MSBL Week 2 Preview
The Perth Redbacks will look to prove the pundits wrong this weekend when they return to Belmont Oasis for their first home game against the Cockburn Cougars. The season started poorly for the Redbacks men with a 43 point away loss to the Rockingham Flames. The Cougars on the other hand had a solid 22 point win against the Mandurah Magic.
The Redbacks have had a tumultuous start to the season with Head Coach Nik Lackovic having to resign due to unforseen work commitments and assistant Graham Frey taking the reigns just two weeks before the start of the season. To add to the problems coach Frey was scheduled to be away for the first four games of the season leaving assistant David Harris to take the reigns for the first time. Coach Harris will again be at the helm against the Cougars.
With just two players scoring in double figures and contributing more than half of the teams total score the Redbacks have much to improve on against the Cougars. The team managed to shoot just 34% from the field and 27% from outside. Other areas of concern for the Redbacks were the extremely high turnover count, as well as the extremely low rebound count. The Redbacks managed just 45 rebounds (10 team rebounds) compared to 71 rebounds for Rockingham. The only player to have more than 4 rebounds was big man Ryan De Glanville who finished with a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Cockburn, on the other hand, shot 50% from the floor but just 16% from outside against the Magic. They too managed to heavily out rebound their opposition, reeling in 61 rebounds to the Magic’s 42. Like the Redbacks, Cockburn struggled to hold on to the ball, throwing it away 22 times. However one of the most worrying signs for Head Coach, CJ Jackson will be the form of his import. Isaiah Fox returned just 7 points, on 30% shooting to go with 5 fouls, 3 turn overs, 1 steal, and 7 rebounds. His poor hit out in Round 1 has had people talking about his immediate future already. He will be out to prove he can compete in the league.
On the other hand Cougar, Andrew Musulin, will be looking to continue his sensational form from Round 1, where he scorched the Magic for 35 points on 61% shooting, to go with 3 assists, 3 steals and 12 rebounds. Rhett Della will also cause more headaches for the Redbacks defence after scoring 28 points against Mandurah on the back of an incredible 81% shooting. Della was just 2 assists shy of a triple double, dishing out 8 assists, while pulling in 13 rebounds to go with 3 steals. Other players to have a field day on the Magic defence were Tamir El-Raghy who had 18 points on 78% shooting and reeling in 14 boards. Ex Redback, Austin Bruton also had 10 points to go with his 4 assists and will be looking to continue that form against former team mate Joel Wagner.
The Redbacks will again rely heavily upon former league MVP Ryan Neill who top scored against the Flames with 29 points on 41% shooting, including 6/15 from three point territory. The Redbacks will also be buoyed by the likely return of French maestro, Sami Driss who is another player over 195cm. Driss will add a much needed scoring punch, to go with his athleticism. Young gun, Jarrad Prior will also return to action after off-season shoulder surgery. Prior averaged 17 points, 6 rebounds and 2.5 assists in season 2006 and will provide another much needed scorer.
The Redbacks have had a tumultuous start to the season with Head Coach Nik Lackovic having to resign due to unforseen work commitments and assistant Graham Frey taking the reigns just two weeks before the start of the season. To add to the problems coach Frey was scheduled to be away for the first four games of the season leaving assistant David Harris to take the reigns for the first time. Coach Harris will again be at the helm against the Cougars.
With just two players scoring in double figures and contributing more than half of the teams total score the Redbacks have much to improve on against the Cougars. The team managed to shoot just 34% from the field and 27% from outside. Other areas of concern for the Redbacks were the extremely high turnover count, as well as the extremely low rebound count. The Redbacks managed just 45 rebounds (10 team rebounds) compared to 71 rebounds for Rockingham. The only player to have more than 4 rebounds was big man Ryan De Glanville who finished with a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Cockburn, on the other hand, shot 50% from the floor but just 16% from outside against the Magic. They too managed to heavily out rebound their opposition, reeling in 61 rebounds to the Magic’s 42. Like the Redbacks, Cockburn struggled to hold on to the ball, throwing it away 22 times. However one of the most worrying signs for Head Coach, CJ Jackson will be the form of his import. Isaiah Fox returned just 7 points, on 30% shooting to go with 5 fouls, 3 turn overs, 1 steal, and 7 rebounds. His poor hit out in Round 1 has had people talking about his immediate future already. He will be out to prove he can compete in the league.
On the other hand Cougar, Andrew Musulin, will be looking to continue his sensational form from Round 1, where he scorched the Magic for 35 points on 61% shooting, to go with 3 assists, 3 steals and 12 rebounds. Rhett Della will also cause more headaches for the Redbacks defence after scoring 28 points against Mandurah on the back of an incredible 81% shooting. Della was just 2 assists shy of a triple double, dishing out 8 assists, while pulling in 13 rebounds to go with 3 steals. Other players to have a field day on the Magic defence were Tamir El-Raghy who had 18 points on 78% shooting and reeling in 14 boards. Ex Redback, Austin Bruton also had 10 points to go with his 4 assists and will be looking to continue that form against former team mate Joel Wagner.
The Redbacks will again rely heavily upon former league MVP Ryan Neill who top scored against the Flames with 29 points on 41% shooting, including 6/15 from three point territory. The Redbacks will also be buoyed by the likely return of French maestro, Sami Driss who is another player over 195cm. Driss will add a much needed scoring punch, to go with his athleticism. Young gun, Jarrad Prior will also return to action after off-season shoulder surgery. Prior averaged 17 points, 6 rebounds and 2.5 assists in season 2006 and will provide another much needed scorer.
Last Modified on 14/01/2010 20:36
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