NBL, round 9: James Batemon breaks NBL scoring record
James Batemon will go down in Australian basketball folklore after he scored his 51st point in Brisbane’s big win over the Wildcats. FULL NBL ROUND 9 WRAP
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Few of those who watched James Batemon’s historic 51-point performance for the Brisbane Bullets on Sunday would have known that his greatest fan was also in his corner when he made one of the least inspiring debuts for an import in NBL history.
Rewind to September and Bullets fans were wondering just who had been recruited when the American had just three points on 1-5 shooting in a 23-minute debut loss to the New Zealand Breakers.
Soon-to-be-wife Nickayla was in his corner offering support that night just as she was the catalyst who fuelled the NBL’s best individual scoring performance of the past 15 years since the 40-minute era returned in 2009, eclipsing Chris Goulding in 2014 for the Tigers.
Batemon shot the lights out (19-28 FG) to steer the Bullets to their fourth win of the season in a 105-84 triumph against the Perth Wildcats on Sunday afternoon at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre.
It was a magnificent showing that featured steals aplenty, nine threes, gritty defence and tough finishes at the cup.
“The most nervous I’ve ever been in basketball was shooting the free throw when I had 39. I was like ‘man I’m about to get 40! I never scored over 34’,” Batemon said.
“It was like I was in a movie.”
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FOR THE FIRST TIME IN TEN YEARS THERE IS A 50-PIECE IN THE #NBL!
— ESPN Australia & NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) November 17, 2024
JAMES BATEMON TAKE A BOW!
Watch the #NBL LIVE on ESPN 📺 pic.twitter.com/8tG2ABpZ4G
He was the difference, the star of the show and the fresh fan-favourite at the club.
Behind the scenes, his deep-shooting prowess is all a by-product of his loving relationship with childhood sweetheart Nickayla.
Batemon, still trying to piece together what had just happened after Sunday’s game, said she was the catalyst for all good things that come from him on the court. On Sunday, every shot he took looked good out of the hand.
“Me and my fiancée first met back in high school but we didn’t say a word to each other all of high school,” Batemon recalled. “Four years in high school we probably said one word to each other. We got to college, I finally reached out to her and we’ve clicked ever since. We had our son three years ago and we’ve just been inseparable.
“She has been supporting me my whole journey. She was here when I was riding my bike to work in a factory, when I was catching a bus to work she was there for me.”
Three years ago Batemon and Nickayla introduced their son Jay into the world and first-year Bullet Batemon noted the camaraderie among the squad in times where his teammates are also welcoming sons and daughters into the world.
“With this team I have been able to share those moments. The struggles me and my fiancé went through. The struggles they went through and I think that has brought us closer.
“Right now on the court it’s not gelling all the way because we are not winning as many games (as we would’ve liked). But the unity of the team and everything. I love the team.
“It’s been a big factor all year. Even though I wasn’t performing up to the level.”
Batemon also recorded four rebounds, three assists and two steals on a 28 plus-minus performance where Keandre Cook (17 points) cooked down the final stretch to ensure a crucial home victory heading into the FIBA break.
“I can’t wait to go home and watch it as a bit of a fan,” Brisbane coach Justin Schueller said. “It was a special night for us and for the club. It’s the guy we recruited that we knew he could be a high level scorer in this league.”
ZIKARSKY’S BEST HALF OF THE SEASON
Brisbane’s friendly giant and NBL Next Star Rocco Zikarksy put together his best half of the season to help the Bullets to a 47-39 lead at the main break.
After his first five minutes, the 220cm Sunshine Coast product had one rebound, one startling rejection, two vicious slam dunks and six points next to his name.
He went to the break with 10 points on 5-7 shooting but it was a 50 second passage of play approaching halftime which would have had coach Schueller and NBA scouts giving plaudits.
On an attack to the rim Zikarsky was rejected at the apex and on his way down, he hit the back of his head on the shin of teammate Tohi Smith-Milner which caused a big grimace of discomfort from the young gun.
He got up, ran downcourt and secured a defensive rebound before running the floor, crashing the glass on a Keandre Cook miss and adding two points to his tally with a fierce offensive rebound.
Wildcats coach John Rillie called a time-out with his team trailing by eight points and Zikarksy lumbered to the bench with his head down.
It was courageous. “Rocco’s best game of the year,” said Schueller.
“He had a real impact. He impacted winning when he was on the floor. His rebounding and his presence was the most pleasing thing for me,“ said Schueller, who played the towering teen more minutes than Kiwi international Tyrell Harrison.
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‘I’ve never seen anything like that’: Phoenix coach calls out foul count
South East Melbourne Phoenix coach Josh King pointed to a lopsided foul count when identifying where they lost to the Perth Wildcats on Friday night.
While admitting that it wasn’t his team’s best performance since he’s been in charge, he said he’d never before seen a 12-1 foul count in one quarter before.
That was in favour of Perth, who scored a whopping 40 points, a season high from any team in any quarter, in the second term. After trailing by eight points at quarter-time, the Wildcats led by 10 at the main break. The final foul count was 25-10.
King said that’s when the game was decided.
“We have to be better. I told the guys in locker room, not our best game,” he said.
“We have to be tougher; we have to be more disciplined.
“We gave up 40 points in a quarter. Anytime you do that, it’s tough. I think that’s obviously where the game was kind of won or lost, in that second quarter.
“I’ll just state facts, because I don’t want to get fined. I believe the foul count was 12 to one in the second quarter.
“I’ve never seen anything like that.
“And the third quarter, the foul count was three to two, so the game must have changed.
“Perth is a tough place to play. But combined with those facts, I stated, it gets really difficult, and then 30 to 10 in the free-throw count.”
Before Friday night, 25 points was the most a team had scored in one quarter against the Phoenix with King in charge. That was the Sydney Kings in round 8.
Perth knocked down 40 in the second term on Friday, with Bryce Cotton scoring 16. He was helped with two technical fouls, one coming from the coach.
The 97 Perth recorded is the second highest against the Phoenix this season, behind the 106 the Wildcats produced in round 1.
The highest scored against a King-led Phoenix before Friday was Tasmania JackJumper’s 77 points in round 7.
Due to a break for FIBA games, the Phoenix are not back on court until 30 November, when they play the Illawarra Hawks.
They go into the break with a 5-8 record, which isn’t too bad considering they started 0-5 before parting ways with Mike Kelly.
They won two of three games under Sam Mackinnon and are now 3-2 since King took the reigns.
King said the players have earned the rest.
“I just came here on the fly,” he said.
“They’ve had, you know, three different voices, in eight weeks or so.
“The buy in has been terrific from this group. And I really think after this break, that we could even get better.”
BREAKERS HAND SNAKES’ EIGHTH STRAIGHT LOSS
– Gyan-Reece Rocha
A thriller between league leaders the Breakers and the bottom-placed Taipans ended 77-69 in favour of New Zealand, despite a mammoth performance by Taipans sharpshooter Rob Edwards.
The Breakers were powered by Matthew Mooney (15 points and three assists) and an overwhelming scoring punch from the bench (20 points to 7 points), handing the Taipans their eighth straight loss.
The Breakers led by double digits at the main break, but a second-half fightback from the Snakes put the contest in the balance in the fourth quarter.
Edwards, who was spectacular throughout, fouled out late in the game, shifting the momentum in Breakers favour which followed a crucial 12-0 scoring run from the Breakers in the fourth quarter, which sealed the win.
17-year old rising star Karim Lopez (nine points and three rebounds) and sharpshooter Grant Anticevich (eight points and three rebounds) were outstanding from the opening quarter.
“We had solid contributions from the bench but it’s been like this all season,” Breakers coach Petteri Koponen said.
“I trust the guys and it was a big reason we were fresh (in the fourth quarter) and won the game.
“Karim is taking the league by storm. The last few weeks he’s been improving (at a high rate), his length and athleticism. He’s an unbelievable young kid and a big part of the team.”
Breakers superstar Peter Jackson-Cartwright wasn’t at his scoring best after being limited by Taipans defender Jonah Antonio, finishing with 11 points (3-of-11 shooting), five assists, and three turnovers.
Breakers big man Freddie Gillespie, whose future with the team remains uncertain, added eight points and eight rebounds.
DETROIT DEADEYE
Taipans guard Rob Edwards unleashed a scoring clinic in front of a packed home crowd, finishing with 33 points and five rebounds.
The Detroit native had a monster first half, scoring 22 points, more than half of his team’s total at the break.
The next highest scorer for the Taipans at the half was Jonah Antonio, with just six points.
Unfortunately for Edwards and the Orange Army, the scoring machine fouled out midway through the fourth quarter following an unsuccessful coach’s challenge on an offensive foul against Peter Jackson-Cartwright.
Heading into Round 9, Edwards — who returned from a one-game suspension — ranked second among qualified players for three-pointers made per game (3.3).
He had just set a career-high seven three-pointers in his last appearance against the Bullets. The 27-year-old continued his shooting streak from range, nailing four three-pointers in the game.
“He was keeping us in it,” Taipans coach Adam Forde said.
“At different stages throughout the game he was the only reason the scoreboard was ticking over.”
Taipan’s next highest scorer at the final whistle was Akoldah Gak with 11 points and eight rebounds, with Taran Armstrong (five points and six assists), Sam Waardenburg (four points and three assists) and Tanner Groves (four points and one assist before fouling out) struggling to have a strong offensive influence.
BIG SAM RETURNS
Breakers centre Sam Mennenga returned to the snakepit for the first time against his former side.
The 22-year old big man left the Taipans in the off-season after struggling to cement his spot in Taipans coach Adam Forde’s starting five.
The New Zealand native opted to return home and has become a starter at the five under Breakers coach Petteri Koponen.
Mennenga put up 12pts, three rebounds, two assists and a block in his return to FNQ.
REBOUNDING WOES CONTINUE
Rebounding, both defensively and offensively, has been a consistent issue for the Taipans throughout NBL25.
The problem has been exacerbated by star import Tanner Groves missing a significant portion of the season.
However, with Groves now back in the line-up for the past two games – albeit on a minutes restriction – the issue persists.
In the first half, the Taipans were dominated on the boards, finishing with just 11 total rebounds and four offensive rebounds.
They were unable to keep pace with the Breakers in this area, who were more aggressive on the glass with 24 total rebounds and 13 offensive rebounds.
While the Taipans did manage to even up the rebounding stats in the second half during their comeback, the deficit in points and rebounds – especially in the first half – ultimately contributed to their loss.
“They kicked our butts again in the final stages of the fourth quarter,” Forde said.
“Again, we have another fourth quarter fade out, off the back of shot selection and back-to-back possessions with second chance points that New Zealand were able to capitalise on.
“We have bigs that need to be better.”
DOYLE MASTERCLASS DRAGS JACKJUMPERS TO SECOND STRAIGHT WIN
– Ryan Rosendale
Another blistering third-quarter display, and Milton Doyle shooting masterclass, has well and truly put Tasmania’s NBL season back on track with the reigning champions surviving a gallant Brisbane outfit at MyState Bank Arena on Friday night.
Despite a shaky start, it was the JackJumpers that controlled larger stages of both the second and third quarters to eventually sink the Bullets 95-92 and take their record to 5-8 heading into the FIBA break.
The JackJumpers are also now 3-0 in Hobart this season.
Doyle shot like a man possessed, hitting a career-high eight three pointers to finish with 32 points, just one shy of his career-best total.
After Tasmania led Brisbane 28-9 at quarter-time back in round 6, Justin Schueller’s side well and truly flipped the script early with the visitors taking just two minutes to jump out to a 15-3 start and silence the home fans.
The 14-0 run early was the catalyst behind the Bullets highest scoring first quarter of the season but a late run from the JackJumpers dragged the margin back to 11 at the first break.
Tasmania responded with their own 8-0 run midway through the second-term to cut the margin back to just three at the half.
But if Brisbane’s start was impressive, the 13 point swing in favour of the home side in the third quarter definitely eclipsed it.
Kick started by a two-point dunk and a rare three-point bucket from a returning Will Magnay (14 points, seven rebounds, one assist) that gave Tasmania the lead for the first time, two late threes to Anthony Drmic extend that to eight at the final break.
A seesawing final quarter was decided down the stretch and while Keandre Cook (23 points, two rebounds, two assists) was fouled out with under a minute to play, the Bullets wouldn’t go away.
Two made free-throws to Mitch Norton dragged the deficit back to three before Jordon Crawford ended the game with his own two points from the line in what was a quiet night for the import.
NBL24 most improved player Sean Macdonald (seven points and seven assists) provided the victors with plenty on the offensive end in his return from a pre-season ankle injury while James Batemon continued to prove his switch from starting five scorer to impact bench player was a wise decision with 15 points.
Tasmania will now head into the FIBA break and will face Adelaide when they return to the court on November 30 while the Bullets face Perth on Sunday to close out round eight.
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