New Zealanders confident

Press, 5 August 1981, Page 17

New Zealanders confident

The basketball series that could change the future of the sport in New Zealand is the way they are billing the Adidas World Series Basketball that starts on Friday evening at Cowies Stadium, Christchurch.

New Zealand goes into the best of three series of games (Friday; Sunday, and if necessary Tuesday) hoping to beat the Australians and win the Oceania qualifying zone. If it does this. New Zealand would attend the World Championships for the first time next year in Cali, Colombia. The New Zealanders are confident they have the personnel. the ability, and the drive to beat the Australians on their home court.

This country's record in series against the Australians is not a happy one, but the Kiwis will look to put all behind them and prove they can win a series.

The team knows that it already has one win against the Australians from the 1978 series. It knows the Australians are vulnerable.

In that series, the last played in this country, New Zealand basketball came of age when Canterbury’s John Hill scooped up a rebound, pushed it back through the hoop at the Nash Stadium in Lower Hutt to win the match for New Zealand.

• That win squared the "series at one each, but before the third deciding match in Christchurch that year, the New ' Zealanders were plagued by . doubts about the refereeing, their own ability and their preparation for such a big game. ; Happily the team has put its past disappointments behind it and five of the players who took part in that April 5, 1978 historic defeat of the Australians are back in the national squad for this series.

' They include New Zealand's best known basketbailer and 6 foot 10 inch team captain, Stan Hill, who will be playing in his seventh year as a national player. His younger brother John, who is a familiar, albeit awe-

inspiring sight around Canterbury basketball courts, will also be in the side. John “Dutchie" Rademakers, who is in his fifth year as a national player and will also enjoy the advantage of playing on his home court.

John McDonald. who makes a welcome return to the national side after a break for family reasons and will be playing his tenth season on the national side. And John van Uden, who was brought back to New Zealand from the United States for the 1981 national team. Van Uden is in his third year as a national player. Two other national players will also have the advantage of playing on their home court. Andy Bennett and Bert Knops, both from the United Service-Aranui club will be looking to match some ol their better club performances at Cowles Stadium for the national team. The side will be coached by the veteran Steve McKean. The confidence of the New Zealand side is not only stemming from the experienced personnel it contains, but a number of other influences which it feels could

swing the series in its favour.

Neutral referees (see story below) have been flown out from America to officiate the series and this combined with the home court support are reasons touted for a New Zealand series win. In addition the national side will have the services of van Uden and Tony Smith, both young players who have valuable top-level basketball experience while on scholarships in the United States. A grant from the New Zealand Sports Foundation allowed both to return to New Zealand for the national team's programme.

Both are now experienced at playing basketball under pressure from both coaches and spectators.

To a certain extent all of the New Zealand players have learned to cope with this pressure since it last met Australia in 1979. This season for the second consecutive year the national side attended the William Jones International tournament in Taiwan.

Although it was unable to match the third placing it achieved last year, the buildup for that tournament, the time spent as a team in Taiwan and back in Christ-

church this week will be invaluable in melding the team'as a uniL

While the New Zealanders have been preparing for this series since the first selection trials in March, the Australian team has only been together for just over a week.

The final advantage held by the New Zealanders, according to basketball pundits, is that the national director of coaching, Dick Walsh, has watched the Australians play and feels they are beatable. Mr Walsh flew to Australia two weeks ago and watched the Australians narrowly beat an American college side.

Mr Walsh, an American, reportedly feels that with the home court advantage there is no reason why New Zealand cannot win the series.

The Australian players to watch for in the series are lan Davies and Peter Walsh.

Davies was the highest individual scorer at the Moscow Olympics last year (where Australia finished seventh) with 205 points. The 25-year-old student will' be looking to keep his shooting average up at the expense of New Zealand.

Walsh, at 7 foot 2 inches, will be the tallest player in the series, four inches taller than the New Zealand captain Stan Hall.

Although he is an experienced national representative, New Zealand basketball followers are confident Hill will be able to dominate him. Other veteran Australians playing in the series will be Mel Dalgleish, Phil Smyth, Larry Sengstock, Danny Morseau. Les Riddle and Peter Air.

The side will be coached by Lindsay Gaze, who has the longest current streak as an international coach, having been in charge of the Australian side since 1971.

As both sides prepare this week in Christchurch for the series, both look forward to next year’s World Championships. The New Zealanders are out to create a first!