Basketball: Third-quarter effort takes danger man out of picture

By MURRAY McKINNON

Harbour Kings shut down the Saints' new import, Kevin Brooks, in the second half to win their NBL game on the North Shore 96-86.

Brooks, one of the few American imports to have played in the NBA, arrived in Wellington only on Tuesday.

He turned out for the Denver Nuggets from 1991-94, and his reputation as a great shooter was soon evident as he took control of the game from the start with an opening three-pointer.

A further two shots from the perimeter and three field goals, combined with aggressive play from Tony Brown, had the Saints out to a 45-35 lead at the break.

But the Kings fired in the third quarter. Aaron Olson denied Brooks the ball and Steve Jackson used his size to challenge the American's shots.

A run of nine unanswered points helped the Kings to draw level, and the teams were locked at 69-all going into the final quarter.

Defence was the Kings' game plan over the final 10 minutes. Big John Smith worked tirelessly under the post, denying the visitors any shots.

Brooks was left to slot them in from the outside, scoring three more for a total of eight for the game.

Jackson, Olson, and Paora Winitana enjoyed the last passage of play, banging home the final nails in the Saints' coffin.

Olson top-scored for the Kings with 25. Smith and Winitana were on 17, while Jackson with 12 also came away with seven offensive and 11 defensive rebounds.

For the Saints, Brooks finished with 30 and Brown 16.

Kings coach Tracy Carpenter was almost unable to speak at the end, his voice nearly gone through shouting instructions and challenging refereeing calls.

"We played with guts tonight. We were not stopping them making baskets in the first half, and I knew if we played harder we would wear them down," he said.

The Kings were determined to avoid the wooden spoon that some were predicting at the start of the season.

Canterbury maintained their top standing after beating league champions Waikato 92-82 in Christchurch.

Waikato were unable to score over the final 90 seconds, and the Rams moved out to a 10-point lead after trailing 79-82.

For Canterbury, John Whorton topped with 28 and Andrew Gardiner scored 17.

The Auckland Stars bounced back from their loss to the Nelson Giants on Friday to beat the Otago Nuggets 80-63 in Dunedin.

Import Casey Frank dominated the scoring for the Stars with 19 and seven rebounds, and player-coach Kenny Stone finished with 15.