The Tall Blacks have been dealt the full brunt of Australia's star power, with a superb Boomers performance giving the visitors a 89-79 victory in Wellington last night.
After fighting bravely in a 71-59 loss in Melbourne, the Tall Blacks needed to make up the 12 point deficit to qualify for the Olympics, but were outplayed by a classy Boomers outfit which put in a stellar showing on both ends of the floor.
A late-game run lead by some full-court pressure defence made the scoreline extremely respectable, with the Boomers having a 20 point fourth quarter lead cut down to five points with just a minute remaining, before a Matthew Dellavedova three pointer quietened the TSB Arena crowd's raucous cheers for a comeback.
In what was a tightly called game, the Tall Blacks' offence was at-times stilted, struggling to make the extra pass as the Boomers swarmed with smart defensive rotations.
Their pressure defence had an impact on Corey Webster, who was forced into several tough shots as the Boomers covered him terrifically in both one-on-one coverage and in pick and roll situations.
The star shooting guard had an off shooting night as a result, going 7-of-24 from the field and 2-of-10 from deep, with the Boomers negating the Tall Blacks' main source of offence from game one.
Although Paul Henare's squad got good contributions off the bench from Reuben Te Rangi (14 points) and Everard Bartlett (13 points), they could only shoot 40% from the field compared to Australia's sizzling 53% clip.
The rebounding battle proved to be an issue impossible to overcome for the hosts.
Although Isaac Fotu and Mika Vukona fought hard, the size and strength of the likes of Andrew Bogut, Cameron Bairstow and Nathan Jawai was too much to handle, as the Boomers grabbed 41 boards to the Tall Blacks' 25.
Bogut put in a strong performance after undergoing back treatment earlier in the day, posting a double-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and three big blocks in a powerful display, while Dellavedova (14 points, five assists) and Bairstow (10 points, seven rebounds) chipped in with key contributions.
For the Tall Blacks, Fotu was a standout with 12 points and eight boards, Vukona had eight points and eight rebounds while Webster had his moments in the fourth quarter to end with a game-high 16 points.
Despite the defeat, the Tall Blacks will have another shot at qualifying for the Olympics, with a final qualifying tournament being held in July 2016.
