Whats News in Australia

Australian sport is an important aspect of the true Aussie culture. Australians have pride in all sporting events around the globe, with many sporting communities representing Australia in many different countries around the world. Now we can see that sport in Australia is at its all time peak, with teams from all sporting teams around Australia, playing the best we have seen in years. One in particular to watch is the Australian basketball team, the Boomers. The path to the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China is in full swing for Australian team, the Boomers. After dismantling Chinese Taipei and Japan, by 38 and 24 points Respectively in November, the Boomers, along with their customised basketball uniform design, will visit Melbourne in February next year for two World Cup qualifiers. The Boomers will face the Philippines on February 22nd and Chinese Taipei on February 25th, with both games being held at Margaret Court Arena, our home turf. The Philippines pose a threat to Australia, after they too won their two qualifiers in November, yet we still are backing our Australian team with pure Aussie spirit. The meeting will see the two leading teams in Pool B face off — with the winner all but booking their ticket into the next round of qualifying. Boomers coach Andrej Lemanis talked to Basketball Australia about the importance of both of these games, and how they are key in really advancing into the next round.

“These two Melbourne games are key in terms of not only advancing to the next round, but also positioning ourselves favourably in the next round.” Lemanis said.

“I ask the Melbourne fans, who have always been great basketball fans, to come and help us on the journey, and in the process, get to experience the true feeling and meaning of international basketball – it doesn’t get much better than this.” As Lemanis said, Australians will be really getting around this sporting team, as we all know the amount of pride an Aussie has towards any type of sporting event.

Daniel Kickert and Mitch Creek led the way for Australia; a group made up entirely of NBL players, now wearing basketball uniforms — are both qualifiers from November. Kickert was at his efficient finest, moving 7/9 from profound, on his way to averaging 18.5 points, 5 rebounds and 3.5 assists over the two games. One player to watch for on the Philippines team is Jayson Castro William. The 5’10” point guard starred in both qualifiers in November, averaging 20 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5 assists over the two games. Australia is currently ranked 10th in the world, whilst the Philippines and Chinese Taipei sit 31st and 57th respectively. In order to qualify for the 2019 FIBA World Cup, Australia has to finish in the top seven teams at the Asia area at the close of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Qualifiers.

Basketball fans around Australia should be really proud of the Australian Boomers, as they are not only playing the sport at their best, but are also representing the country for many sporting years to come. We wish our Australian basketball team, the Boomers, the best of luck for future games, and know that they will play at their best for many games to come. Below is a short video of the Boomers Highlight in the last Olympic Games.