Basketball stars seek the scalp of Australia

SCOTLAND’S Commonwealth Games basketball journey comes full circle tomorrow — as they get the chance to play for a medal against mighty Australia. The Aussies were the first opponents faced by a Scottish basketball side in Games competition. And it did not go overly well for the outsiders. Gareth Murray, who played in that opening 129-52 thumping by the hosts at Melbourne 2006, recalled: ‘yeah, our very first game was against Australia — and we lost by 77 points! ‘That was really the starting point of my career — since then I’ve played in two eurobaskets in 2013 and 2017, so I’ve amassed a lot more experience in playing 13 years of professional basketball since then. ‘Last time we played, it was Nigeria who put us out of the chance to play for third and fourth place. ‘yet here we are, having beaten them to make the semis. I didn’t think we’d ever be back here at the Commonwealth Games, far less playing in a semi-final. It feels like some achievement. ‘playing Australia is tough, they’re one of the top teams in the world. I know a lot of people back home who didn’t think it was possible for us to win any games, coming in as eighth seed. ‘But we have the belief in our team we can get a medal.’ Scotland go up against the Aussies at 1am UK time tomorrow, then play in either the gold or bronze- medal match early on Sunday. Much of their turnaround has been attributed to the appointment of Australian coach Rob Beveridge — who has a Scottish dad — just last month. Murray, a forward who has been used as much at guard in a revamped system, said of the new boss: ‘It’s been great, the way he interacts with the players, the knowledge of the game, the style of basketball we play, his ability to put people in the right place to make them successful in a game. ‘We know there are limits to what each player can do and what our strengths and weaknesses are. But he’s made the most of every single one of us. We’ve won four games going into a semi-final, which is an unbelievable achievement — so far.’