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Charles takes Europe by storm

Tina Charles has enjoyed many a big game in her EuroLeague Women career.

Wednesday night’s heroic performance may have been the best of all because the Galatasaray star not only put up huge numbers for the Turkish club but also made the game-winning plays at the end.

Galatasaray were in danger of losing their unbeaten record in Europe when trailing 65-64.

After a timeout, Gala got the ball to Diana Taurasi and the USA star missed a potential game-winning jump shot.

But the combative Charles grabbed her 10th offensive rebound of the game and Bourges fouled her, forcing the 1.92m center to beat the French club at the free-throw line.

Charles, having scored 23 points and drilled her first three shots from the line, sank both attempts for a one-point win.

She walked off the court with 25 points and 18 rebounds.

Charles returned home to find there was some hero worship going with the Galatasaray faithful.

Using her Twitter account, @tinacharles31 described the action as “yo these gala fans go hard they deadass chanting outside the apt #love”.

Not surprisingly, she’s been named EuroLeague Women player of the week.

Charles only turns 23 on December 5 but already has accomplished so much in her career.

After winning NCAA titles under Geno Auriemma at the University of Connecticut in 2009 and ’10, she played a vital role in the USA’s gold-medal winning run at the FIBA World Championship for Women in the Czech Republic.

Charles averaged 10.7 points and 4.8 rebounds in less than 17 minutes per contest.

The New York native reminded everyone, too, that she loves the big games because in the gold-medal win against the Czechs, she had 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Maybe the biggest reason why Auriemma, who is also the boss of the USA national team, likes having her on the floor is because of her constant glare and ferocity.

She is one of the most intimidating competitors in international basketball.

There is going to be a lot more chanting outside Charles’ apartment before this season is over.

And don’t be surprised if the USA fans are chanting her name after next summer’s Olympics in London.

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The long wait about to end for Huertas

It’s been a very long time since Brazil had a team in the men’s tournament at the Olympics.

Not since 1996, when the great FIBA Hall of Famer Oscar Schmidt, international basketball’s scoring machine, have the Carioca men taken part in one of the most glamorous sporting events in the world.

That drought is thankfully come to an end for the good people back in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.

Brazil booked their place in the London Games by reaching the FIBA Americas Championship Final in Argentina this summer.

“It was a dream that we all had, and not just the players,” point guard Marcelo Huertas told FIBA.com.

“I think the country needed it because we were out for three Olympic Games.

“We had the chance, we were right at the door a couple of times but lost crucial games and then finally this year, we got this passage to the Olympic Games and it’s like a dream for us.

“I hope that next year, we can get there excited and do a great job.”

The 28-year-old Huertas, who led Brazil’s balanced scoring attack in Argentina with an average of 11.6 points per game and had 19 along with seven assists in the crucial 83-76 Semi-Final victory over the Dominican Republic, remembers the last time Brazil competed in Atlanta.

“It was 1996 when Oscar played his last Olympic Games,” he says.

“It was great to see him play, the maximum scorer of all time in the Olympic Games.

“Maybe we didn’t have the best team, but they did a good job.”

That Brazil had the toughest of all Quarter-Final opponents, a United States side full of NBA All-Stars, and lost.

They rebounded with a victory over a very good Croatia that had Toni Kukoc, Dino Radja and a host of other outstanding players, but then fell to Greece in the battle for fifth place.

“Now, maybe it’s time for the new generation to gets its own recognition,” Huertas says.

Peak of a career

Brazil have had a lot of players in recent years to join NBA clubs but not Huertas, although he’d be able to make it in that league.

Everyone in the United States knows Huertas from last year when he nearly led Brazil to an upset of Team USA at the FIBA World Championship.

The São Paulo native had made his mark in Europe long before then with some dynamic displays for Joventut Badalona, Bilbao and Baskonia.

Huertas has been named in the ideal quintet – the top five Spanish players.

A pass-first playmaker, he can also score by putting the ball on the floor or hitting jump shots.

His best move is actually reminiscent of Bob Cousy, the legendary Boston Celtics guard.

Huertas can be dribbling anywhere in a half-court offense and will launch a shot off one foot.

Two seasons ago, he and Brazilian center Tiago Splitter led Caja Laboral (Baskonia) to a 3-0 sweep of heavily favored Barcelona in the ACB Finals.

Now, Huertas is playing for Barca.

It’s confirmation of where he is as a player, that the best team in Spain and one of the best in Europe wants him as a starting point guard.

“Of course,” Huertas says.

“You feel recognized and for all that you have done for your career and now, coming to a maturity of basketball, I think it’s like a good prize for me.

“I’m just glad I’m here. I’m very happy. The situation is great. The team is awesome and we have liberty to play.

“It’s one of the best teams in Europe and I couldn’t be happier.”

Tears and disappointment

Some fans have a deeper love for their players when the national teams suffer heart-breaking defeats.

There is a shared grief.

Even the neutrals couldn’t help but feel for Huertas and Brazil in 2010 when they came so close to upsetting the United States in the Preliminary Round and then fell to a narrow defeat to Argentina in the Eight-Finals.

In the loss to the USA, Huertas had a chance to force overtime in the final seconds with Brazil trailing by two but failed to make the first of two free-throws.

He intentionally missed the second, pushing the ball hard off the rim so that it caromed into the left corner.

Huertas chased it down but couldn’t attempt a game-winning three as two USA defenders flew into view.

Instead, he delivered a perfect pass to Leandro Barbosa in the lane and the guard put up a shot off the glass that looked to be good, only to fall and bounce off the front of the rim and stay out.

The USA won that game, 70-68.

Brazil ended up playing Argentina and Luis Scola had arguably his finest-ever national team performance, pouring in 37 points in a 93-89 win over Huertas and Co.

Huertas sobbed as he left the court.

It seemed Brazil had caught Argentina at the wrong time.

“Yes, maybe,” he says.

“We had the game in our hands.

“I think maybe that was the wrong team to play against.

“Argentina is always a tough team to play, especially when we play against each other, it’s going to be a hard game – no matter which players are in there.

“Maybe we lost too early. We had a dream to go a lot further than we did.

“We thought we would be able to fight for a medal, but unfortunately we lost.

“But life keeps going and we have to forget that. We have to think about next year.

“We have a great opportunity to play in the Olympics, which is a great competition maybe even the higher level than the world tournament, so maybe we can make this dream come true.”

The big opportunity

Now that Brazil have at long last earned a place in the Olympic Games again, will they be content just to show up?

Might the whole occasion be so grand, like taking part in the Opening Ceremony and living in the Olympic Village, that Brazil will be content just to take part?

“We’ll be as hungry as ever,” Huertas says.

“I know that for some players, it will be the only opportunity to be there, so there is no such thing that gives you more confidence, or will to get what you want.

“For sure we’re going to be hungry, maybe hungrier than anybody else there.

“Maybe we’re not as experienced as other teams, but the hunger we’re going to have will be bigger for sure.”

Jeff Taylor
FIBA

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El Chapu, Splitter back in action

Argentina‘s Andres Nocioni had a losing debut for Peñarol over the weekend while Brazil‘s Tiago Splitter excelled in his first game for Valencia Basket.

The two players, tired of practicing and not playing games during the NBA lockout – a labor dispute that has led to a cancellation of all games through at least mid-December – signed to play overseas last week.

Nocioni, now coached by his former Argentina national team boss Sergio Hernandez, endured an 83-52 setback to Olimpico LB on Friday night.

Coming off an ankle injury, ‘El Chapu’ played 16 minutes and had nine points.
The veteran forward made just one of five shots from the floor and seven of 13 at the free-throw line.
“It took me a while to get into rhythm,” he admitted.

Nocioni did grab six rebounds.

In his next game on Sunday against Atenas de Cordoba, however, Nocioni was a different player.
He poured in 24 points and corralled 16 boards in a 75-59 win for his club.

It’s worth noting that promising guard Facundo Campazzo – Nocioni’s 20-year-old teammate – had 22 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals in the win over Atenas.

Campazzo hails from Cordoba.

Double-Double Tiago

Splitter, a center, made his first appearance in Spain’s Liga Endesa with Valencia on Sunday and had 12 points and 10 rebounds in an 86-83 triumph at Murcia.

A former MVP of the league, Splitter has been a major talking point in the Mediterranean city the past several days.

The 26-year-old is to be unveiled to the Spanish media in Valencia on Monday.

Splitter was a rookie in the NBA last season with the San Antonio Spurs and will play at the Olympics for the very first time next year in London.

He averaged 8.6 points and 6.6 rebounds at this year’s FIBA Americas Championship in Mar del Plata, where Brazil reached the Final and ultimately fell to hosts Argentina in the title game.
Nocioni has been with three NBA teams, including the Philadelphia 76ers last season.
After winning Olympic gold with Argentina in 2004, he moved to the United States to play for Chicago.
He has also played for Sacramento.

Nocioni, a bronze-medal winner at the Beijing Games, and Splitter both competed at Baskonia in Vitoria, Spain, before leaving for the NBA.

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James’ 27 lift Miami past Boston, 100-77

 If this was an Eastern Conference semifinals preview, then the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics showed what to expect.

Few pleasantries.

Pushing and shoving.

And maybe a Game 7 in Miami.

LeBron James(notes) scored 27 points, Dwyane Wade(notes) added 14 and the Heat moved closer to the No. 2 seed in the East playoffs Sunday by beating the sliding Celtics 100-77.

“It was a playoff-atmosphere type of game, from the fans to both teams’ approach to what the game meant,” Wade said. “It had that feel.”

Miami moved a game ahead of Boston, trimming its magic number to clinch the second seed to two. The teams will finish second and third in some order behind Chicago in the East, slotted to play in the conference semifinals.

“We’d like to play them, I can tell you that,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “And we may have to if we want to go somewhere.”

Chris Bosh(notes) added 13 points and eight rebounds for Miami, which had been 0-3 against Boston this season, though Heat coach Erik Spoelstra cautioned against overstating the win’s importance.

“We proved we can beat them tonight,” Spoelstra said. “That’s about it, in my mind.”

Paul Pierce(notes) scored 24 points and Kevin Garnett(notes) added 21 for Boston, which lost for the 10th time in its last 19 games. The Celtics were outrebounded 42-26, and outscored 44-26 in the paint.

“What else do you expect? It’s Boston-Miami,” Garnett said. “Supposedly it’s two of, if not the top two, teams in the East. You have to expect that. You have to expect that coming in here you’re not going to get the call. You had to expect their passion—a team you have beaten three times.”

The Heat finally solved the Boston hex, beating the Celtics for the third time in the last 21 meetings. Bosh had been 1-13 against Boston since March 2007, and the Celtics ended both the 2009-10 seasons for Wade (in the first round) and James (in the second round).

Miami won for the 13th time in its last 16 games, and its bench—maligned for much of the season—outscored Boston’s 32-12.

“What worked for us today is, offensively we played together,” Wade said.

Ray Allen(notes) scored 13 points for the Celtics. Rajon Rondo(notes) was held to just seven points and five assists on 3 for 8 shooting.

“Frustration is high on our team right now,” Rivers said.

Miami’s role players were huge.

Mario Chalmers(notes) had nine points in the second quarter, when the Heat took the lead. Joel Anthony(notes) had eight rebounds in the first half, two less than the entire Boston roster. Zydrunas Ilgauskas(notes) scored six quick points early in the third as the Heat remained in control, and Anthony took advantage of a triple-team on James for a dunk and a 74-59 lead on the final play of the third quarter.

Of course, this being Celtics-Heat, nothing would come easily for Miami.

Down by 22, Boston ran off 12 straight points, Allen starting it with a four-point play, and Pierce adding both a 3-pointer and a three-point play to get the Celtics within 85-75.

It was the last gasp. Mike Bibby’s(notes) 3-pointer with 4:49 left, followed by Bosh’s follow of James’ miss, sent the lead back to 15.

“We built that lead by just keeping guys in front of us, contesting shots and flying around defensively,” James said.

Boston scored the game’s first eight points and hit eight of its first nine shots. The Celtics were making it seem easy, especially when Garnett—who hadn’t made a 3-pointer all season—stepped into one from the left wing and connected for a 22-15 lead.

“It looked like the same old song,” Spoelstra said.

It didn’t stay that way. Boston went scoreless for the next 6:17, and Miami took the lead for good on the opening possession of the second quarter.

Tensions were already high, and emotions soon boiled over.

Jermaine O’Neal(notes)—who had just been easily scored on by James 27 seconds earlier in transition—tried to stop another drive by the two-time reigning MVP with a shoulder check with about 4 minutes left in the second, making no play on the ball.

A scrum quickly broke out under the basket. O’Neal earned a flagrant-1, James got a technical for throwing the ball back at O’Neal, Wade and Pierce also got technicals for some pushing and jostling, and a small amount of debris flew from the stands onto the court.

“I thought it was all theatrical, all the crap. I guess that’s called toughness these days,” Rivers said. “Two guys run into each other, we’ve got to call a flagrant foul, which I thought was a joke. And I thought the reactions by both were a joke.”

Bosh earned another technical 2 1/2 minutes later for arguing he tied up a loose ball with Rondo, only to have referees award Boston a timeout. But the Heat kept their composure, kept pouring it on after halftime, then turned their eyes toward road games that loom large at Atlanta on Monday and Toronto on Wednesday.

“This is cool and all,” Bosh said, “but we still have two more games.”

NOTES: Bosh addressed the crowd before Miami’s final home regular-season game, saying “We couldn’t do it without you.” … Heat C Erick Dampier(notes) (rest and knee treatment) was inactive, and Miami only got seven minutes from Mike Miller(notes), who left with a sprained left thumb—not the one he broke near the start of the season. … Rivers said G Carlos Arroyo(notes)—who Miami waived earlier this season—gave “us the entire Miami scouting report.”

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New York trades for Carmelo Anthony

 Had the New York Knicks continued apace, the upcoming offseason would have seen the team with only around $40 million in payroll commitments for the 2011-12 season. This would have included promising center Timofey Mozgov(notes), wingman Danilo Gallinari(notes) and solid point guard Raymond Felton(notes). It would have been complicated, but the team could have signed Carmelo Anthony(notes). And, depending on the rules of the new collective-bargaining agreement, it could have done it for a little more than half of what he’s now set to earn next season.

As it stands now, the team will be on the hook for nearly $20 million more than the figure listed above. It will have Chauncey Billups(notes) and Carmelo Anthony on the roster, which is nice, but the team will also be stuck paying Anthony a contract extension typical of the collective-bargaining agreements that were worked out between 1999 and 2005. By this time next season, Carmelo’s extension will be an anachronism. That’s not another word for “millstone,” but it might as well be.

Congratulations are in order for the New York Knicks. They traded for a very famous player. They’ve done this before; many, many times. They’ve put together trades and signings like this for the last 25 years, from the Gulf-and-Western days right up to the Isiah Thomas-led James Dolan era. And be mindful of the fact that the Knicks are still in the Isiah Thomas-led James Dolan era.

The Knicks have now developed a one-two punch featuring Amar’e Stoudemire(notes) and Carmelo Anthony, with Chauncey Billups running the show. This, in the absence of context, is a good thing. Billups still has game. Anthony is ultra-clutch. Stoudemire can dominate games on the offensive end. This is it, though.

Because New York has precious little options in place to improve the team. With Stoudemire, Anthony and Billups, the Knicks are now set to battle an aging (yet still championship-level) Boston squad, a growing Miami Heat team and a Bulls team that is clearly better than the sum of the Knicks’ parts . Not terrible, but not on the level. Anthony and Chauncey did take a Nuggets team to the conference finals two years ago. Though Isiah obviously led the charge on this deal, this isn’t an Isiah Thomas-styled franchise-killer.

But these are your Knicks, New York. And though Anthony will be an improvement over Gallinari, he won’t help the team on the defensive end. He’ll help the squad offensively, where the Knicks are ranked eighth overall, but that will only go so far. He won’t help the team’s interior defense, he won’t help the squad’s transition offense, and he won’t help Chauncey Billups pretend that it’s 2006 all over again. He will score over 20 points per game, sometimes he’ll make more than half his shots, and in the 2013-14 season he will earn nearly half as much as the NBA salary cap is for that particular season. Again, it’s not the trade, it’s the extension.

Knicks fans — and the New York-area columnists that double as mouthpieces for Isiah Thomas — can prattle on all they want about how free agents will look past money from other outlets to come play for New York. Because of AAU history or the supposed love of Isiah’s game, even if Isiah retired well before some upcoming free agents were even allowed to watch cable at night. What we do know now is that Anthony and Stoudemire could make about 80 percent of New York’s cap-allowed payroll following this summer’s lockout, and Billups won’t help. Walsh put together a plan for the summer of 2012, and as it stands the Knicks will have just Stoudemire and Anthony on the books. But with those two set to make about $40 million combined on a salary cap that might only be around $48 million or so, what’s the point?

And who’s the point guard? Chris Paul(notes)? Because he liked Isiah when he was in diapers? Come on.

This is what happens when you let star-kissers run your team. The Knicks did terrifically well to offer an uninsured deal to Amar’e Stoudemire last summer, and he’s clearly turned the team around. Twenty-five and 10 guys tend do that. And Carmelo? He is a star. He was on “Conan” Monday night. People know his name.

What they don’t really know is his game. The talk of Anthony as a top-five talent in this league is absolutely ridiculous. Completely without merit. And the next time you’re around a cable-level columnist that calls Carmelo a top-five player, shove Sunday’s All-Star roster in his face and ask him to pick only four players in the NBA he’d take to start a team before he’d choose Carmelo.

***

I don’t like to be an obscurant. I also abhor most pop culture references, mainly because I don’t know half of the people that are referenced by the kids these days. But there is this line that keeps coming back to me the more I think and then write about Carmelo Anthony going to the New York Knicks.

“Shut up.”

It’s from a short film called “The H is O,” which was put together by Adam McKay (a big NBA fan, by the way) 12 years ago. In it, Ben Stiller plays a lager-swilling, Maxim-reading yuppie who bragged about his ability to woo Glenn Frey, before being goaded into attempting to woo Glenn Frey. The Stiller character had no interest in Frey as a soulmate, much less lover, but the conquest was enough for him to try. Try he did, and succeed he did. And as he was surrounded by his mates the next day, as they carefully attempted to cheer him up by referencing the conquest, all Stiller’s character could say in the wake of a night gone terribly wrong was “shut up.”

This is where the Knicks are now. They will be better. They will be more fun to watch. Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups are better than Danilo Gallinari and Raymond Felton. This isn’t a trade that pairs Stephon Marbury(notes) and Steve Francis(notes). This isn’t trading the next five years away for Eddy Curry(notes). This is a good basketball deal.

It’s also going to be the Knicks for a while. Because while Chris Paul might want out of New Orleans, he’ll have to take a significant pay cut in order to play for New York a year and a half from now. Same goes for Dwight Howard(notes) or Deron Williams(notes). The Knicks will have cap space in 2012, but they’ll also have just two players under contract that will be earning about $40 million. This is not how championship rosters are created.

But they did it, man. They hooked up with Glenn Frey. The Knicks picked up a player that really, really wanted to be a Knick, and he happens to be a great scoring talent with a knack for coming through in the clutch. Chauncey Billups is in the deal, too.

Just enjoy this moment, New York. Because this moment doesn’t promise anything beyond what it’s already given you.

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Academy salutes FIBA ban on vuvuzelas

This summer, FIBA banned the infamous, noise-making vuvuzelas horns that came under criticism at the World Cup in South Africa.

Not only was the sound never-ending, but extremely loud.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the vuvuzelas were measured at a decibel level of 131. That means the horns can cause permanent hearing damage in closed basketball arenas.

The American Academy of Audiology is applauding the FIBA decision to ban the vuvuzelas.

The Academy says that noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) can result from prolonged exposure to loud noises over 85 decibels.

Of the 36 million Americans that have hearing loss, NIHL is the cause of 33% of the cases.

In a statement issued by the Academy to be used by its member audiologists during October, which was National Audiology Awareness Month and National Protect Your Hearing Month, the Academy explained that NIHL is caused by damage to the hair cells that are found in the inner ear.

Hair cells are small sensory cells that convert the sounds we hear (sound energy) into electrical signals that travel to the brain.

Once damaged, those hair cells cannot grow back, causing permanent hearing loss.

Brees raises awareness

The issue of NIHL was highlighted immediately after the New Orleans Saints’ Super Bowl win over Indianapolis earlier this year.

The MVP of the game, New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees, lifted his one-year-old son Baylen up in the air in celebration and the boy was seen wearing a set of noise-reducing earphones.

“Children are exposed to high noise levels more than ever before,” said Kris English, the president of the American Academy of Audiology.

“Noise-induced hearing loss is permanent and 100% preventable.

“Brees’ leadership in hearing protection helped bring that message home.”

The Academy has cautioned spectators to wear hearing protection if it gets too loud.

And you know it’s too loud at a game if you need to shout to be heard by yourself and people around you, if your ears ring during or after the event or you experience a decrease in your hearing, or you have a feeling of fullness in your ears before or after the event.

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Rubio stays positive

Ricky Rubio isn’t having the best year of his young career by a long shot.
 
He endured a disappointing FIBA World Championship in Turkey with Spain finishing sixth.
 
It was the first time Spain had lost in the Quarter-Finals of a major tournament since the 2004 Olympics.
 
In the ACB, Barcelona are 4-1 but Rubio, who turned 20 on October 21, has often appeared frustrated.
 
While he is still a tough-as-nails defender and an excellent player in transition, his suspect jump shot remains the biggest chink in his armor.
 
In five ACB games, Rubio has made two of 13 (15%) shots from long range and inside the arc, he’s four of 16 (25%).
 
“I am calm,” he said to FIBA.com.
 
“Players go through ups and downs and perhaps I’m not having much luck in shooting but I keep working hard and improve.
 
“It helps me that the team wins.”
 
Winning is the only result that is acceptable at Barca, who will host Fenerbahce Ulker on Thursday in the Euroleague.
 
Last season, the club won the Supercopa, the Copa del Rey and the Euroleague but then lost three close games to Caja Laboral.
 
“With Barcelona you always have the pressure that you have to play and win,” Rubio said.
 
“At times, you have to leave behind the nice play in order to win.
 
“Our expectations for the season are the maximum possible.
 
“We will try to fight for every title and we will work day by day to try to achieve that.”
 
Rubio was selected fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2009 NBA Draft.
 
How long will he stay in Spain?
 
“I feel very comfortable with the team, with my coach (Xavier Pascual) and I feel the support of all of my teammates,” he said.
 
“In the time I’ve been with Barcelona, I have learned a lot.
 
“One of the things that I’ve learned is to compete 100% every day and to be prepared to play for any game.
 
“Barcelona cannot lose and always has to play well in every game and that is very difficult to keep it going for the whole season.
 
“And in order to keep up that rhythm going, you have to be good mentally.”
 
The Spain internationals do look happier back at their clubs than they did this summer in Turkey.
 
It was a blow not to have Pau Gasol, a player that some think could be the best in the world right now.
 
He decided to rest this summer and not play in Turkey in order to be fresh for the Los Angeles Lakers, who are going after a third straight NBA title.
 
The absence of Gasol, and the injury suffered by point guard Jose Calderon that knocked the starting point guard out just days before the start of the tournament, had a negative effect on all of the players.
 
Rubio was no exception.
 
“It was a hard World Championship because things didn’t work out as a team, or from an individual standpoint,” Rubio said.
 
“That always affects the confidence.
 
“I think with wins, little by little the confidence will grow and I will be the player I was before.”
 
Spain will be looking to return to the podium at the EuroBasket in Lithuania next season.
 
“I am sure whatever happens, the Spanish national team will always compete to win gold at the EuroBasket,” he said.
 
“We will see how we all finish this season and see who deserves to go.”
 
Jeff Taylor
FIBA

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Deng joins the 40-point club in Bulls’ romp

Luol Deng scored 40 points for the first time in his NBA career while Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah each had double-doubles as the Chicago Bulls whipped the Portland Trail Blazers 110-98 on Monday night.
 
With former USA Dream Team forward and Bulls great Scottie Pippen sitting courtside, Chicago won for the second time on the young season while the Blazers suffered their first defeat in four games.
 
“We moved it and shot it well,” Deng said.
 
“You’re going to get shots in different places, so you’ve got to be ready.”
 
Noah had 10 points and 10 rebounds while Rose finished with 16 points and 13 assists.
 
Great Britain’s Deng, France’s Joakim Noah and Team USA’s Rose will be hoping to represent their countries at the London 2012 Olympics.
 
Another crossing his fingers that he’ll play at those Summer Games is Turkey center Omer Asik.
 
The NBA rookie played 26 minutes and had seven rebounds and three blocks to go with his six points.
 
Brazil’s Tiago Splitter made his NBA debut with San Antonio.
 
The former Caja Laboral big man came off the bench and played 10 minutes in the Spurs’ 97-88 triumph at the Los Angeles Clippers.
 
Splitter, who missed the pre-season with a foot injury, had two points, two boards and a steal.
 
France’s Tony Parker had 19 points, nine assists and three steals for San Antonio while Team USA’s Eric Gordon poured in 23 points, handed out 11 assists and came up with two steals in defeat.
 
Tyreke Evans led Sacramento with 23 points, five assists, seven boards and two steals in the Kings’ 111-108 victory over Toronto.
 
Sacramento are off to a fast 3-1 start while the Raptors, who got 28 points from Italy’s Andrea Bargnani, fell to 1-2.

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GER – On a Roll!

Pascal Roller missed a free-throw late in Game 5 of last year’s Beko BBL Play-off Finals that would have pulled his Deutsche Bank Skyliners level in the contest and Bamberg ended up scraping a two-point victory to capture the title.

The veteran point guard has shrugged off the disappointment and showed already this season that when the contest hangs in the balance, more times than not he’s going to deliver.

In their game against Braunchweig over the weekend, Skyliners grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed free-throw with just under a minute remaining and Roller then caught a pass and drilled a three-ball to not the game at 91-91 before DaShaun Wood scored the winning lay-up with a second to go.

The Frankfurt club added a free-throw for a 94-91 triumph.

Roller, who made three of four shots from long range and finished with 13 points, had received the award for being the most liked player in the Beko BBL before the game.

“I thought this was Pascal’s best game of the year,” winning coach Gordon Herbert said.

There was also a come-from-behind win for Telekom Baskets Bonn.

Bonn trailed 78-72 at home against Phoenix Hagen entering the final quarter but roared on by their 5,340-strong crowd, they fought back for a 103-102 victory.

Jacob Jaacks made one of two free-throws with six seconds left to put Bonn in front and they survived at the end when David Bell missed a potential game-winning three-pointer for Hagen.

Chris Ensminger, Bonn’s 37-year-old veteran center, made 14 of his 15 attempts at the free-throw line and finished with a game-high 28 points for Bonn.

The home side went to the line often, finishing 36 of 48 (75%).

League leaders Brose Baskets Bamberg scraped a 60-58 win over Artland Dragons with Brian Roberts’ jump shot two seconds from the end proving decisive.

In other games, ratiopharm Ulm thrashed Gottingen 95-73, Tubingen hit the road and hammered Oldenburg 87-68, Bremerhaven edged Trier 73-72, Ludwigsburg defeated Mitteldeutscher BC 73-65 and Alba Berlin beat Bayreuth 75-66.

FIBA

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Crocs collapse again in OT defeat to Blaze

The Townsville Crocs have had better weekends.

For the second game in a row, Townsville slumped to a narrow defeat when they fell 94-90 to Gold Coast Blaze in overtime on Sunday.

Edged out 71-70 by the Wollongong Hawks in their previous game on Friday after they’d blown a 13-point second-half lead, the Crocs this time failed to win after going in front by as many as 20.

The Blaze forced the extra period after scoring the last 10 points of regulation.

Chris Goulding made a pair of free-throws to knot the contest at 80-80 and then blocked Luke Schenscher’s potential game-winner at the death to force overtime.

Australia international Mark Worthington them put the Blaze on their way to victory by nailing a pair of three-pointers in OT.

“The energy levels just lifted for us into overtime,” Goulding said.

“It’s a whole different ball-game and luckily our guys stepped up and made big plays to get the win.

“It’s a great way to start the season on our home floor – it’s great for the fans – hopefully we can build on that.”

Defending champions Perth put their disappointing 0-2 start to the campaign behind them by thrashing Melbourne Tigers, 91-66.

Perth, playing away from home, got 21 points and 10 boards from their Australia international Damian Martin.

On Saturday night, Cairns Taipans defeated the Adelaide 36ers, 85-74.

Playing before 4,250 fans at the Cairns Convention Centre, Australia center Alex Loughton poured in a game-high 20 points.

FIBA

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