BASKETBALL: Slow start proves to be a killer

It's not just Usain Bolt who knows how costly it can be to get off to a slow start; even in a basketball game of four quarters it's vital not to be too slow out of the blocks.
By the end of the first period against the Wellington Saints in the capital last night, the 0800 Easy LPG Hawks were facing a deficit of 27-11. Even the speedy Jamaican would be stumped at how to make up that kind of difference.
From there on, the Hawks were fighting a losing battle, and despite coming close to their more favoured rivals, ended up losing 103-91 in their NBL encounter.
Coach Shawn Dennis was understandably angry about a poor opening quarter that effectively allowed the Saints to take control of the game.
"The Saints came out in that quarter determined to throw down the gauntlet and proved that they are a far better team than us," he told SportToday.
"I thought our team fought hard and got ourselves back into the game but you can't have a quarter of basketball where you don't get a defensive rebound."
With the stabilising influence of a returning Paul Henare, the Hawks hit back at the TSB Arena, to trail only 84-77 with less than six minutes remaining thanks to two brilliantly taken three-pointers, including a world-class shot from Ben Hill. That appeared to have shaken the Saints but they immediately regained their composure and romped to victory. American import Eric Devendorff showed why he is considered one of the leading talents in the NBL with 36 points.
Dennis said, despite the comeback, too many mistakes were made.
"The frustrating thing for me is that, as well as they played, we put ourselves back into the game, and we were just six points behind in the final quarter but we failed to capitalise," the Australian said.
"In a number of our defeats this year we've made too many errors at crucial times and that was the case today. We had a defensive breakdown, our shot selection was often poor and then there's an unsportsman-like foul that helps to take the score from just seven down to 14. That stuff's just crucial and we have to learn from that.
"They made very few errors whereas we made too many."
 Henare, returning after three months away from a basketball court, said his ankle wasn't fully fit, but that it would only take about two weeks for be totally fine.
"I'm happy to be back in a Hawks vest again, not happy with where I'm at at the moment fitness and match wise but that won't be the case for long."
Josh Pace was the best scorer for Hawks with 30 while Everard Bartlett added 16 and Ben Hill 13.