Boomers clean sweep New Zealand
The Australian Boomers have finished their three-match series against the New Zealand Tall Blacks with a
clean sweep, winning Game 3 in Dunedin on Sunday afternoon, 91-80.
The Boomers qualified with the number one seeding for Oceania for the 2006 World Championships after
winning the second game of the series on Saturday afternoon.
“Saturday’s win was a real relief, but this was the most gratifying win of the series,” Boomers coach
Brian Goorjian said.
“This is the future.”
Missing CJ Bruton, Matthew Nielsen and Glen Saville in the final match - after the star trio all pulled up
sore after Saturday afternoon’s tough match - Boomers fans were offered a look into the future, with
19-year-old brad Newley stepping up to top score for his team with 22 points.
Newley, the 2005 Philips Championship Rookie of the Year, joined the Boomers straight from the U21 World
Championships in Argentina where the Aussies finished fourth.
“I was excited about adding the young guys to our squad this year and was disappointed they were not able
to play with us because of the U21 Worlds,” Goorjian said.
“So it was great to be able to add Newley to the team for this series, and to see what he is going to add
for the Commonwealth Games and the World Champs next year is really exciting.”
Resting Bruton, Nielsen and Saville gave the Australian bench a chance to hit the pine for some serious
time and they didn’t waste their chance.
Newley saw 26 minutes, Pero Vasiljevic 11 and Alex Loughton 10, giving them a bigger chance than any
previous game to impress their coach.
Experienced centre David Andersen also had 22 points for the Aussies, and Mark Worthington finished with
18.
Playing for pride only, the Tall Blacks came out firing in the final match of the series. The match stood
out from the previous two with plenty of razzle-dazzle and fast breaks keeping the crowd entertained. The
Kiwis kept the Aussies at bay for the first half, before foul trouble for Mark Dickel, Pero Cameron and
Dillon Boucher halted their run.
A brilliant 30-point third quarter for Australia set up the win and the clean sweep.
The Australian team returns home on Monday and will break for the Australian domestic series with others
returning to Europe and the US. Coach Goorjian will not have his team together again until a couple of weeks
before the Commonwealth Games in March, making performances throughout this international season all the more
important for those newer players.
| Quarter time: | Australia 12 - 17 New Zealand |
| Half time: | Australia 34 - 39 New Zealand |
| Three Quarter time: | Australia 64 - 55 New Zealand |
| Full time: | Australia 91 - 80 New Zealand |
2005 Jeep Oceania Men's Championships:
New Zealand vs Australia
Wednesday, August 17 - Trust Stadium, Waitakere :: Aus won 82-69
Saturday, August 20 – Telstra Clear Pacific Events, Manukau :: Aus won 82-71
Today – Edgar Centre, Dunedin :: Aus won 91-80
Related Articles:
Boomers qualify for World Champs (Sat Aug 20)
Boomers take first blood in Oceania Series (Wed Aug 17)
Boomers touch down in NZ ahead of Oceania Champs (Tues Aug 16)
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