Saints march to big road win over Sharks
- NZ Sports Wire
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
The finally-full-strength Wellington Saints made light work of a tricky road assignment in the National Basketball League (NBL).
The Saints welcomed Tall Blacks and Melbourne United guard Shea Ili to the lineup for the first time this season, and they marched to a 93-72 victory over the Southland Sharks at Invercargill's ILT Stadium Southland on Thursday night.
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Ili, who re-signed with United for two years in the Australian NBL earlier this week, was a key performer off the bench for the Saints, going for 13 points (5/10 FG, 3/3 FT), five rebounds, 10 assists and two steals in 19 minutes.
American centre Nick Muszynski led the road team with 19 points (9/12 FG) and 12 rebounds, while Australian guard Shaun Bruce produced 17 points (5/9 FG, 4/7 3pt), seven boards and five assists.
Kiwi guard Izayah Le'afa had 13 points, six boards, four assists and two steals, Australian forward Nick Marshall 13 points and nine rebounds, and Hyrum Harris eight points, nine rebounds and four steals.
Import forward Keylan Boone scored 20 points (8/19 FG, 4/8 3pt), with 12 rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks for the Sharks, while young Kiwi guard Tukaha Cooper had 19 points (6/12 FG, 3/6 3pt, 4/4 FT) and five boards.
American guard Caleb Asberry put up 12 points (3/9 FG, 2/6 3pt, 4/5 FT), six boards, eight assists and four steals in the loss.
In a slow start, the two teams combined for just five made field goals in the opening six minutes, before Wellington caught fire.
The Saints opened the second quarter on a 17-5 run to go up by 20 points, which essentially ended the contest. The Sharks never got closer than 20 in the second half.
Wellington (5-2) head to Dunedin next to complete their 'Deep South Double-Header' against the Otago Nuggets (3-3) on Saturday (tip-off 4pm), while the Sharks (2-5) are off until facing the Tauranga Whai (4-2) in Mount Maunganui on Thursday (tip-off 7pm).
The Saints swept the night, with a 40-33 win in the Sky Broadband Rapid League game, thanks to 13 points from Kazlo Evans.
Wellington Saints 93 (Nick Muszynski 19, Shaun Bruce 17, Shea Ili 13, Izayah Le'afa 13, Nick Marshall 13) Southland Sharks 72 (Keylan Boone 20, Tukaha Cooper 19, Caleb Asberry 12). 1Q: 22-14, HT: 52-30, 3Q: 78-52