FIBA Basketball
FIBA - Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Boomers capture gold
MELBOURNE (Commonwealth Games) - Australia's men captured the gold medal at the Commonwealth Games on Friday after holding off a determined New Zealand 81-76. The two sides, using some of the players who
MELBOURNE (Commonwealth Games) - Australia's men were crowned Commonwealth champions on Friday night after seeing off arch-rivals New Zealand in an epic final in Melbourne.
Twenty-four hours after the host nation's women's team downed their New Zealand counterparts to win the Commonwealth Games' first-ever basketball gold medal, the Boomers followed suit with a thrilling 81-76 victory. Australia, who had led by 10 points at the end of the first period, looked to have thrown it all away when they found themselves trailing by four points at 73-69 with just over three minutes remaining.
But two clutch three-pointers by Jason Smith, who is likely to play for the Boomers at the FIBA World Championship, in the space of 42 seconds turned the tide in Australia's favour and sent the massed ranks of home fans into a frenzy. Smith's pinpoint shooting put the Boomers into a 79-76 lead with 1:21 left on the clock.
New Zealand swept down the other end but inaccurate three-point attempts from Aaron Olson and the usually-reliable Pero Cameron proved costly and forced the Tall Blacks to foul. Luke Kendall downed one of his free throws to put Australia ahead 80-76 and, after Cameron had missed his second three-point effort, the fouled Tony Ronaldson was able to score the point that took the Boomers to victory.
Co-captain Ronaldson said after the tense finale: "I would rather be 20 points ahead but when it comes down to it you just need to win. I thought it would be a grind. We knew we wouldn't run away with it."
In fact, Australia looked like they were going to do just that after dominating the opening period. But New Zealand, whose supporters were massively outnumbered in the 9,000-strong crowd packed into the Multi-Purpose Venue, turned the game on its head in the second period when they raced into a 37-33 lead with less than a minute to go in the half.
Ronaldson then downed a three-point effort to reduce the deficit to 37-36 at the interval. New Zealand still had the momentum though and, with playmaker Paul Henare calling the shots, they extended their advantage to 48-40 midway through the third period.
But then came arguably the key spell of the game. With the crowd subdued and New Zealand on a roll, Australian ace Kendall produced a magical 10 seconds to change the destiny of the match. First he downed a difficult three-pointer from out wide and then, as New Zealand attempted to re-start play, he immediately stole possession, went to the opposite side of the court and drained a superb effort.
That may have only been five points, but the tidal wave of raw emotion it evoked from a hugely partisan crowd gave the Boomers the lift they were desperately in need of and the host nation were able to ride it all the way to the gold medal.
Brad Davidson of Australia said: "Luke seemed to get something going and helped us up the tempo on the defensive end."
On the crowd at the climax of the game, Davidson added: "You could see everyone jumping, It is Australia's first gold medal and to be part of history is unbelievable, it is amazing."
Kendall finished with a team-high 17 points for Australia while he also hauled down seven rebounds and handed out four assists. The main man for the Tall Blacks, as it so often has been, was Cameron, who poured in a game-high 22 points and claimed six rebounds.
From Mike Perez, PA Sport, Melbourne Exclusively for FIBA
Twenty-four hours after the host nation's women's team downed their New Zealand counterparts to win the Commonwealth Games' first-ever basketball gold medal, the Boomers followed suit with a thrilling 81-76 victory. Australia, who had led by 10 points at the end of the first period, looked to have thrown it all away when they found themselves trailing by four points at 73-69 with just over three minutes remaining.
But two clutch three-pointers by Jason Smith, who is likely to play for the Boomers at the FIBA World Championship, in the space of 42 seconds turned the tide in Australia's favour and sent the massed ranks of home fans into a frenzy. Smith's pinpoint shooting put the Boomers into a 79-76 lead with 1:21 left on the clock.
New Zealand swept down the other end but inaccurate three-point attempts from Aaron Olson and the usually-reliable Pero Cameron proved costly and forced the Tall Blacks to foul. Luke Kendall downed one of his free throws to put Australia ahead 80-76 and, after Cameron had missed his second three-point effort, the fouled Tony Ronaldson was able to score the point that took the Boomers to victory.
Co-captain Ronaldson said after the tense finale: "I would rather be 20 points ahead but when it comes down to it you just need to win. I thought it would be a grind. We knew we wouldn't run away with it."
In fact, Australia looked like they were going to do just that after dominating the opening period. But New Zealand, whose supporters were massively outnumbered in the 9,000-strong crowd packed into the Multi-Purpose Venue, turned the game on its head in the second period when they raced into a 37-33 lead with less than a minute to go in the half.
Ronaldson then downed a three-point effort to reduce the deficit to 37-36 at the interval. New Zealand still had the momentum though and, with playmaker Paul Henare calling the shots, they extended their advantage to 48-40 midway through the third period.
But then came arguably the key spell of the game. With the crowd subdued and New Zealand on a roll, Australian ace Kendall produced a magical 10 seconds to change the destiny of the match. First he downed a difficult three-pointer from out wide and then, as New Zealand attempted to re-start play, he immediately stole possession, went to the opposite side of the court and drained a superb effort.
That may have only been five points, but the tidal wave of raw emotion it evoked from a hugely partisan crowd gave the Boomers the lift they were desperately in need of and the host nation were able to ride it all the way to the gold medal.
Brad Davidson of Australia said: "Luke seemed to get something going and helped us up the tempo on the defensive end."
On the crowd at the climax of the game, Davidson added: "You could see everyone jumping, It is Australia's first gold medal and to be part of history is unbelievable, it is amazing."
Kendall finished with a team-high 17 points for Australia while he also hauled down seven rebounds and handed out four assists. The main man for the Tall Blacks, as it so often has been, was Cameron, who poured in a game-high 22 points and claimed six rebounds.
From Mike Perez, PA Sport, Melbourne Exclusively for FIBA