ANOTHER game, another win for Auckland Tuatara, but this time it was taking down the reigning champions Wellington Saints, winning by 15 points at TSB Arena last night. The highly-anticipated clash was set to defy the top-against-bottom status, though the highly anticipated debut of former New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL) Tom Vodanovich was delayed for another match. Remaining undefeated after the win, the Tuatara had to hold steady late after the Saints made a charge in the third term and kept in single digits for half of the fourth term before relenting in a 91-106 loss.

WELLINGTON SAINTS 21 | 25 | 29 | 16 (91)
AUCKLAND TUATARA 25 | 29 | 28 | 24 (106)

Auckland Tuatara were able to get on top from early in the first term and open up a lead as much as nine points, before the Saints hit back to cut the quarter time deficit to four points. Not holding back in terms of scoring , the visitors were able to keep the home crowd at bay, putting up a massive 29 points to 25 in what was a scoring bonanza of a second term to head into half-time with a 54-46 advantage.

Not to go out quietly, the Saints made a charge in the final term, drawing to within two points, three minutes into the term. A strong team effort across the board resulted in 13 of the next 16 points going the way of the Tuatara and the margin was back out to double-digits. Though the Saints did manage to trim it to seven at the final break, the job was still ahead of them. The closest they got was 2:20 in the the final term when they edged back to within six points, but then the Tuatara picked up the bid again and piled on 21-12 in the final seven and a half minutes, and secured the comfortable 15-point win.

Auckland shot at 56 per cent from the field compared to Wellington’s 39 per cent. Both sides had 73 field goal opportunities, but the Tuatara nailed 41 of them, whilst the Saints managed 29. Wellington kept itself in the contest with 17 three-pointers to Auckland’s eight, and had a margin free-throw advantage (80 to 76 per cent). The Tuatara led in the rebounds (46-33), assists (19-14) and second chance points (17-8), but the key differential was in the paint, where the visitors scored a whopping 58 points to 20 in the win.

It was no surprise to see the big men of Auckland causing the most damage, with Chris Johnson (25 points, 17 rebounds and four assists) and Robert Loe (24 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two blocks) each picking up a double-double. Takiula Fahrensohn (20 points – three of nine from long-range – five rebounds and five assists) and Chris McIntosh (16 points, three rebounds) were also impressive across the evening.

Saints import Michael Smith stepped up to have 29 points – six of 12 from long-range – seven assists and two rebounds was the best of the Saints, and he was well supported by Taane Samuel (23 points, five rebounds). Jordan Ngatai (11 points, six rebounds) and Francis Mulvihill (11 points, four rebounds and two blocks) were the other players to reach double-figure points.

Auckland Tuatara have a quick turnaround for their next match, coming up against Hawke’s Bay Hawks on Wednesday, whilst Wellington Saints face Canterbury Rams next Sunday, May 22.