Studs and Duds: Round 6

Tuesday, January 11, 2022

After the first regular-season round in league history that consisted of only one game, NBL Media’s Liam Santamaria lets us know who made the grade and who deserves a little shade.

After the first regular season round in league history that consisted of only one game, NBL Media’s Liam Santamaria lets us know who made the grade and who deserves a little shade.

STUDS

Yanni Wetzell (New Zealand Breakers)

There was very little basketball played across Round 6 but the one game that did happen was dominated by New Zealand’s in-form big man.

Desperate for the first win of the season, the Breakers made a focus of Wetzell early and he responded, beasting the Bullets for a series of first-quarter buckets. One move in particular – a quick rip baseline followed by a powerful bump on Robert Franks – exemplified his aggressive mindset.

Curiously, the Bullets refused to send a double at Wetzell’s post catches, and the result was some strong work from the block throughout the game. New Zealand’s prized free agent recruit was a handful on the glass and, as usual, provided an excellent pick-and-roll target as he poured in a career high 27 points to go with 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.

“I got some good looks,” Wetzell commented postgame.

“The point guards found me in good positions and the ball was dropping which was nice.”

The Pretzell now ranks fourth in the league for scoring, averaging 20.3 points per game, is tenth in rebounding (7.8) and sits second in field goal percentage (66.7). He’s having a massive year.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="und" dir="ltr">???? <a href="https://t.co/izIlpqvayc">pic.twitter.com/izIlpqvayc</a></p>— Sky Sport Breakers (@NZBreakers) <a href="https://twitter.com/NZBreakers/status/1480317058910883840?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Jeremiah Martin (New Zealand Breakers)

Another key to New Zealand’s breakthrough dub was Jeremiah Martin.

The crafty guard was big-time down the stretch yesterday as his clutch playmaking kept the Bullets at bay.

Time and time again throughout the fourth quarter, the Breakers curled Martin into pick-and-rolls and the import did the rest. With the Bullets dropping their ball-screen coverages, Martin had room to operate and he used it to snake his way into the lane and make plays. Tough finishes at the rim, feathery floaters, drop-off dimes, well-timed pitches to the corner… J-Mart put the full arsenal on display as he notched up 8 points and 3 assists across a crucial four-minute stretch in winning time.

Jack Salt (Brisbane Bullets)

The Bullets went down by single digits on Sunday but things might’ve been worse had it not been for Jack Salt’s high-energy impact off the bench.

Brisbane coach James Duncan was searching for a spark midway through the first half yesterday and the Big Kiwi provided it, posting 10 points, 5 rebounds an assist and a steal in just 11 minutes on the floor.

“(That was a) big time performance from Jack,” Duncan commented postgame.

“He brought energy, toughness and finishing around the rim… I’m happy he was able to step in when called upon and do what he did.”

One certain thing to come out of Round 6: Salt deserves more of a shake.

Keifer Sykes (Indiana Pacers)

The latest NBLxNBA success story, Sykes has grabbed his opportunities with the Pacers and been rewarded with a guaranteed contract for the rest of the season. Hard work is undefeated.

Oh, and if you haven’t seen it already, watch this vid of the former SEM point guard giving his mum her flowers.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">"She deserves this more than anybody."<a href="https://twitter.com/ksykesyb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ksykesyb</a> talks about making the call to his mom after his contract became guaranteed for the remainder of the season. ? <a href="https://t.co/bdTCKawYEL">pic.twitter.com/bdTCKawYEL</a></p>— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) <a href="https://twitter.com/Pacers/status/1479605799399968770?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

DUDS

Omicron

This sucker was the most influential force across Round 6 as it spread its way through multiple teams and caused all but one game to be postponed.

Fortunately, all players, coaches and staff around the league are double-vaccinated and have only been experiencing minor symptoms when afflicted by the virus. There have been, however, some who have been pretty knocked around. Brisbane’s Lamar Patterson, for example, has spoken about the rough time he experienced over numerous days while others have been quietly battling in the background.

In fact, shout-out to those who are still feeling unwell. Whether you’re a player or coach in the league, a significant other or a fan… best wishes to you for a speedy recovery.

The good news is that there’s plenty of optimism at league office that the worst of these frustrating disruptions are behind us. Onwards and upwards from here!

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A ???????? thank you to you all for your patience and understanding during these tricky times.<br><br>Rest assured that <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> will be back ?????? and better than ever before ?? <a href="https://t.co/nw88tJDyUj">pic.twitter.com/nw88tJDyUj</a></p>— The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1479976004013592577?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 9, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Brisbane Bullets

Before we wrap, let’s just throw a tiny bit of shade at the Bullets for dropping that home game yesterday.

Not too much – after all, they’ve had a pretty tough time of things recently – but the opportunity was there for this squad to return with a bang and they were unable to grab it.

“We just seemed flat,” Bullets coach James Duncan said.

“We just didn’t seem like we had a rhythm. We had 20 turnovers and it’s hard to win any game when you turn the ball over 20 times.

“We’re not making any excuses, we prepared the best we can and we had opportunities to win, but just execution-wise we just didn’t have it to pull it out in the end.”

He’s right… I mean, the Breakers deserve credit for ramping up their pressure but Brisbane’s inability to handle it – and their overall sloppiness – was certainly the contest’s biggest factor.

“Take five of those away and maybe it’s a different game,” Duncan added.

“Take ten of those away and for sure it’s a different game.”

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