Basketball: Devendorf stars for Waikato

American import Eric Devendorf made an instant impact for Waikato in the National Basketball League (NBL) when he amassed 49 points in last night's 92-73 opening round win over Nelson at Te Awamutu.

Devendorf put on a shooting clinic as he landed seven of 10 three-point attempts and another 10 from 16 from inside the keyhole.

It took Waikato two quarters to gain control of the season opener as they led 41-34 at half time with Devendorf closing out the half with a three-pointer.

While Devendorf was punishing Nelson with his accuracy, Waikato dominated the rebounding statistics 57-32 with Alex Pledger and Tony Ronaldson hauling in the lion's share of the ball.

Devendorf ignited a long scoring run in the third quarter as Waikato scored 25 points to put the game out of Nelson's reach.

Fellow guards Gerard Bowden (10 points) and Hayden Allen (nine points) provided able support to Devendorf.

Nelson's Michael Harrison had a good all round game, scoring 24 points and pulling in four rebounds.

In another match, Christchurch trailed 30-48 at halftime but fought back to beat Hawke's Bay 75-72 at Christchurch thanks to Paora Winitana who scored a game-high 27 points. Teammate Jeremy Kench was second best with 20.

- NZPA