Boomer named WNBL Player of the week for Week 1

From press release supplied by: www.basketball.net.au

OPAL PENALUNA NAMED PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Bulleen Boomers centre Elyse Penaluna has been named Player of the Week for her match winning performance against Canberra in the opening round of the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL).

The 193cm Broadmeadows junior tallied a game high 13 rebounds and led Bulleen with 22 points and four blocks in the 88-73 win over the Capitals in a rematch of the 2008/09 Grand Final.

Penaluna made her Opals debut in May this year and her time at the top level showed on the court as she dominated both ends of the floor in the ABC TV Game of the Week.

“I thought I started off a bit slow, a bit nervous because it was the first game but as the game went on I got a bit more confidence and my teammates had more confidence in me to pass me the ball and I just went out and had some fun,” Penaluna said.

Despite the shaky start Penaluna said she has grown in confidence since last season.

“I definitely feel like I have more confidence in my game and with what I need to get done on the floor,” she said.

“[Former head coach] Cheryl Chambers helped me with that a lot last year but now having Tom Maher as Bulleen’s coach and being in the Opals with Carrie Graf I’ve just jumped up the next level with my confidence in the game.”

Although Penaluna and her Bulleen team were impressive on Saturday, the 21-year-old said the 15-point win could not make up for the 2008/09 Grand Final loss to the Caps.

“Nothing’s going to feel any better than getting into the Grand Final and winning it. Hopefully we’ll meet them in the Grand Final again this season and we go that one better.”

Close behind Penaluna in the vote was her Opals teammate Jessica Foley who led Adelaide Lightning over early championship favourite Sydney Uni, 86-73.

The Adelaide Captain had a near flawless game with 25 points, shooting 11-of-20 from the field, including 3-of-6 from the arc. She added seven rebounds and four assists without committing a single turnover.

Other noteworthy performances from Round 1 included:

AIS: Former Townsville Fire guard Jillian Haughton led the Institute in both outings, posting 8 points and 3 assists against Logan to go with 11 points and 2 rebounds against her former club.

Adelaide Lightning: Angela Marino supported Foley and Adelaide’s team effort with 15 points and 8 assists.

Bendigo Spirit: Fresh off a plane from the WNBA playoffs, Kristi Harrower led Bendigo with 23 points and 6 rebounds while Kelly Wilson added 20 points and 8 rebounds in support.

Bulleen Boomers: Hanna Zavecz shot 7-of-9 from the field to post 19 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists in her club debut.

Canberra Capitals: After making her Opals debut earlier this year Natalie Hurst continued her sparkling form with 25 points to lead all scorers against Bulleen, shooting 10-of-17 from the field. She added 5 rebounds and 2 assists.

Dandenong Rangers: Great Britain international Megan Moody impressed on debut with 18 points and 7 rebounds for the Rangers.

Logan Thunder: New import Marta Dydek delivered the goods with 17 points and 3 blocks in her WNBL debut.

Perth Lynx: American Takia Starks posted a team high 15 points, adding 5 assists and 3 rebounds while former Bendigo junior Ashley Gilmore bagged a double with 10 points and 13 rebounds.

Sydney Uni Flames: Opals centre Suzy Batkovic-Brown went for 29 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists against Adelaide in her first WNBL appearance in 7 years. Captain Natalie Porter tallied 17 points, 9 rebounds and 6 steals against Perth before pouring on 21 points in the second half against Adelaide, also pulling down 9 rebounds.

Townsville Fire: Seven Townsville players scored in double figures with Amy Lewis leading the pack with 21 points, 2 steals and 2 assists. Rachael Flanagan added 19 points, 4 assists and 2 steals and NZ Tall Fern Aneka Davis led the rebound count with 12 boards and 12 points.

Bulleen strong in Opening round of WNBL

The Bulleen Boomers have put themselves near the top of the heap as the team to beat in the WNBL this season. The Boomers easily accounted for defending champions Canberra 88-73 in Saturday afternoons feature match of the round.

Size was a huge advantage for Bulleen in the form of Opals Elyse Penaluna and Elizabeth Cambage. The two combined to dominate from the inside and limited the effect of the Capitals centre Tracey Beatty who fouled out of the match and had a total of only ten minutes court time.

The win gained a measure of revenge for Bulleen after last seasons title game loss to the Canberra crew.

Penaluna led the Boomers with 22 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocked shots. Cambage added another 4 blocks to go with 15 points and 7 rebounds. Hanna Zavecz 19 points/9 rebounds, Sharin Milner 12 points/9 assists and Jenna O'hea 9 points/7 rebounds were also key contributors to the victory.

For Canberra, Natalie Hurst popped in 25 points with support from Jessica Bibby who provided 15 points. Marianna Tolo battled gallantly on the inside and finished with 6 points and 7 rebounds to go with her 7 points.

Gems lose heartbreaker, Rollers roll through to medal round

The Gems, Australia's Under 19 Women's Basketball team, suffered a heartbreaking 60-59 loss to Canada in the quarter finals of the FIBA Under 19 World Championships for women in Bangkok Thailand Friday.

Elizabet Cambage continued her fine form by scoring over half of the Gems points (26) but had little support from teammates in the game. Canada advances to face the USA in one semi final while Argentina will square off against Spain in the other with the winners of the two matches meeting for the Gold Medal and the losers playing off for the Bronze.

Meanwhile back in Australia, the Rollers, Australia's Men's Wheelchair basketball team stopped Great Britain by a 69-55 count to advance to the Gold Medal match at the Rollers World Challenge in Sydney. The Rollers will face either Great Britain again or Canada for the Gold in Sydney on Saturday night.

OTHER NEWS:

Here are other basketball stories from Basketball Australia press releases:

Gliders to playoff for Bronze medal

01.08.09

The Australia's Women's Wheelchair Basketball team, the Gliders, tonight had a disappointing 49-40 loss to Netherlands in the semi-final game of the four nations tournament in Ottawa, Canada.

The Gliders the previous night defeated the Netherlands but were unable to repeat the performance in the semi final game.

The margin was five points or less for the entire game with Netherlands pulling away in the last few minutes with the assistance of the free throw line.

Versloot and Huizing of the Netherlands were dominant in transition with their speed and posing great difficulty for the Gliders.

The Gliders group of Chaplin, Stewart and Crispin were the main scorers and the defensive game of Katie Hill and Tina McKenzie gave the Aussies a chance to pull out a victory but didn’t have enough offensive weapons to get them across the line.

Tomorrow the Gliders meet host country Canada for the Bronze Medal having defeated Canada in 2 previous games during the tournament.

Head Coach John Triscari said “travelling to Ottawa for this tournament has been a valuable experience for all members of the team particularly given the excellent competition. Our defence in particular has developed throughout the tournament and the pressing style of play has become very effective. The unavailability of Kylie Gauci to travel to this tournament has provided opportunity for other players to contribute and gain valuable international experience. “

GLIDERS 40 (Cobi Crispin 16 (7 reb), Shelley Chaplin 12 (3 reb), Sarah Stewart 8 (5 reb)) bt
NETHERLANDS 49 (Inge Huitzing 18, Carina Versloot 15)

Photo courtesy of AFP

Opals team selected to face China

31.07.09

Basketball Australia has selected the athletes that will represent the Opals in a three game series against China in August.

Olympic Silver Medallists and reigning World Champions Australia will take on China in Canberra, Geelong and Dandenong on August 11, 17 and 21 respectively.

2008/09 Women's National Basketball League MVP Rohanee Cox and fellow Olympians Emma Randall, Hollie Grima, Jenni Screen and Alicia Poto are among the 15 athletes selected while Natalie Hurst, Elyse Penaluna and Liz Cambage, who all debuted for the Opals against China in May, have garnered re-selection.

“There’s no question that this is a critical part of our preparation for the World Championships and to get us ready for New Zealand,” Opals head coach Carrie Graf said.

“We have a good chunk of Olympians and we’re on home soil so we’re looking to avenge our 2-1 series loss in China in May.”

A team of twelve athletes will be selected at the conclusion of the three game series to contest the 2009 FIBA Oceania Championship for women against New Zealand on August 31 (Wellington, NZ) and September 2 (Canberra).

Australia’s performance at that event determines qualification for the 2010 FIBA World Championship for women.

China, who finished fourth in Beijing, is preparing for the 2009 FIBA Asia Championship for Women and will also contest friendly matches on tour against three Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL) teams; Bendigo Spirit, Dandenong Rangers and Bulleen Boomers.

Australian Opals Basketball Team for International ‘Friendlies’ against China:
(name / age / height / most recent pro club)

Eva AFEAKI / 24 / 184cm / Sydney Uni Flames
Elizabeth CAMBAGE / 17 / 203cm / Bulleen Boomers
Rohanee COX / 28 / 182cm / Townsville Fire
Jess FOLEY / 25 / 182cm / Adelaide Lightning
Hollie GRIMA / 25 / 190cm / Aix-en-Provence (France)
Cayla FRANCIS / 19 / 192cm / Adelaide Lightning
Natalie HURST / 25 / 163cm / Canberra Capitals
Jenna O’HEA / 21 / 187cm / Arras (France)
Elyse PENALUNA / 20 / 193cm / Bulleen Boomers
Alicia POTO / 30 / 166cm / Brno (Czech Republic)
Emma RANDALL / 23 / 188cm / CSS Targoviste (Romania)
Jenni SCREEN / 27 / 180cm / Lavezzini Parma (Italy)
Deanna SMITH / 28 / 179cm / Sydney Uni Flames
Marianna TOLO / 19 / 196cm / Canberra Capitals
Carly WILSON / 26 / 181cm / Challes-les-Eaux Basket (France)

Head Coach: Carrie Graf / Canberra Capitals

Australian Opals 2009 Program – Key Dates: Aug 10-13 Training Camp, Canberra ACT Aug 11 AUSTRALIA v CHINA (Gm 1), Canberra ACT Aug 17 AUSTRALIA v CHINA (Gm 2), Geelong VIC Aug 18-20 Training Camp, Dandenong VIC Aug 21 AUSTRALIA v CHINA (Gm 3), Dandenong VIC Aug 31 AUSTRALIA v NEW ZEALAND (Gm 1), Wellington NZ Sep 2 AUSTRALIA v NEW ZEALAND (Gm 2), Canberra ACT

Boomers fightback falls short in Argentina

31.07.09

A slow start derailed any hope that Australia’s men’s basketball team might topple Athens gold medallists Argentina in Bahia Blanca today.

Trailing by 30 points in the first half the Boomers reduced the margin to 14 points in the final quarter on the back of three consecutive three-point shots by Joe Ingles before time expired with the final score, 98-78.

Ingles top scored for Australia with 22 points while Dallas Mavericks forward Nathan Jawai toiled hard for 19 points and 8 rebounds in an Australian team featuring five players on debut.

Australian U19 Emus captain Matthew Dellavedova was the most impressive of the Boomers debutantes with 13 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals in a back-up role to starting point guard Adam Gibson.

“We got jumped at the start and it felt like Argentina didn’t miss a shot in the first half,” Boomers head coach Brett Brown said.

“Individual containment wasn’t a problem but as a team, defensively we were poor.

“We had no pace, no rhythm, our timing was off and there was uncertainty, but you do expect that to some extent with a new group.

“But in a hostile stadium against a multiple medal winning country we didn’t roll over, there were no heads down, and our guys deserve credit for that showing of spirit.

“We have a long road to get to where we want to go, but we are improving and we’ll be ready for New Zealand on August 23^rd.”

The Boomers are using the six game tour of Argentina and Brazil to prepare for the 2009 FIBA Oceania Championship in Sydney (August 23) and Wellington (August 25), where 2010 FIBA World Championship seeding is on the line.


Quarter by quarter:

1. ARG 29 AUS 15
H. ARG 55 AUS 32 (26-17)
3. ARG 75 AUS 58 (20-26)
F. ARG 98 AUS 78 (23-20)


ARGENTINA 98 bt
AUSTRALIA 78 (Joe Ingles 22, Nathan Jawai 19, Matthew Dellavedova 13)
in Bahia Blanca, Argentina