Australia have qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics after defeating New Zealand 89-76 in Wellington to sweep the two-game series.
The Boomers have also qualified to the Olympics for an unprecedented twelfth straight time, which is more than any other men’s team competing in the Games. It’s hardly surprising though, considering that only the Aussies and New Zealand compete in the FIBA Oceania championships.
WEBSTER NOT FIRING BUT BOOMERS BOOMING
The Tall Blacks’ one-man wrecking crew Corey Webster couldn’t find his range, despite hitting 16 points, he shot 7/24 from the field. The Boomers depth shone through, with seven players scoring between eight and 14 points.
“Our strength is in our depth, which enables us to play at a sustained level for 40 minutes,” Australia coach Andrej Lemanis said.
“Some of that is defensively, but offensively we’re not reliant on a player to carry the load for us.
“We’re able to use all the tools we have and tonight I was particularly pleased with the understanding of the group of our advantages at different times and how to get those guys the ball.”
Australia were led by Matthew Dellavedova (14 points, 5 assists), David Andersen (11 points), Andrew Bogut (10 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks) and Cam Bairstow (10 points, 7 rebounds).
