Basketball: Late error leads to overtime pain

Otago's Mark Dickel. Photo by Craig Baxter.
Otago's Mark Dickel. Photo by Craig Baxter.
The Otago Nuggets made one critical defensive error and it ended up costing them a much-needed victory against the Waikato Pistons at the Edgar Centre on Saturday night.

The home side led 75-72 with about seven seconds remaining in regulation time but inexplicability left a shooter alone near the top of the key.

With his first touch of the game, Karl Noyer drained a three-pointer to send the game into overtime.

From there, former Nugget Akeem Wright took over. The classy small forward scored seven of his game-high 30 points during the extra period to help his side escape Dunedin with a win. Pistons point guard Corin Henry was also influential with 26 points.

The loss has left the Nuggets (4-4) in a tight spot. They have lost their last three consecutive games at home and the final four looks a remote prospect unless they can find a solution to their shooting woes. They were 28 from 71 from the floor (39%), well below where they need to be.

Player-coach Mark Dickel was still angry with himself for missing a crucial free throw which would have put the Nuggets out in front by an unassailable four points with seven seconds left.

''That just can't happen,'' he said.

''And we are just not good enough right now to play through mistakes. We were up three with about eight seconds left and usually that is a good situation to be in. But right now we are finding ways to lose and we've got to take it on the chin.

''They did a good job of putting pressure on us and crashing the boards, and Akeem played well.''

The Nuggets were having to work too hard for baskets on the inside and were not finding relief from the outside shooters often enough, Dickel said.

They were out-rebounded 44-32 and, when you do not have a lot of offensive weapons, you have to rebound well to stay in matches.

The Pistons were only slightly more accurate from the outside but hit the big shots.

Noyer made the biggest shot of the night but coach Pero Cameron deserves a share of the credit. With the game on the line, the Tall Black great decided on the most unlikely of plans. Instead of running a play for Wright or one of the more proven match-winners, the Pistons subbed in Noyer and got him the ball.

Cameron was perhaps relying on the surprise element, and it certainly caught the Nuggets unaware because Noyer took his shot with the nearest defender up to 3m away.

''It is tough on him. It is hard to find him minutes because Zac [Carter] is playing so well for us and young Dyson King-Hawea is pressing for court time,'' Cameron said.

''But he came out and hit a big shot and that is what he does. He is a very good shooter and he got us back in the game.''

''Sometimes, that just happens,'' Dickel responded, when asked if the Nuggets had got complacent in the final moments.

''I mean, you wouldn't think they would run the play for him. He hit the shot, so credit to him. But 99 times out of a hundred he misses that shot or shoots an air ball. He hadn't shot all game.''

Nuggets centre Warren Carter played with more consistency than he has in earlier matches. He may have been robbed of a few rebounds by the statistics team, but his haul of 21 points, five boards, fours assists and two steals was an honest night's work.

Dickel was an inspiration. He continues to defy his 37-year-old legs with an energetic effort. His 27 points was a season-high for the veteran.

Brendon Polyblank was marked tightly and restricted to 16 points. He could not find his range from the outside. Three-point shooting remains an Achilles heel for the Nuggets. They were eight from 27 (30%), which is actually an improvement on their season average.

Troy Payne did an admirable job defending Wright. He was credited with three steals and robbed Wright at least twice. One was a fabulous poach - a sneaky stab at the ball with his off hand. He then rounded Wright to scoop up possession.

Payne also rebounded strongly with 11 boards but his shooting was again poor. He was three from 11 from the floor and three from eight from the free throw line.

The Southland Sharks continued their resurgence with a 92-88 win over the Pistons in Invercargill on Friday night.

Also on Friday, the Hawkes Bay Hawks cemented their place at the top of the table with an 82-77 win over the Nelson Giants in Nelson. On Saturday, the Taranaki Mountain Airs beat the Canterbury Rams 99-92 in New Plymouth.


NBL
The scores

Waikato Pistons 91
Akeem Wright 30, Corin Henry 26

Otago Nuggets 85
Mark Dickel 27, Warren Carter 21

Quarter scores: 21-18, 45-40, 56-62, 75-75.


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