Round 5 Recap: SuperCoach NBL Classic

New Zealand Breakers forward Carlin Davison ($121,600 ▲ $229,600) topped SuperCoach NBL Round 5 with 102 points from the Breakers’ double.

Davison has stepped in at point guard for the injured Parker Jackson-Cartwright ($405,200 ▲ $468,300). He had 20 points, 14 assists and 4 steals for 61, the biggest single-game score of the round, in the 102-101 win against the Sydney Kings at AIS Arena in Canberra on Wednesday, October 14. He then added 41 from 17 points and 11 assists in Sunday’s 98-92 loss to the Tasmania JackJumpers, giving him two double-doubles and 25 assists for the round. His price rose $66,500 in the Round 5 update, the biggest rise of any player in the game.

Breakers big man Sam Mennenga ($303,100 ▲ $356,800) was not far behind on 96. He had 50 from 27 points and 13 rebounds against Sydney, then 46 from 36 points on 15-from-19 shooting and 11 rebounds against Tasmania. His price rose $54,500, second only to Davison’s, and he is now fourth overall on 280.

Adelaide 36ers guard Bryce Cotton ($473,900 ▼ $416,500) is back on top of SuperCoach NBL on 324 after scoring 52 in the 94-88 win against Tasmania on Friday, October 16, when he had 35 points on 13-from-26 shooting, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Teammate Nick Rakocevic ($188,400 ▲ $348,200), who took the lead from Cotton in Round 4, put up 26 in the same game after shooting a woeful 5-from-13 from the free-throw line, and slips to second on 304. Cotton’s price rose $15,800 when the Round 5 changes landed.

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The JackJumpers split their double, and guard Taran Armstrong ($304,700 ▲ $326,900) made the most of it with 97, the second-best score of the round. He posted 46 from 20 points and 10 assists against Adelaide, then 51 from 32 points against the Breakers, when he made 12-from-14 from the free-throw line. He climbs into the Top 25 at seventh. Teammate Will Magnay ($269,300 ▲ $358,800) added 73, including 42 against Adelaide on 7-from-9 shooting and 3 blocks, to move to third overall on 286.

The Kings had five players in the Top 15. Kendric Davis ($436,000 ▼ $413,300) scored 82, with 37 against the Breakers and 45 from 23 points and 8 assists in the 102-81 win against the Perth Wildcats on Saturday, October 17, although he shot 16-from-42 across the two games.

Torrey Craig ($290,400 ▼ $268,500) added 75, including 28 points and 7 threes against New Zealand, ahead of Andrew Carr ($277,000 ▼ $257,100) on 71, Makuach Maluach ($134,500 ▲ $191,000) on 66 and Xavier Cooks ($308,000 ▼ $296,400) on 62, 43 of them against the Breakers. Maluach now has 141 from six games.

The South East Melbourne Phoenix lost 115-105 to the Brisbane Bullets on Thursday, October 15, then thumped the Cairns Taipans 115-83 at John Cain Arena on Saturday, and put four players in the Top 15. Nathan Sobey ($379,600 ▼ $327,100) scored 76, including 46 against Cairns when he made 7-from-14 from three, while Skylar Mays ($277,000 ▼ $268,800) on 57, Angus Glover ($191,700 ▲ $193,100) on 55 and Yannis Morin ($277,000 ▼ $205,700) on 45 also made the cut. Glover scored 27 points off the bench in Brisbane, and Mays climbed to 15th in the Top 25.

Cotton and Bullets guard Max Mackinnon ($200,000 ▲ $227,700) were the only single-game players in the Top 15, with Mackinnon posting 49 from 24 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists in the win against the Phoenix.

At the Illawarra Hawks, Makur Maker ($99,800 ▲ $151,900) kept producing off the bench with 33 in the 91-89 win over Melbourne United on Sunday, October 18, scoring 23 points on 10-from-14 shooting in under 20 minutes. He now has 91 from his first four games, and his price rose another $28,600. Cole Anthony ($300,000 ▲ $341,200) led Melbourne with 38.

The Taipans played once, and Jack McVeigh ($349,800 ▼ $303,700) scored just 5 in the loss to the Phoenix, with 8 points on 2-from-8 shooting and 3 turnovers. Malique Lewis ($207,900 ▲ $251,600) blocked 5 shots on his way to 30.

Jackson-Cartwright still holds the best average in the Top 25 at 53.4 from five games, but injury has stopped his MVP-type run. Brisbane’s Arnas Velicka ($277,000 ▲ $301,900) is out until after the FIBA Break.

Davis has the next-best average at 41.5, ahead of Magnay on 40.9 and Cotton on 40.5. Davison is the third player new to the Top 25, in 18th. Melbourne’s Luke Travers ($292,900 ▼ $285,300) dropped out, along with two Wildcats: Kristian Doolittle ($317,500 ▲ $322,800), who was not in the box score in Sydney, and Elijah Pepper ($202,700 ▲ $265,400), who scored 4 after going 0-from-7 from the field.

Below are the Top 15 scores from Round 5 and the Top 25 overall scorers after five rounds.

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