FIBA Basketball
AUS - Aussies shrug off brave effort from England
MELBOURNE (Commonwealth Games) - Australia shrugged off a brave effort from England to reach the men's final of the Commonwealth Games basketball tournament.The Boomers made it through to Friday's gold medal match, where they will play either
MELBOURNE (Commonwealth Games) - Australia shrugged off a brave effort from England to reach the men's final of the Commonwealth Games basketball tournament.
The Boomers made it through to Friday's gold medal match, where they will play either New Zealand or Nigeria, after defeating Pete Scantlebury's men 101-75.
However, it was not as easy as the final scoreline might suggest for the tournament favourites as England gave them a run for their money, especially early on.
England took a 17-15 lead on the back of a John Amaechi free throw but a 9-0 run from Australia helped put the hosts in front 27-23 at the end of the first quarter.
The hosts weren't able to build on that advantage in the second period as England matched the Boomers blow-for-blow and trailed by just four points at the break, 50-46. The third period proved a poor one for England though and Australia took advantage to extend their lead to 77-58, a difference that proved too much for the visitors.
The England coach admitted: "We played really well in the first half, but a game's got 40 minutes and we lost our concentration.
"In terms of points, the game looks down, but in terms of effort, it's a positive."
Indeed it is. England, who will be joining forces with Scotland and Wales to play in EuroBasket qualifying games as Great Britain, need to demonstrate to basketball's world governing body FIBA they will be able to put a competitive side on the floor in order to take up their places at the 2012 Olympics which will be staged in London.
Britain is unquestionably one of the sleeping giants in world basketball and the fact they made a team like Australia which included many of their players who from the Athens Games and this year's World Championship work hard will not have been lost on FIBA.
Considering the number of rising British stars in the US and with European clubs who were unable to take part in Melbourne, the future does look bright for Britain.
Nevertheless, England veteran John Amaechi, arguably the most famous player ever to emerge from the country who spent several seasons in the NBA, said:
"I'm obviously disappointed. There are lessons we need to learn as a team. We're not consistent; we need to understand what wins."
Julius Joseph top-scored for England with 18 points while Robert Reed had 14 rebounds to go with his six points in a losing cause. Australia's Jason Smith paced his side with 18 points but it was the all-round performance of Sam McKinnon, who scored 13 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, handed out four assists and blocked two shots, that was perhaps the key to the Boomers win.
McKinnon has been bothered by injuries since Sydney hosted the Olympics in 2000 but he looks to be returning to top form and should contend for a place at the FIBA World Championship in Japan later this year.
Co-captain CJ Bruton said: "Sam virtually kept us in the game in the first half. He's our most valuable player, he does it all. He's a great asset to the team."
Rising star Brad Newley also praised the performance of Smith, while highlighting just what a Commonwealth gold medal would mean to his team.
"Jason Smith, how good was he? He closed the game out," Newley said.
There have been concerns that the sport may not be a part of the next Commonwealth Games in India.
"People can say what they like about basketball being played at the Commonwealth Games, but to us it's everything, because Australia has never won a medal before and we've got the chance to win gold," Newley added.
New Zealand play Nigeria in the other semi-final later on Wednesday with the winner meeting Australia and the loser facing off against England in the bronze-medal match.
From Mike Perez, PA Sport, Melbourne Exclusively for FIBA
The Boomers made it through to Friday's gold medal match, where they will play either New Zealand or Nigeria, after defeating Pete Scantlebury's men 101-75.
However, it was not as easy as the final scoreline might suggest for the tournament favourites as England gave them a run for their money, especially early on.
England took a 17-15 lead on the back of a John Amaechi free throw but a 9-0 run from Australia helped put the hosts in front 27-23 at the end of the first quarter.
The hosts weren't able to build on that advantage in the second period as England matched the Boomers blow-for-blow and trailed by just four points at the break, 50-46. The third period proved a poor one for England though and Australia took advantage to extend their lead to 77-58, a difference that proved too much for the visitors.
The England coach admitted: "We played really well in the first half, but a game's got 40 minutes and we lost our concentration.
"In terms of points, the game looks down, but in terms of effort, it's a positive."
Indeed it is. England, who will be joining forces with Scotland and Wales to play in EuroBasket qualifying games as Great Britain, need to demonstrate to basketball's world governing body FIBA they will be able to put a competitive side on the floor in order to take up their places at the 2012 Olympics which will be staged in London.
Britain is unquestionably one of the sleeping giants in world basketball and the fact they made a team like Australia which included many of their players who from the Athens Games and this year's World Championship work hard will not have been lost on FIBA.
Considering the number of rising British stars in the US and with European clubs who were unable to take part in Melbourne, the future does look bright for Britain.
Nevertheless, England veteran John Amaechi, arguably the most famous player ever to emerge from the country who spent several seasons in the NBA, said:
"I'm obviously disappointed. There are lessons we need to learn as a team. We're not consistent; we need to understand what wins."
Julius Joseph top-scored for England with 18 points while Robert Reed had 14 rebounds to go with his six points in a losing cause. Australia's Jason Smith paced his side with 18 points but it was the all-round performance of Sam McKinnon, who scored 13 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, handed out four assists and blocked two shots, that was perhaps the key to the Boomers win.
McKinnon has been bothered by injuries since Sydney hosted the Olympics in 2000 but he looks to be returning to top form and should contend for a place at the FIBA World Championship in Japan later this year.
Co-captain CJ Bruton said: "Sam virtually kept us in the game in the first half. He's our most valuable player, he does it all. He's a great asset to the team."
Rising star Brad Newley also praised the performance of Smith, while highlighting just what a Commonwealth gold medal would mean to his team.
"Jason Smith, how good was he? He closed the game out," Newley said.
There have been concerns that the sport may not be a part of the next Commonwealth Games in India.
"People can say what they like about basketball being played at the Commonwealth Games, but to us it's everything, because Australia has never won a medal before and we've got the chance to win gold," Newley added.
New Zealand play Nigeria in the other semi-final later on Wednesday with the winner meeting Australia and the loser facing off against England in the bronze-medal match.
From Mike Perez, PA Sport, Melbourne Exclusively for FIBA