The following are previews with betting tips for selected fixtures in Round 4 of the 2024/25 NBL season.
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Adelaide 36ers vs Sydney KingsFriday October 11, 5:30pm |
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What a blockbuster we have on Friday night in front of what should be a near capacity crowd at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre as the resurgent Adelaide 36ers led by Texan Point Guard Kendric Davis (32PTS last time out vs the Hawks on 5/9 shooting from deep + a win) take on the mighty Sydney Kings and rival Point Guard Jaylen Adams (5REB,10AST and 3STL in their last matchup against the Bullets + a win). And with the 36ers having won eight of their last 10 home clashes, alongside the Kings whom are 3/4 this season, picking a winner here is virtually impossible. Will it be Davis, a former AAC Player of the Year who gets the job done for his sides raucous fan base or can Adams replicate his latest performance against Adelaide when he conjured up a monumental 25PTS, 6REB and 7AST? Either way grab your popcorn, sit back and relax, because this is going to be one hell of an entertaining affair.
Down the years in South Australia the 36ers and the Kings have produced some truly memorable clashes against one another. About this time seven years ago Adelaide came out all guns blazing as they trounced Sydney 114-84. Over the first two quarters alone they produced 69PTS and in the 3rd they kept their hapless rivals to just 11PTS. That day the hosts had six players reach double-figure points as Nathan Sobey blasted off with 25PTS and a young Mitch Creek was also making a name for himself with 7REB and 5AST. Meanwhile ex-King and current-36er Jason Cadee did a lil bit of everything with 5PTS, 4REB and 7AST. Or who could forget just two years ago when the Kings came from behind to win an absolutely stunning game of Basketball 93-90. Jaylen Adams & Xavier Cooks were monsters that day with a combined 51PTS, 11REB and 8AST next to their names. And DJ Vasiljevic had 9PTS, 2REB and 2AST against his future employees. Regardless of whether we get a thriller or a trashing, this is going to be a good game!
Both sides have the potential to win this encounter and win it large. However it’s tough to go past the Kings who will be looking to put in a four-quarter after they fell asleep in the second half of their game last round against the Bullets. However if Adelaide can catch fire early and get the home crowd as their 12th Man then anything can happen. Both teams also happen to fancy their chances from deep so that may well be where a lot of the game lies.
Betting tips: Back the Kings to win at $1.58 (Dabble, PlayUp, Betfair)
Also pick them to win Q1 at $1.76 (Bet Right)
And pick the Kings to score 89+ PTS overall at $1.17 (Bet Right)
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South East Melbourne Phoenix vs Brisbane BulletsSaturday October 12, 8:00pm |
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As the South East Melbourne Phoenix prepare to host the Bullets on Saturday night at least one team will get to walk away with a dub. Times have been tough in the early goings so far for both teams with Mike Kelly’s Men 0-4 so far and their rivals currently sit at 1-3. However despite all the doom and gloom of being within the lower rungs of the ladder so far there is still plenty of excitement to look forward to from both teams. Five of South East Melbourne’s last seven losses have been by 10PTS or less as they are potentially very close to turning over a new leaf in franchise history. During their latest ten-point defeat to the 36ers they won Q3 23-19 and Q4 25-22 as they came home strong, with a cool 32PTS from Matt Hurt, the ex-Memphis Grizzlie sensation on 4/8 shooting from beyond the arc. Whilst Brisbane have won three of their last six away games and two of their losses over that period have have come by just four and one point/s respectively. Who will collect the victory? As both teams go head-to-head in a clash that should rain points down from the heavens.
Besides the monumental efforts of Matt Hurt last round, Derrick Walton Jr was also very strong as he chipped in with 10PTS + 3REB + 11AST. Jordan Hunter also contributed with 8PTS on 2/2 shooting, 7REB, 2AST and 1BLK. And off the bench Malique Lewis shot 62.5% for 14PTS, 4REB, 1AST and 1BLK. If someone can go off such as Hurt or Walton Jr and the team has enough all-round power to back up the BIG EFFORT then the Phoenix are fair game for their first win of the season. However rivalling them will be the Bullets who despite being down by 20PTS at halftime to the Kings, only ended up losing by nine in the end. Casey Prather led the way with 17PTS, Keandre Cook had 12 and Tyrell Harrison produced 10. Meanwhile off the bench Rocco Zikarsky produced 11PTS and Josh Bannan fashioned 8PTS + 11REB. Both sides have extremely capable playing squads, it’s just about who turns up on the day!
The defensive rotations and tendencies of both South East Melbourne and Brisbane haven’t exactly been stellar this campaign, so this game really will be won by whoever can score the most points, not by who can stop the most. The most interesting aspect of this game however is how Nathan Sobey will fare against the side whom he repped five seasons for. Although his time in Brisbane is often polarised by Bullets fans he helped them break their long-standing absence from the playoffs and generally speaking kept them relevant. Sobey might put on a show but it won’t be enough to thwart the Bullets and what they want to achieve this game and season.
Betting tips: Look for a toughly contested Bullets victory at $2.35 (Betfair, Dabble, PlayUp)
Also look for the collective points scored in Q1 to be 45+ at $1.84 (Unibet)
And back the grand total of points scored to be 178+ at $1.80 (Bet Right)
Wow, this is fascinating! I learned something new today