Back in the Day: November 2006

This week, the BA tardis (in the shape of the Dr John Raschke Trophy) has set us down in the late spring of 2006 where it's all silly shirts and sensational plays in the week of November 18-21, writes Nicholas Way for Basketball Australia.

The air quality is reasonable, but if we don’t move fast we’ll get swamped by the battalions of the Barmy Army. So let’s get going!

Prime Minister Howard is in Hanoi for the APEC leaders meeting. He has a bilateral meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush, places a wreath  at the memorial to the battle of Long Tan and takes part in the photo opportunity where the assembled leaders wear a piece of traditional clothing of the host country. The resulting shots are not flattering to any of the individuals involved. At home, the second coming of Kim Beazley as Opposition Leader is in its death throes as numbers are crunched for a Rudd-Gillard super ticket.

Melbourne plays host to meetings involving economic ministers of the G20 and athletes from the 1956 Olympics. In a London hospital bed, Russian dissident and former spy Alexander Litvinenko is clinging to life after being poisoned with a radioactive substance later determined to be polonium-210. There are already suggestions being made that various agencies within the Russian government may be behind the attack. On the obituary page we see Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman, Hungarian football legend Ferenc Puskas, University of Michigan icon Bo Schembechler and the American motion picture director Robert Altman.

On a much lighter note, the major sports story was the build-up towards the Ashes cricket series. Predictions ranged from Dennis Lillee’s ‘I reckon this summer’s...series is too close to call’ to Neil Harvey’s ‘I think Australia will win 5-0. Their (England’s) batting is really suspect...and I can’t see their attack bowling us out twice.’ Golf’s Australian Open finishes in dramatic style, with John Senden shooting a seven-under 65 in the final round to win by a shot over U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy. Ian Thorpe announces his retirement from competitive swimming, bringing down the curtain on a truly memorable career. Borat, The Departed and An Inconvenient Truth are drawing in Australia’s cinema-goers. On their way home they are listening to ‘My Love’, ‘Smack That’ and ‘I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’. Makes you pine for the days of Leo Sayer, doesn’t it?

Round 13 of the Phillips Championship saw three games that had an effect on the top four positions on the league ladder. Running from north to south, we start in Cairns as the Taipans, who had won their opening 5 games at home, hosted Melbourne. Tigers star Chris Anstey, returning from a forced layoff due to injury, struggled against the Cairns defence. Fortunately for the visitors, Dave Thomas scored 22 points as the Tigers snuck away with a 94-88 victory. Three vital stats from the game:

*The Tigers controlled the boards 48-31.

*The Taipans shot a risible 25 of 46 from the free throw line.

*The Taipans were kept to a 14 point tally in the final quarter.

Melbourne’s final quarter effort pleased coach Westover, but there was more work to be done.

Brisbane hosted Perth at ‘The Library’ in the week before the beginning of ‘The Streak’. The Bullets, motivated by the humiliation dished out by Perth coach Scott Fisher the previous season (he reportedly called timeouts to prolong the agony of a dispiriting loss in Perth), were relentless as they thumped the Cats 105-86. Sam Mackinnon top scored with 24 points, while CJ Bruton chipped in with 18 despite fouling out in the third quarter. Brisbane coach Joey Wright registered surprise at being on top of the ladder, with 9 of their first 14 games on the road. With a 10-4 record, the Bullets now have a 2-1 season split on Perth, which could prove crucial in the run to the play-offs.

Finally, Shane Heal returned to Sydney as player-coach of the South Dragons to take on the Sydney Kings. With rumours of ‘a mystery buyer’ swirling around the Kings, 5544 turned up to see the two teams tangle. For their money, the crowd saw a classic. Heal scored 30, including 18 in the 4^th quarter with his championship-winning teammate Kavossy Franklin pouring in 21.  Despite this and being down as many as eight points in the final quarter, the Kings were able to send the game into overtime. A key three-pointer from BJ Carter, followed by a quick four points from Luke Kendall saw the Kings get home 92-88. Kendall was the MVP of the game with 26 points, 8 rebounds, 10 assists and 6 steals. The other game of the night saw Townsville crush Wollongong 117-96.

The WNBL saw Canberra defeat the AIS 94-56 and Dandenong overcome Perth 70-55. Hollie Grima continues her league-leading form for Bulleen with 31 points and 13 rebounds in their 89-64 rout of Perth, then 24 points and 11 rebounds in a 77-64 success against the AIS. The Lightning had a mixed weekend, defeating Townsville 86-80 before losing to the Sydney Flames (described in one report as ‘the league’s...most overly aggro team) 87-70. The Lightning shooting 10 of 25 from the field in the second half did not help their cause.

There’s a kind of hush over the scene, which is the signal for us to depart. Join in again next week as we visit the days of destructive computer bugs, mighty teams achieving mightier feats and constant airplay of Prince records.

Question of the Week brought to you by Nobody.

This week’s question is entirely off-topic but here it is:

Next year the Senior Men’s and Women’s World Championships are being held in Turkey and the Czech Republic respectively. Write in and tell us where you think the Boomers and Opals will finish. Medal round, quarter final or worse?

Send your responses to Nicholas.Way@Basketball.net.au with ‘Back in the Day’ in the subject line.

You may appear in Mailbag, so get writing!

If you have memories to share, or topics that should be discussed, send an email to Nicholas.Way@Basketball.net.au and put in the subject line ‘Back in the Day.’