Off-season Player Wrap: Sobey reigns in coach King clash
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Phoenix Media
Owen Foxwell (Taranaki Airs)
13PTS, 5ASTS, 3REBS vs. Tauranga Whai (W)
Foxwell is continuing to stretch his impressive run of form as the Airs’ number one point guard. He trotted out for another team-leading 35 minutes and handled the ball with aplomb whilst scoring freely too.
Into the top four in the back end of the season is impressive as the Airs search for their maiden championship in the NZNBL.
Nathan Sobey (Santeros de Aguada)
16PTS, 4REBS, 7ASTS vs. Mets de Guaynabo (W)
7PTS, 2REBS, 6ASTS vs. Pirates de Quebradillas (L)
Sobey’s run in Puerto Rico continued with a Phoenix-flavoured matchup to begin the week. Josh King touched down and his first assignment was to take on Sobey’s Santeros, but it was a masterclass from the Aussie that usurped his coach and handed Santeros a rare win.
Despite boasting DeMarcus Cousins and Bryce Cotton, Mets weren’t able to topple Sobey’s side, the Phoenix captain with an impressive statline of 16 points, four rebounds and seven assists to claim a 99-93 victory.
Just two days later, scoring was a little more subdued for Sobey and Santeros, going down 93-99 to Pirates.
Angus Glover (Ringwood Hawks)
23PTS, 6REBS, 3ASTS vs. Nunawading (L)
Glover’s NBL1 start has been one to watch and Saturday’s output was no different. He posted 23 points to go along with six boards and three dimes but the Hawks couldn’t topple the Spectres, falling foul of a 95-94 final score.
Fresh off his Australian Boomers stint, Glover is averaging 21.4 points from five games as well as almost seven rebounds in what should excite Phoenix fans ahead of NBL26.
Akech Aliir (Mt Gambier Pioneers)
26PTS, 11ASTS vs. Geelong (W)
The Pioneers continue to roll on the back of Aliir’s dominance, posting another double-double and leading his team to a 94-88 victory in NBL1’s South competition. Up to third on the table now, Mt Gambier have an impressive 6-3 record despite suffering a blip in the previous two games.
Aliir will be put to the test against Ballarat next up against the Phoenix’s Luke Brennan, Luke Rosendale and Majok Majok.
Luke Rosendale (Ballarat Miners)
26PTS, 5REBS, 4ASTS vs. Sandringham (L)
Rosendale’s Miners went down on the weekend but it wasn’t without effort from the captain, dropping a team-leading 26 points. Four three-pointers helped his cause and he went 8-9 from the charity stripe in 33 minutes.
The Miners currently sit sixth on the table with a 6-3 record, their percentage the only thing stopping them from jumping into the top three.
Tom Vodanovich (Auckland Tuatara)
11PTS, 4REBS, 4ASTS vs. Canterbury Rams (L)
Vodanovich featured in 22 minutes and shot at 50 per cent from the field but his 11 points weren’t enough to claim the win over the Rams.
He went 4-6 from 2pt range and paired with countryman Rob Loe at the five-spot throughout the contest.
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