Penney From Heaven - Burger King Tall Blacks 92 Hungary 78 - Jul 8, 2002
Kirk Penney (195-G-80) has carved a reputation in New Zealand basketball as an outside shooter with a sweet stroke.
Remember, his three-point prowess was instrumental his team’s dramatic comeback victory in the first test against Hungary last Friday at the North Shore Events Centre. But last night, he showed three years at the University of Wisconsin has added so much more to his repertoire as he torched the Europeans for 31 points, the vast majority on drives to the basket, as the Burger King Tall Blacks beat their guests 92-78 in New Plymouth. The victory gives New Zealand a 2-1 edge in the five-match series, but really it was the first time they have dominated their opponents. Although the Kiwis have gotten off to the better start in each of the three tests so far, this was the first time they had sustained it. "They gave the impression they were tired because we jumped on them pretty hard, pretty early," said Tall Black coach Tab Baldwin. "We knew we had to take the ball to the basket. "We weren’t playing a style of basketball that allowed the referees any chance of getting involved in the game, so we took it to the rim and made their big men play some defence for a change. "We had been very focused on the perimeter option, but the danger is you can become too perimeter oriented, especially when Kirk and Phill Jones can take it to the hole and with good offensive players like Rob Hickey and Edward Book (210-C-70, college: Canisius) inside." Penney was the chief beneficiary of this change of tack. His stint at Wisconsin, where his former North Harbour coach Tony Bennett is assistant, has transformed him into a true triple threat capable of shooting long threes, driving the lane or posting up smaller counterparts. Last night, the Taranaki faithful were treated to a bit of all three, but mostly the second. "I don’t have a preference at all," said Penney. "Whatever the defence gives me, I’ll take. "The offence we played tonight opened up the baseline to drive a bit more." Baldwin called American-born Kenneth Stone (199-F-65, college: George Fox) into the lineup for his Tall Black debut, the culmination of a long rocky road to the international arena. In fact, Stone got a surprise promotion into the starting five just before tip-off after he was mistakenly marked as a starter on the score sheet. He was subsequently replaced by Penney seconds after tip-off. The veteran forward would play a role in Penney’s offensive explosion by helping relieve him of defensive responsibilities on Hungarian star Kornel David (206-F-71, agent: Capicchioni Luciano), who had scored 31 points in Palmerston North two days earlier. This time, the four-team NBA performer had 13 points. "We changed our matchups on David and tried to keep the ball out of his hands," said Baldwin. "Initially, we had Dillon Boucher on him, then we past him on to Kenny. "He played pretty well. He’s still suffering from a pretty painful injury to his foot, but he did some good work around the basket." In fact, Penney and Stone, with seven rebounds each, led a Tall Black rebounding effort that achieved a substantial 44-34 edge on the boards and reversed previous trends. New Zealand sprang out to an early lead that they would never surrender. The Hungarians got within two points near the end of the second quarter, but trailed 37-44 at the break and quickly fell further behind in the third period. Penney had 16 points as his team put on 14 unanswered points, took the quarter 31-19 and blew the lead out to 25 points. "The game probably lacked some drama, it did lack excitement, but sometimes one team significantly outperforms the other," said Baldwin. "Those sorts of games may not keep you on the edge of your seat, but at least they allow the coach to set down." Ever the perfectionist, Baldwin wasn’t satisfied that his players cruised through the final quarter, losing it 17-26. "I’m one of those butt-headed coaches that believes players should keep playing as long as the clock is ticking." Hungarian guard Tamas Kaman (200-F-79) was the prime threat, shooting 6/9 from beyond the arc for 24 points. Free throws, such an achilles heel in the Tall Blacks second-test defeat, were greatly improved – from 45.5% (10/22) to 70.4% (19/27). The Hungarians were still deadly accurate from the line at 92.3%, but shoot 20 less attempts. Nelson centre Edward Book (210-C-70, college: Canisius) provided a strong inside presence from the start and also shot a pair of three-pointers in his 21 points. After this setback to their chances of series success, the news just got worse for the Hungarians. Baldwin hinted his injured captain Pero Cameron (200-F/C-74, agent: Dubini Nicola) may make suit up in Nelson on Wednesday. Cameron has struggled with a calf tear for the past two months and was relieved of the captaincy as he concentrated on regaining fitness. He has made great progress over the past few days and a one-on-one session with assistant coach and 2000 Sydney Olympian Nenad Vucinic yesterday suggested he was nearly ready. His return will depend on a doctor’s clearance, but would allow American guard Terrence Lewis another game without sacrificing overall size against the taller Hungarians.
Burger King Tall Blacks 92 (Kirk Penney (195-G-80) 31, Edward Book (210-C-70, college: Canisius) 21, Phill Jones 12)
Hungary 78 (Tamas Kaman (200-F-79) 24, Kornel David (206-F-71, agent: Capicchioni Luciano) 13, Gregely Fodor 13)
 Point Proven - Hungary 110 Burger King Tall Blacks 99 - Jul 6, 2002
When the Hungarian basketball team landed in New Zealand for the Burger King International Series, they seemed to arrive on a mission. The point may have been missed in the translation, but reading between the lines they seemed intent on proving that they were good enough to attend the world champs in Indianapolis in August, except for the undeniable strength of European basketball. In fact, they struggle to qualify for the European championships. And some other unspecified parts of the world perhaps weren’t as strong and could consider themselves lucky to be at the world tournament. Or something like that. If the Tall Blacks had gained some respect for their comeback in game one of the five-test series, their guests kept the jury out with a convincing 110-99 victory in Palmerston North. The game followed a familiar pattern with New Zealand gaining an early 23-15 edge, only for the Hungarians to claw their way back in the second quarter. Coach Tab Baldwin started the game with the same lineup as the previous night, but added height to the bench by introducing centre Ed Book for guard Terrence Lewis (193-G-69, college: Washington St.). Phill Jones fell into the groove early, hitting the first two of his eight three-pointers in the first quarter and two more in the second as the Tall Blacks extended their advantage to eight points. Meanwhile, Hungarian NBA player Kornel David (206-F-71, agent: Capicchioni Luciano) (206-F-71, agent: Capicchioni Luciano) was showing his class in keeping his side close, and when he picked up his third foul midway through the second period, his captain Erno Sitku (208-C-72) picked up the slack. The visitors closed out the second quarter with an 11-2 run and guard Gregely Fodor hit a trey on the buzzer to send them into halftime 50-49 ahead. Hungary totally dominated the third quarter 31-19 and built up a 13-point gulf that would ultimately prove beyond the Tall Blacks. Particularly galling was their inability to convert free throw opportunities. While the Hungarians slotted an impressive 30/33 for 90.9%, the Kiwis hit a poor 10/22 for 45.5%. "We lost a lot of opportunities to edge closer and capitalise on the momentum our defence created," observed Baldwin. "We are not a great free throw shooting team and not a great free throw shooting country. "It’s poor. There’s nothing I can say except we should be better."  The comeback did come, but too little too late. Jones scored 13 points in the final quarter, including three more long-distance bombs, and helped bring the scoreline back to 90-93. At that point, the Tall Blacks seemed on the brink of yet another miracle … but their bag of tricks ran dry. "You can’t expect to come back after digging a deep hole time after time after time," said Baldwin. "But I don’t think it was all our doing tonight … Hungary played very well. "We actually shut down the system they run better than we did last night, but they were a little more patient, forced us to play defence longer on each possession and we couldn’t sustain it. "When the open shot came along for them, they were deadly." The size mismatch between the two sides meant they often had to resort to fouling their bigger opponents, but overall Baldwin was satisfied with his team’s success in the possession stakes. "We took 76 shots and they took 62," he said. "That’s an indication we had a possession quota in our favour – we have to be pretty pleased with that." Jones ended up with 34 points and found some support from Dillon Boucher (195-G-75), who scored 17 points and effected a staggering nine steals with his defensive ethic in the open court. But he had his hands full with David, who almost matched Jones with his 31 points. "It’s always tough battling bigger guys, but you have to get out and do the job," said Boucher. "David is a lot bigger than me, a lot stronger, he has a quick first step and can shoot the ball - a tough assignment. "But when he scores like that, you feel like you haven’t done your job, so I’m definitely looking forward to doing the job in upcoming games. "He won’t be getting 31 points again." And unlike Jones, David got tremendous offensive backup from Sitku (24 points), Fodor (20 points) and Balazs Simon (188-G-80) (16 points). "Offensively, we don’t have anything to go back to the drawing board for," said Baldwin.  "Defensively, we do."
Hungary 110 (Kornel David (206-F-71, agent: Capicchioni Luciano) (206-F-71, agent: Capicchioni Luciano) 31, Erno Sitku (208-C-72) 24, Gregely Fodor 20, Balazs Simon (188-G-80) 16, Tamas Kaman 13)
Burger King Tall Blacks 99 (Phill Jones 34, Dillon Boucher (195-G-75) 17, Rob Hickey 10, Kirk Penney 10)
 Miracle at NSEC - Burger King Tall Blacks 84 Hungary 81 - Jul 5, 2002
The same crowd that last year witnessed the greatest moment of New Zealand basketball history – the Burger King Tall Blacks’ world championship qualifying victory over Australia – partook in another hoops miracle last night. Stunned into silence as their home team fell 16 points behind Hungary early in the fourth quarter, the North Shore Events Centre patrons could hardly contain themselves as the Tall Blacks rallied to a thrilling 84-81 in the first of a five-test series. "There does seem to be a little bit of magic here for us," admitted coach Tab Baldwin. "I was asked the other day if this stadium could become the spiritual home of New Zealand basketball, but I would like to think any stadium we walk into in this country would be our spiritual home."  A three-point barrage from homegrown hero Kirk Penney (195-G-80) (195-G-80) and his skipper Mark Dickel (187-G-76, college: UNLV) provided the thrust for a comeback that looked unlikely as the Hungarians scored the first nine points of the period to lead 68-52. Before the game, Baldwin had cited the Hungarians’ clear height advantage and ordered his players to scrap for every piece of possession they could secure, whether it be offensive rebounds or merely minimising their own turnovers. For most of the game, they could do neither. Compounding the size discrepancy, Baldwin started a short lineup with Penney, a natural shooting guard at small forward, conceding 15cm (6 in) to his opposite, former NBA player Kornel David (206-F-71, agent: Capicchioni Luciano).  The Tall Blacks grabbed an early initiative and jumped out to a 10-4 lead, but as the starting unit was substituted out of the game, the lineup lost continuity, struggled to execute the offence and surrendered turnovers. Hungary built an 11-point lead in the second quarter, but barely withstood a Kiwi charge sparked by another Harbour favourite, Paora Winitana (190-G-76), to hold a 35-32 halftime advantage. Guard Phill Jones found his range early in the third quarter to give his side another lead at 43-40, but the Hungarians put on a 12-2 run to close out the quarter for a 59-52 edge. When faced with a deficit as large as 16 points, the key is to first stop the opposition scoring. The Tall Blacks finally produced the kind of uncompromising defence Baldwin had called for all along. For a long period, the Hungarians must have wondered if they would ever cross halfway again, so effective was the Black press. Then, through Dickel and Penney, the Tall Blacks began clawing back the deficit. The height difference had virtually nullified New Zealand’s inside game throughout the match, but as the long-range snipers began finding their target, the Hungarians were extended, opening up chinks in their interior. With the defence now having to honour his outside shot, Dickel twice penetrated and dished to Damon Rampton (202-F-79) for crucial baskets, including the one that took the lead for good with 20s remaining. In his first game replacing Pero Cameron (200-F/C-74, agent: Dubini Nicola) as captain, the volatile point guard was just the spark needed in his team’s hour of need. "The captaincy is more an off-the-court thing," Dickel observed. "Once the game starts, my responsibilities are pretty much the same. "We definitely missed Pero out there - he’s a great leader. But I thought Damon Rampton (202-F-79) played a great game, rebounding well and making a couple of tough layups. "Without Pero, Sean Marks (208-F-75, agent: Duffy Bill, college: California) or Tony Rampton out there, other guys like Damon and Willie Burton (200-F-62, college: Tennessee) had to step up." Dickel ended up with 14 points (including 5/7 FG and 3/4 3pt) and seven assists, Penney had 17 points (including 4/8 3pt), four assists and three steals, and Jones scored 15 points. "The crowd was absolutely fantastic," said Penney. "This is where I grew up and it was certainly inspirational." Dillon Boucher (195-G-75) chimed in with 10 points and eight rebounds, but easily led the game in floor burns, elbow grazes and defensive effort. Before the game, not much was known of the Hungarians. David led his team with 15 points and eight rebounds, doing his utmost to keep his side in the game as the tide turned so dramatically in the final stages. Four other visitors racked up 13 points each – point guard Balazs Simon (188-G-80) was not expected to score heavily, but severely tested Dickel through the first three quarters. The other revelation was 2.07m forward Martin Bader, who had 11 points in the second half with nice shooting touch and tough moves around the basket. Relieved to escape with the win, Baldwin wasn’t fooled by the result. "This is a highly motivated group of players with great internal leadership," he said. "When it counted, the inspiration, determination and motivation was there. "This was never a question of character – if anything, the character of this team was reaffirmed. It is a question of how we execute game plans. "We all know we have to do a better job tactically. We feel better now we can prepare for Hungary and their system … but they are probably over there thinking the same thing." The next game of the Burger King International series is this afternoon (Saturday, July 6) in Palmerston North.