Tall Blacks book spot in Basketball World Cup

The Tall Blacks have qualified for next year's FIBA Basketball World Cup after blitzing Jordan 100-72 in Auckland last night.

They needed the Philippines to beat Saudi Arabia in order to qualify, which they did comfortably, winning 84-46.

After racing out to a 29-10 first quarter lead, the Tall Blacks controlled the game due largely to their superior rebounding and outside shooting.

Shea Ili led the side with 16 points, five rebounds and five assists, and was supported by Ben Gold (15 points and eight rebounds) and Flynn Cameron (13 points and six assists).

Ethan Rusbatch and Reuben Te Rangi also chipped in with 14 and 11 points respectively.

Dar Tucker led Jordan with 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Amin Abu Hawwas also scored 19 and Hashem Abbaas had 15.

The Tall Blacks put on arguably their best shooting display of the year; hitting 16 threes at 46 percent, including four triples from Rusbatch. New Zealand also dominated the boards 54 to 38, including 20 offensive rebounds which led to 24 second chance points.

Quarter scores: 29-10, 52-34, 76-51, 100-72.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission