Basketball: NZ keep hopes alive with comeback victory

New Zealand stole victory from the jaws of defeat last night to keep their hopes alive for the next round of the world basketball championships in Hiroshima, Japan.

Captain Pero Cameron sank a three-pointer with 1min 17sec left on the clock to tie the scores 57-57 and Kirk Penney turned on his magic with 29sec with a three-pointer of his own.

There was both joy and relief in the New Zealand camp as they had come back from near hopelessness to snatch a thrilling win and keep their chances open for the last 16.

They need to beat Panama tomorrow to stay alive.

Japan led 26-13 in the first quarter and 38-20 at halftime.

A determined effort mixed with the errors of the first half continued for the Tall Blacks in third quarter but they started to whittle back Japan's lead.

During most of the game New Zealand looked like bombing out of the round of group play. They had lost three consecutive matches heavily - to Spain, Germany and Angola - and it appeared a fourth was on the way when they plucky Japanese took charge of the court.

The smaller and shorter homeside provided a lesson on how to beat bigger and taller opponents in the game.

On the back of Joji Takeuchi's skills and ability to penetrate the defence and backed by shooter Toomo Arimo, the Japanese led throughout except the first and last minutes.

Despite their dominance, Japan turned over a significant amount of possession, as New Zealand did, but the advantage just seemed to evaporate from the Tall Blacks' hands.

The Tall Blacks didn't score from any of 14 three-point attempts they made in the first half and when they seemed to gather some momentum late in the third quarter - when they closed the game from 38-20 (halftime) to 41-36 with the help of their first two three-pointers from Cameron and Kirk Penney, no-one seemed keen to score.

It was then Arimo, one of the night's stars, scored from free throws to give his team a 12-point lead (48-36) to end the third quarter.

Joji Takeuchi had around and through New Zealand kamikaze-style several times to help his side to a 26-13 lead in the first quarter.

In comparison, the New Zealanders looked like standing in concrete shoes and ponderous.

Mark Dickel came off the bench in his first game at the championship after suspension for taking cannabis but couldn't spark the side as they ran into foul trouble.

Early in the fourth quarter at least five New Zealanders, Paul Henare, Aaron Olson and Dillon Boucher included, were on their third foul.

New Zealand regrouped in a time-out and came back to gnaw at the Japanese lead. Cameron added a three-pointer and Penney hit two free throws to close the gap to 54-51 with four minutes to go. It was the closest they'd been since the second minute of the game.

Both teams managed to score a free throw each before Penney sneaked his way through the defence for a crucial basket with 1min 58sec to go, with the Japanese holding on 55-54.

Cameron brought his team back with yet another fine three-pointer to tie the game 57-57. New Zealand lost the ball and won it back and Dickel set up Penney's winner.

- NZPA