Wheeler Motor Company Canterbury Rams (5-2, 2nd) v Night 'n Day Otago Nuggets (3-5, 10th)
The Rams haven't taken the court in 8 days and will have a new starting lineup as their last restricted player has finally arrived giving even more depth for the Rams championship chase. Then Nuggets have lost three in a row and are desperate to find early season form to get back in the win column and keep pace with the final six chase but the Cowles Cauldron will make that a difficult task.
When: Sunday 20th April, Rapid League 2pm, Sal's NBL 3pm
Where: Cowles Stadium Christchurch
Watch: Live in New Zealand on Sky Sport 3 / Sky Open | USA: ESPN3 | International: FIBA YouTube
Box score here
Last Time Out:
Otago hosted Franklin who immediately charged out of the gates to an 11-0 lead and that was before the shooting of Ethan Rusbatch (27pts, 8-14 3pfg) scorched the nets to push the lead out to 19. The Nuggets offense would stabilise as Jose Perez (24pts, 7rbs) bowled his way to the hoop but it was an overall down day for the Nuggets offense as they shot 26% from three as Don Carey Jr (8pts, 8rbs, 2-10fg) never got going making it tough work to tick the scoreboard over. For the Bulls Tae Hardy (24pt, 6rbs, 10ast) and Till Gloger (19pts, 8rbs, 5ast) led among a bevy of quality performances as the Bulls would secure the 107-84 win.
The Rams haven't played for 8 days when they hosted they Manawatū Jets who were able to keep pace with the home team in the paddock up into the second quarter when a Corey Webster (16pts, 5rbs, 3ast) jumper cut Canterbury's lead to 1 at 27-26, But then Kyle Bowen (17pts, 16rbs, 5ast) helped drive a 15-0 run from which the Jets would never truly recover. The Jets would make a 17-8 run with input from Webster, Dontae Russo-Nance (22pts, 8rbs, 7ast) and Kenny Goins (14pts, 5rbs, 21 min) in particular, but the Rams would push them back to arms length Thanks to solid play from Taylor Britt (21pts, 9ast) and Tohi Smith-Milner (11pts, 14rbs). When Goins would foul out after getting a personal foul combined with a technical for his troubles the Jets hopes would fade completely away with the Rams eventually securing the 92-81 victory.
What to Look For:
The Rams have been playing well but only now welcome their 3rd import as Sean Macdonald joins to give the squad even more firepower. He'll join Taylor Britt (19.7ppg, 6.3apg) in the backcourt to form a feisty two way unit that will be backed by undeniable depth with Kaia (11.6ppg, 4.6rpg) and Tama Isaac (15.3ppg, 4.9apg) heading to the bench after powering the starting lineup to the second best record in the league. Up front Kyle Bowen (13.8ppg, 9.3rpg) and Tohi Smith-Milner (13.7ppg, 8.3rpg) both have the ability to overpower you on the block combined with a soft shooting touch and with CJ Penha (14.5ppg, 8.5rpg) and Max Darling (11ppg, 4.rpg) coming off the pine there is no respite when the subs come on. The offense has been steady but doesn't get to the line with regularity and has been shooting a poor clip when there which could be a problem if its close. But, thanks to the defense, not too many games have been close down the stretch.
The Nuggets offense is powered by Donald Carey Jr (23.4ppg, 6.1rpg, 6apg) and Jose Perez (21.3ppg, 7.6rpg, 5.5apg) and if either of those players is held under check things can get much more difficult. Perez is maybe the best in the league at getting to the chemist warehouse stripe but giving up size to the Rams that may become more difficult. Jaylen Sebree (13.5ppg, 6rpg) has been solid but would benefit from finding some form from deep. The bench has given solid contributions with Mac Stodart (12pts last game) most recently standing up, and coach Mike Kelly is willing to try different player combinations when needed. The Nuggets will need to find form from deep early to keep pace but will most especially need to lift their defensive transition to keep their D from putting them in a tough position.
Matchup to Watch: Taylor Britt v Don Carey Jr - Britt has been tremendous on both ends but this is a game where he might focus on the defense as when Carey Jr is held in check things go sideways quickly for the Nuggets. Conversely, if the Nuggets star guard finds form early and gets his eye in the match should stay tight throughout.
Stats that Might Matter:
| Stat | Rams | Nuggets |
| Scoring Offense | 93.14ppg (5th) | 91ppg (6th) |
| Scoring Defense | 83.29ppg (2nd) | 97.13ppg (11th) |
| Effective Field Goal % | 54% (5th) | 52% 9th) |
| Field Goal % Defense | 43% (2nd) | 50% (last) |
| Free Throw Rate | 24% (10th) | 32%(2nd) |
| Free Throw % | 66% (10th) | 65% (11th) |
| Three Point Rate | 40% (6th) | 43% (4th) |
| Three Point % | 33% (5th) | 36% (3rd) |
| Turnover Rate | 12% (9th) | 11% (2nd) |
| Assist Rate | 57% (6th) | 61% (3rd) |
| Offensive Rebound Rate | 33% (1st) | 25% (7th) |
| Defensive Rebound Rate | 72% (9th) | 76% (5th) |
| Block Rate | 9% (3rd) | 5% (last) |
| Steal Rate | 10% (4th) | 8% (last) |
all advanced stats courtesy of spatialjam.com
