Basketball junkies, your fix is on the way!!

Well it is here, the 2009-2010 NBA season kicks off Tuesday night in the US. There are lots of new faces in new places this season along with some familiar ones returning from injuries. For a start I will just make my fearless forecasts.

In the East I see the Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavs as the teams to beat while out West, look for a Spurs resurgence in San Antonio along with the always tough Lakers and Dallas as the best picks.

Other surprises could come from the Toronto Raptors, Portland Trailblazers, Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets. In the end I’m going for a Spurs vs. Magic finals series.

Roundup of Aussie action

Round 5 of the 2009-2010 NBL season kicked off with Melbourne pulling off a huge win on the road in Adelaide beating the 36ers 81-70. Mark Worthington went on a tear in the final 10 minutes of the game for the Tigers scoring 15 of his game high 29 points to lead from the front.

Thursday nights action across the Tasman saw the New Zealand Breakers limit the effect of red hot Corey Williams and held on to beat Townsville 92-82. The when came in home game number 100 for the Breakers.

On Friday night, the Gold Coast breakers ambushed Cairns 80-63 at the Gold Coast Convention Centre. Winning on the road is proving to be an Achilles Heel for the Snakes.

Saturday night saw the continued slumping form of Corey Williams as Townsville went down for the second consecutive game losing 99-77 to Wollongong on the road. The Hawks remain at the top of the table with only one loss in five outings.

The poor form of North Queensland teams did not change in Cairns on Saturday night as the Snakes fell heavily to the visiting 36ers 106-89. The win was a quick fix for Adelaide after their loss to the Tigers to start the round.

On Sunday Perth recorded their 500^th win in the NBL by squeaking past Melbourne 93-90 in a battle of the Cats at Challenge Stadium. Perth now sits at number two on the NBL ladder.

In the WNBL, the students from the AIS were given another basketball lesson on Friday night, this time at the hands of Adelaide by a 77-52 count. It was a reunion of sorts for the eight players on the Lightning roster who are graduates of the AIS programme.

Friday night also saw a seesaw battle in Sydney where the Canberra Capitals got a much needed 74-72 win. The defending premiers are out to turn their season around after early struggles.

Also on Friday night, Townsville overcame foul trouble throughout the game to pull away from the visiting Perth Lynx 97-81. The win kept the Fire in sight of table toppers Bulleen.

On Saturday night Bulleen dumped Dandenong 80-67 in the Melbourne Derby. In Sunday action Canberra continued its reversal of fortunes by handing the Adelaide Lightning their first loss of the season 100-73 in the nation’s capital. The win helps Canberra make their first appearance in the top half of the ladder and sends an ominous warning to future opponents. Sunday’s other games saw the Logan Thunder top Perth 76-65 at Logan and Dandenong pick up their first win of the season on the road no less beating up on hosts Bendigo 88-72.