Going into the final 7 minutes, the Scots lead by a single point, having come back from a half time deficit to take control of the game. The Swiss have, however, clawed their way back into things, and forced the Scots into taking a time out with 6:27 remaining in the game.
Ali Fraser leads the Scots with 18 points at this stage, with Falkirk club mate Johnny Bunyan on 17, including 4/5 from 3pt range. Ali McKay has also been strong for Scotland, scoring 11 points to go with his 9 rebounds (4 offensive), while Lee Reilly has been cool at the line, hitting all 4 of his free throws on his way to 12 points.
Out of the time out, the Swiss take the lead after a missed shot from the Scots. Jaunin hits a 3 to give the Swiss their first lead since early in the 3rd quarter, at 68-66.
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Swiss extend their lead to 4 points, after a made jumper from Koloudrovic, giving him his 15th and 16th points of the afternoon. Scotland seem to have gone a bit cold for the time being - hopefully this will change, and very quickly!
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Dubas commits his 2nd foul of the game, and his team's 4th foul of the quarter. With his team now getting ever closer to the penalty situation, this could be key for the Scots as they attempt a comeback.
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3:38 to go, and Ali McKay fouls out on an offensive foul call, replaced by Calum Nicol. The Swiss hit a 3 through Koloudrovic once more to extend their lead to 73:66, before Josh Crolley quickly makes a lay up, while being fouled, to take the score to 73:68 in favour of the Swiss. Crolley misses the foul shot, keeping the Swiss lead at 5.
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Koloudrovic hits yet another 3 to extend the Swiss lead still further, taking his personal tally to 22 points, off of Jaunin's 5th assists of the game. The Scots take a time-out at this point, and from the inbounds play, Lee Reilly hits a 3, taking the score to 76:71 to the Swiss.
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A Swiss lay-up takes their lead to 7 points, before Dubas misses 2 free throws in what is hopefully a sign of nerves in the Swiss ranks in the closing minutes. Tellingly, though, this play sees Scottish star Ali Fraser foul out of the game, picking up his 5th foul, and leaving the Scots to face the final minutes without either of their top big men.
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1:33 to go, and the Scots down 7 points, 78:71
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Lee Reilly goes to the line and hits 2 free throws to bring the Scottish back to within 5 points, at 78:73 after a foul committed by Jaunin.
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The Swiss split a pair of free throws to add a further point to their lead, going into the last minute. (Dubas, 3 points total)
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As the Scots are forced to foul to stop the clock, the Swiss are content to add points to their tally from the line, as Jaunin splits a further pair of foul shots to take the Swiss lead to 80:73, and his personal total to 12 points. Tom Campbell takes a time-out, as the Scots plan a comeback attempt in the final 38 seconds, with the score at 80:73 to the Swiss.
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Bunyan knocks down a 2, cu ting the lead to 80:75, before a Scottish foul gives Koloudrovic (a great Swiss-sounding name...) the chance to extend the Swiss lead to 82:75 from the line. Reilly advances the ball down the court, and drives to the basket, but his lay-up attempt is blocked by Dubas, for his only blocked shot of the game.
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6 seconds to go, and it looks like game over. Dubas breaks free for a dunk, to take the final score to 84:75 in favour of the Swiss.
---
Final Score: Switzerland 84:75 Scotland.
Top Performers
Switzerland: Koloudrovic (24pts, 6/11 3pt FGs, 6 rebounds), Savoy (15pts, 5/8 3pt FGs, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks), Jaunin (12pts, 2/3 3pt FGs, 5 assists, 2 steals)
Scotland: Bunyan (19pts, 4/6 3pt FGs, 2 rebounds, 2 assists), Fraser (18pts, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 assist, 1 steal), Reilly (17pts, 6/6 FTs, 1 rebound, 2 assists), McKay (11pts, 10 rebounds (5 offensive), 1 block, 1 assist)
Thursday 30 July 2009
Tuesday 28 July 2009
Scotland U18 Men @ European Championships
The Scottish U18 Men's team are away in Sarajevo at the moment, competing in the B Division of the FIBA European Championships. The team is completely inexperienced at this level, and they have done fantastically well thus far, defeating both Georgia and Romania to post a record of 2 wins and 2 losses in group play, with defeats coming versus exceptionally strong teams from the Netherlands and Montenegro. Scottish star Ali Fraser (Falkirk Fury) was, however, limited to only 9 minutes of play versus the Oranje, and, with rumours of food poisoning emanating from the Scottish camp, one must wonder what might have been given Fraser's impressive 20 point, 8 rebound & 2 block performance the previous day in the opening victory over the Georgians.
Lee Reilly (City of Edinburgh Kings) was the other star of a well-rounded team performance in the victory over Georgia, scoring 18 points, while assisting on a further 4 baskets for the team, and contributing 4 rebounds. Josh Crolley (Troon Tornadoes), and Johnny Bunyan (Falkirk Fury) were the other significant scorers for the Scots, notching 10 and 7 points respectively, with Josh snatching 8 rebounds, and Johnny 7. Pity poor Beqa Chikviladze, though, who threw in an impressive 26 points in defeat for Georgia, ably assisted by Akaki Dvalishvili, with 17 points and 7 rebounds.
The Scots bounced back from defeat versus the Netherlands in fine fashion, defeating Romania by a score of 88-77, again led by Ali Fraser, who, along with Ali MacKay (City of Edinburgh Kings), dominated under the basket for Scotland, the pair combining for 49 points (Fraser 29, MacKay 20) and 11 rebounds (Fraser 8, MacKay 3). MacKay demonstrated a cool head under pressure throughout this game, keeping his concentration to knock down 8 of his 12 foul shots. Lee Reilly was again a more than able foil for his big men, scoring 14 points to go along with his 5 rebounds, while knocking down 4 three-pointers along the way in his best shooting game of the tournament so far.
Results in group play have earned the Scots a place in the group to decide places 9-16 of the 21 team field. The Scots find themselves in Group H, along with Austria, Switzerland and Georgia, and face the two Alpine powers on the 29th and 30th of this month respectively. Austria posted a record of 6 wins and 2 losses at last year's championships, with the Swiss a 2-6 record, while the Scots have no experience at this level. Taking these statistics into account, the Scots would seem to be the underdog in this company, as they have been from the outset of the programme at the beginning of the season. The Scots have, however, shown themselves to be a dangerous team in group play, and will have a good deal of confidence in their ability to spring a surprise on their more storied opponents as they bid to improve upon what is already the most successful Scottish performance at this level.
Live play-by-play commentary of all of the games in the Championships is available here: http://www.fibaeurope-u18men.com/enDivB/default.asp
The Scots get underway versus Austria at 14:45, while their game the next day versus Switzerland tips-off at 14:00.
Scottish Fixtures and Results
23rd July: Scotland 77-61 Georgia
24th July: Scotland 59-98 Netherlands
25th July: Scotland 88-77 Romania
26th July: Scotland 44-100 Montenegro
29th July: Scotland v Austria (14:45)
30th July: Scotland v Switzerland (14:00)
Scottish Roster and Statistics
Available here:
http://www.fibaeurope-u18men.com/enDivB/default.asp?cid={E7BA731A-A812-4C5C-9C62-E987CBB10B2B}&teamID=357&compID={2248A846-FA78-40FF-B03C-54B460890F45}&season=2009&roundID=6869&
Lee Reilly (City of Edinburgh Kings) was the other star of a well-rounded team performance in the victory over Georgia, scoring 18 points, while assisting on a further 4 baskets for the team, and contributing 4 rebounds. Josh Crolley (Troon Tornadoes), and Johnny Bunyan (Falkirk Fury) were the other significant scorers for the Scots, notching 10 and 7 points respectively, with Josh snatching 8 rebounds, and Johnny 7. Pity poor Beqa Chikviladze, though, who threw in an impressive 26 points in defeat for Georgia, ably assisted by Akaki Dvalishvili, with 17 points and 7 rebounds.
The Scots bounced back from defeat versus the Netherlands in fine fashion, defeating Romania by a score of 88-77, again led by Ali Fraser, who, along with Ali MacKay (City of Edinburgh Kings), dominated under the basket for Scotland, the pair combining for 49 points (Fraser 29, MacKay 20) and 11 rebounds (Fraser 8, MacKay 3). MacKay demonstrated a cool head under pressure throughout this game, keeping his concentration to knock down 8 of his 12 foul shots. Lee Reilly was again a more than able foil for his big men, scoring 14 points to go along with his 5 rebounds, while knocking down 4 three-pointers along the way in his best shooting game of the tournament so far.
Results in group play have earned the Scots a place in the group to decide places 9-16 of the 21 team field. The Scots find themselves in Group H, along with Austria, Switzerland and Georgia, and face the two Alpine powers on the 29th and 30th of this month respectively. Austria posted a record of 6 wins and 2 losses at last year's championships, with the Swiss a 2-6 record, while the Scots have no experience at this level. Taking these statistics into account, the Scots would seem to be the underdog in this company, as they have been from the outset of the programme at the beginning of the season. The Scots have, however, shown themselves to be a dangerous team in group play, and will have a good deal of confidence in their ability to spring a surprise on their more storied opponents as they bid to improve upon what is already the most successful Scottish performance at this level.
Live play-by-play commentary of all of the games in the Championships is available here: http://www.fibaeurope-u18men.com/enDivB/default.asp
The Scots get underway versus Austria at 14:45, while their game the next day versus Switzerland tips-off at 14:00.
Scottish Fixtures and Results
23rd July: Scotland 77-61 Georgia
24th July: Scotland 59-98 Netherlands
25th July: Scotland 88-77 Romania
26th July: Scotland 44-100 Montenegro
29th July: Scotland v Austria (14:45)
30th July: Scotland v Switzerland (14:00)
Scottish Roster and Statistics
Available here:
http://www.fibaeurope-u18men.com/enDivB/default.asp?cid={E7BA731A-A812-4C5C-9C62-E987CBB10B2B}&teamID=357&compID={2248A846-FA78-40FF-B03C-54B460890F45}&season=2009&roundID=6869&
Introductions...
Hello to all of you out there,
I live just outside of Edinburgh, Scotland, where I was born, bred and educated, and have participated in sports of all types, and at all levels. Of course, I started out trying to kick a football about in the back garden with my dad, but I soon discovered that there is far more to sport in Scotland than just our National Game.
My interest in football, and particularly my home town team of Hibernian FC, has thankfully stood the test of time (and an improbably cruel number of Scottish Cup defeats), though my own sporting ambitions currently trump my desire to pay up to £30 to sit in a freezing stadium for two hours on a Saturday. I prefer to spend that time sitting on the bench for the Scottish Champion City of Edinburgh Kings basketball team, where I (in theory) have at least the chance of being a part of the action to comfort me, as opposed to the pie 'n' bovril combo favoured by thousands as they huddle together in stadia around the country every Saturday.
Basketball is very much a minority sport in Scotland, though this is a label that could quite rightly be applied to any physical activity without the hallowed "rugby" or "football" monikers to back up their claim to Scottish attention, and the finances that are so vital to the progression of sport in a country where summer lasts about a week.
This blog will aim to bring some publicity to basketball in Scotland, but particularly the Edinburgh area, without being exclusive in its focus. I will post on whatever aspects of sporting news most grab my attention, though I hope you will allow for an element of bias in my writing due to my aforementioned affections for certain teams and sports!
Many thanks for reading, and I hope you will continue to check back often.
I live just outside of Edinburgh, Scotland, where I was born, bred and educated, and have participated in sports of all types, and at all levels. Of course, I started out trying to kick a football about in the back garden with my dad, but I soon discovered that there is far more to sport in Scotland than just our National Game.
My interest in football, and particularly my home town team of Hibernian FC, has thankfully stood the test of time (and an improbably cruel number of Scottish Cup defeats), though my own sporting ambitions currently trump my desire to pay up to £30 to sit in a freezing stadium for two hours on a Saturday. I prefer to spend that time sitting on the bench for the Scottish Champion City of Edinburgh Kings basketball team, where I (in theory) have at least the chance of being a part of the action to comfort me, as opposed to the pie 'n' bovril combo favoured by thousands as they huddle together in stadia around the country every Saturday.
Basketball is very much a minority sport in Scotland, though this is a label that could quite rightly be applied to any physical activity without the hallowed "rugby" or "football" monikers to back up their claim to Scottish attention, and the finances that are so vital to the progression of sport in a country where summer lasts about a week.
This blog will aim to bring some publicity to basketball in Scotland, but particularly the Edinburgh area, without being exclusive in its focus. I will post on whatever aspects of sporting news most grab my attention, though I hope you will allow for an element of bias in my writing due to my aforementioned affections for certain teams and sports!
Many thanks for reading, and I hope you will continue to check back often.
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