Jets fight back to deny Giants in overtime
- NZ Sports Wire
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
The Manawatu Jets were about to drop a game to one of the worst teams in the National Basketball League (NBL) before a late comeback.
The Property Broker Jets outscored the NBS Nelson Giants 25-18 in the fourth quarter, then dominated overtime to scored a 112-104 Sal's NBL victory at Palmerston North's Fly Palmy Arena on Sunday afternoon.
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New Zealand power forward Isaac Miller-Jose had his best game in a Jets uniform, scoring a team-high 25 points (11/16 FG, 3/5 FT), to go with 13 rebounds and a block, and was also a defensive presence.
Tall Blacks veteran Corey Webster put up 24 points (9/17 FG, 3/7 3pt, 3/3 FT) and eight assists, American forward Miles Gibson 23 points (9/22 FG, 3/6 3pt), five boards and two blocks, with both playing more than 40 minutes.
Kiwi guard Dontae Russo-Nance had 12 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals, Kenny Goins 11 points (4/9 FG), 12 boards and four assists, and Tyson Thata hit three crucial triples off the bench for Manawatu.
In his first game for the Giants, new import forward Jeremy Combs scored a game-high 33 points (10/18 FG, 12/14 FT), seven rebounds and four assists.
American guard Alex Robinson Jr had 23 points (9/22 FG, 3/8 3pt), six boards, seven assists and two blocks, while Liam Judd 19 points (7/11 FG, 5/7 3pt) and four rebounds, and Callum McRae 10 points and 12 boards.
In a game with nine lead changes and eight ties, the Giants dominated the first period, leading by as many as nine, but a 20-2 run saw the Jets go up 10 points midway through the second quarter.
The Giants retook the lead before halftime and went ahead by nine twice in the third. The Jets still trailed by seven with just over five minutes remaining, but tied it up with a 9-2 stretch before the teams traded buckets to end regulation.
Manawatu controlled the extra session, with triples from Thata, Gibson and Goins putting them up 13, before Nelson scored two baskets in the closing seconds.
The Jets (8-4) next travel to the Capital to take on the Wellington Saints (8-3) on Saturday, May 17 (tip-off 7.30pm), while the Giants (1-9) face a road double-header against the Hawke's Bay Hawks (7-5) and Franklin Bulls (8-3) in Week 9.
The NBL now breaks for an international window, with the Tall Blacks facing the Australia Boomers in a three-game series in Adelaide, Sunshine Coast and Hamilton, starting on Wednesday.
In the earlier Sky Broadband Rapid League game, Hayden Jones, the son of Tall Blacks legend and Giants assistant coach Phill Jones, scored 11 points as the Giants defeated the Jets 36-33.
Manawatu Jets 112 (Isaac Miller-Jose 25, Corey Webster 24, Miles Gibson 23, Dontae Russo-Nance 12, Kenny Goins 11) Nelson Giants 104 (Jeremy Combs 33, Alex Robinson Jr 23, Liam Judd 19, Callum McRae 11). 1Q: 19-24, HT: 46-45, 3Q: 70-77, 4Q: 95-95
