Sydney keeps the Spirit alive
Posted
Beleaguered NBL franchise Sydney put aside a week of controversy and uncertainty surrounding the club's future with an inspiring 103-94 victory over South Dragons on Saturday evening.
The Spirit's owner, Greg Evans, was served with a default notice and threatened to put the club into administration after advising Basketball Australia (BA) officials via e-mail last weekend he had no intention to continue operating the club.
A rescue package put together by BA, the NBL and other franchise owners ensured the game against the Dragons went ahead after it had emerged the Spirit's players have not been paid for a month.
Matthew Knight was the chief destroyer for the under-siege Spirit with a game-high 27 points, assisted by Liam Rush (15) and Luke Martin (13).
Matthew Burston was the top scorer for the visiting Dragons with 17 points.
Elsewhere on Saturday evening Adelaide, Melbourne, Townsville and New Zealand all joined Sydney in the winners' circle with victories in their respective NBL clashes.
The 36ers scored a 101-96 win over the Wollongong Hawks with Adam Ballinger (26) and Brett Maher leading the scoring blitz at Distinctive Homes Dome in Adelaide.
At Marrara Stadium in Darwin the Melbourne Tigers easily accounted for the Perth Wildcats 108-95, while the Crocodiles got the better of the Taipans 94-90 in the north Queensland derby in Cairns.
Meanwhile on the Gold Coast, the Blaze went down to the Breakers 110-88 despite a game-high 27 points from veteran point guard Shane Heal.
Search for news
ABC News Online takes a look at the big stories from 2008.
