The Canterbury Rams finished the season with a well deserved 104-81 win in Dunedin over the Otago Nuggets on Saturday night.
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The Rams rushed out to a healthy early lead before Luke Aston piled in 10 points in 30 seconds for the Nuggets to make it a 2 point game at quarter time.
The much anticipated battle between Jack Salt and Sam Timmins, the first time the two had ever played each other, lived up to the hype, with the two big men not giving an inch to one another. Timmins certainly won the rebound battle, pulling down 20, while Salt dropped 16 points to Timmins 8. The Rams did a great job of keeping Isaiah Moss quiet too, meaning Richie Rodger had to pick up Moss's scoring.
Max Darling, Jack Salt, and Deshon Taylor led the way for the Rams who kept the Nuggets at arms length for the majority of the second half. Rodger and McKay threatened to pull it back late, but Taylor was made for the big moment and iced the game at the end with a long three to silence the Edgar Centre crowd.
Canterbury Rams (104) defeated Otago Nuggets (84) - BOXSCORE
RAMS: Deshon Taylor 28pts 5reb, Jack Salt 16pts 7reb, Max Darling 17pts 6reb
NUGGETS: Sam Timmins 8pts 20reb, Luke Aston 23pts, Richie Rodger 22pts
Stuff MVP Votes
Deshon Taylor (Rams) 10pts
Richie Rodger (Nuggets) 5pts
Luke Aston (Nuggets) 5pts
Jack Salt (Rams) 4pts
Max Darling (Rams) 3pts
Sam Timmins (Nuggets) 3pts
(Photo Credit: PhotosportNZ)
