Stat Chat: Round 11 (What's Hot & What's Not)

Statistics ... whether you love them or hate them, stats play a huge part in sport.

Whether it's when recruiting a player, how teams prepare, how a starting five is setup, or just about any facet of the game, numbers are crunched and relied upon as fact. 

This year, 2018 NBL Champion and expert commentator Pete Hooley will be our resident stats man on NBL.com.au, providing a rundown of all the key numbers from the weekend's games. 

Keep an eye out after every round for the latest edition of 'Stat Chat'. 

What’s Hot – 10

In a big revenge win over Tasmania Adelaide flexed their muscle with a very even offensive performance across the board. Of the 10 players who saw more than four minutes of court time, each player hit the scoresheet on their way to putting up 93 points as a team. It comes off the back of their 108-point night against Brisbane in which all nine players who hit the floor for significant minutes also hit the scoreboard.

What’s Not – 12

Offense has never been the issue for Adelaide in NBL23, but when it is a problem how do they respond? In the second quarter against Tasmania Adelaide scored just 12 points, which was their lowest quarter score since the third quarter against the Phoenix where they put up 17. Ian Clark has been announced and will no doubt provide a nice spark off the bench for this 36ers unit.

Fraser Roxburgh.

What’s Hot – 50%

In the first game of the round for Brisbane they showed some glimpses of what everyone’s been asking for all season. Paint touches. They only managed to score 76 points on the night, but 38 of those came from in the paint. The 50% of points in the paint is a welcome sign for a team that has relied heavily on outside shooting. Baynes had 17 points after establishing himself down low early on, and Gak continues to rise as a bright prospect.

What’s Not – 3

When the Cairns game began, Aron Baynes was playing his third game in a row under a different head coach. He did miss multiple games under Sam Mackinnon due to injury, but it shines light on what has no doubt been a horrific period for the playing group up at Brisbane.

Gorjok Gak.

What’s Hot – 34

A big three game round for Taipans showed both their best and their worst as they continue to string together a good season. Keanu Pinder was unstoppable in their game against Tasmania, putting up a career high 34 points, including 10/10 from the FT line. 34 points is the most that any player has ever scored against Tasmania and at the time it was the most anyone scored all season in the NBL.

What’s Not – 105

As much as we praise the offensive style of Cairns, we often forget how strong they are defensively. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case against Perth to close out the round. Cairns gave up 105 points on the night which is far from where they like to keep teams. You could put it down to some fatigue, no doubt, but Adam Forde knows that wasn’t the way his team executes on both ends of the floor.

Ben Ayre.

What’s Hot – 5

He was only limited to five minutes a game, but how good was it to see Dan Grida back out on the floor. Not too many players would have endured what he has the past few years and be able to get back on the court with a giant smile on his face. As he continues to build back up, expect him to be rewarded with as many minutes as his body allows down the stretch of the season.

What’s Not – -33

Across both games in Round 11 the Hawks lost the rebound count by a combined 33. Melbourne United alone had a +22 advantage on the glass, including 12 offensive rebounds. There’s no doubt that the Hawks have turned a corner over the past few weeks, but they still have a few key areas they need to clean up if they’re any hope to get a couple more wins to end the year.

Sam Froling.

What’s Hot – 700

United had a much needed win on Sunday to celebrate the milestones of two of Australia’s finest to pick up a basketball. 700 NBL games combined for Chris Goulding and Brad Newley. It’s fitting that for two good mates who have played together and battled each other for so many years that their milestone games fell on the same night. If you haven’t seen ityet , check United’s socials for a very special pregame video of a moment these two will never forget.

What’s Not – 25

At three different moments during the Hawks game it looked like United were ready to break the game open and run away with a win. It wasn’t that easy. During the third quarter the Hawks put up 25 points and wrestled back momentum on United’s home floor. It’s those patches of good and bad that are holding United back from being a really good team and one that could make some waves down the stretch of the season.

Brad Newley.

N/A – NZ games were postponed due to COVID. We hope everyone is well and can’t wait to see them hit the floor soon.

What’s Hot – 46

What else could it be? 46 points from MVP candidate Mitch Creek, who produced one of the most outstanding individual games you’ll ever see on an NBL floor. Creek shot 55% from the field to go along with his 10 rebounds and dragged his team all the way to the end of a double overtime thriller. He played 47.5 of the total 50 minutes of game time and made big plays down the stretch to secure the win.

What’s Not – 2

The Phoenix started the season battling injuries and now they stare down the barrel of an interesting few weeks with two key players sidelined. Ryan Broekhoff and Gary Browne are out, which is going to really test this South East side and see what they can produce in a busy period of basketball. Thankfully, young guns like Owen Foxwell and Junior Madut have showed glimpses of what they will do with extended opportunity.

Mitch Creek.

What’s Hot – 22 & 12

They had to wait until the very last game of the round due to the Breakers game being postponed, but the Wildcats stepped onto the court in Far North Queensland and put on an offensive clinic. TaShawn Thomas was a beast putting up 22 points and 12 rebounds against MVP contender Keanu Pinder, but the biggest positive for John Rillie would have been the performance of young gun Michael Harris who had a career night, dropping 17 points in just 15 minutes of action.

What’s Not – 0

It didn’t matter in the end, but Todd Blanchfield and Corey Webster had a collective night to forget. In 35 minutes of action, they struggled to hit the scoreboard on a combined 0/10 from the floor.

Michael Harris.

What’s Hot – 2

Derrick Walton Jr was nothing short of phenomenal in the game of the season against the Phoenix. His 45 points and 10 assists in the loss somehow don't do justice to just how clutch this man was. In the end of regulation and the first period of overtime Walton hit two massive threes to extend the game another five minutes. Without Xavier Cooks the star import guard put the Kings on his shoulders and nearly willed them across the line single-handedly.

What’s not – 7:55

No surprises here, but with Xavier Cooks injuring his ankle just 7:55 into this game it leaves the Kings will concerns over how quickly he will bounce back. He has already missed some time with an ankle issue but the Kings have shown they have enough depth to cover him when needed. Fingers crossed he gets the green light for the historic Christmas Night game.

Derrick Walton Jr.

What’s Hot – 50

Special shoutout for floor general Josh Magette who notched up his 50^th game for Tasmania on the weekend. He becomes the first player to ever reach that milestone for the JackJumpers.  Magette has been an integral part of the Tasmania culture both on and off the floor, and has started to find his shooting stroke once again as of late.

What’s Not – 3

For the first time ever in the short franchise history, the JackJumpers have lost three consecutive games at home. MyState Bank Arena has been a fortress ever since they came into the competition, and it’s one of the main reasons Tasmania has so much success and builds wins. They need to rebuild that, asap.

Josh Magette.