NBL Round 18

Gold Coast v Townsville

The Blaze got the win in Townsville when these two teams last met in round 16.  Tonight they square off on the Gold Coast.

The Blaze went down to the Wildcats in Perth last Saturday 103-88 (two days after copping a big defeat in New Zealand).  James Harvey kept the Blaze competitive against the Wildcats in the first half with 22 points (he only added 5 more after half time).  New import Luke Whitehead was quiet with 6 points on 2 of 13 shooting.  He will be keen for a much better performance tonight, which will be his first home game.

The Crocs took care of business at home last Saturday, comfortably accounting for New Zealand 108-88.  John Rillie (27 points) and import Corey Williams (22 points) did the bulk of the damage offensively.  These two players were restricted to poor games in the round 16 meeting against the Blaze.  They will both have to have much better games if the Crocs are going to get the away win here.

I believe the Crocs will be a decent chance to get the win here.  With them being away from home, there is not quite enough value for me to take them at the line.  The points total looks spot on to me.  One players points tally that looks like value to me is Whitehead and the overs.  In his first 2 games he has registered 18 points (New Zealand) and 6 points (Perth).  Perth is a better defensive team than the Gold Coast.  The attention that the likes of Crowe, Harvey and the frontcourt of the Blaze will likely be getting from the Crocs defence, along with Whitehead having a week of training under his belt, all tells me that a play on the overs is warranted.

Luke Whitehead over 13.5 at $1.90 (Sportsbook) - 1 unit

Wollongong v Adelaide

Game 2 of the 36ers triple header takes place in Wollongong, where the Hawks await.  The top 8 is still a realistic chance for the 36ers and the wooden spoon is still a very possible outcome for the Hawks.

The Hawks suffered a 113-102 defeat last Sunday in Singapore against the Slingers.  Kavossy Franklin led 6 players in double figures with 28 points (which included 11 of 15 free throws).  Cameron Rigby provided good support with 19 points and 11 rebounds.  They will be keen to avenge the round 1, 7 point loss to the 36ers in Adelaide.

The 36ers were outclassed by Perth on their home court 2 days ago, losing 82-101.  Shooting 2 of 18 from the 3 point line did not help their cause here.  Import Julius Hodge tried lifting his team with 16 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists but it didn’t work.  Their other import Adam Ballinger (12 points on 6 of 19 shooting), had a poor game by his standards.  He will be keen to put that behind him and have a much better game against his former team.