The Otago Nuggets extended their winning streak to three games this season.
They brushed aside the previously unbeaten Tauranga Whai 92-81 in front of 1165 fans at the Edgar Centre last night.
The two previous wins came with an asterisk.
They had beaten an under-strength Southland Sharks outfit and a Nelson Giants side missing their imports.
The Whai were missing star player Reuben Te Rangi. But this was a quality performance by the Nuggets regardless.
They set up the win with some lockdown defence and a workman-like effort on offence.
The second quarter was decisive. They won that period 26-12.
Michael Henn had his most productive game in a Nuggets’ singlet, top-scoring with 19 points.
Alain Louis (16 points, eight assists) made some clutch plays in the final quarter, and Ethan Rusbatch crept his way to 17 points.
Isaac Miller-Jose made an impact from the bench again. He collected 13 points and seven rebounds.
Whai guard Nicholas Stoddart stood out with 24 points, and Taine Murray (23 points) dropped in five three-pointers.
Stoddart opened the scoring when he got around Matthew Bardsley and finished at the hoop.
Bardsley countered moments later, scooping the ball from the floor and Rusbatch converted from the corner.
Henn got a triple to drop as well. It bobbled on the rim several times before finding its way through the net.
And Buay Tuach made a driving lay-up, collected the foul but missed the free throw.
But the Whai connected with back-to-back three-pointers.
Neither side held the advantage for long in a quality opening quarter.
The Nuggets nursed a 23-21 lead at the break. They banged in a couple of dunks to create some space.
Miller-Jose slammed in a one-handed effort to get the lead out to 10.
The Nuggets’ defence was impregnable. They locked up the playmakers and restricted the shooters to some hurried attempts.
Rusbatch stretched the lead further. And Henn slipped in a buzzer-beater to make it 49-32 at halftime.
They won the quarter 26-12.
The Nuggets took the best part of five minutes to score in the third period.
Stoddart found his way to the hoop for a series of baskets and a good chunk of the lead vanished.
Henn landed a late three-pointer to restore a 10-point lead with a quarter remaining.
Despite the handy lead, the game remained tense.
The Whai would chip away and the Nuggets would strike back.
Louis launched a series of breakneck drives and collected a bunch of free throws.
He thrived down the stretch. That is what you want to see from one of your marquee players.
He had taken responsibility for closing out the game.
It got close, though. The Whai reduced the lead to six.
But the Slippery Eel — Bardsley — got in behind the defence and rolled in back-to-back baskets.
Tuach’s late steal and lay-up put the game out of reach.
The Whai beat the Nuggets 38-34 in the Rapid League game.
On Thursday, the Canterbury Rams beat the Hawke’s Bay Hawks 103-94 in Taradale.
National Basketball League
The scores
Otago Nuggets 92
(Michael Henn 19, Ethan Rusbatch 17)
Tauranga Whai 81
(Nicholas Stoddart 24, Taine Murray 23)
Quarter scores: 23-20, 49-32, 63-53, 92-81
