douglas (23 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, four steals) and Shaun Willett (11 points, six rebounds, four assists) were again superb for the Airs, who sit third with an 8-5 record.
The Bulls rebounded the following night, overcoming the Jets 99-83 in O¯ taki, courtesy of 34 points and six assists from leading Tall Black Corey Webster.