Boomers Vs Tall Blacks

Brad Newley will be in green and gold tonight agains the Kiwi's.

In just over five hours time (6pm) you will be able to tune into Fox Sports (two) and catch Game 1 of the Australian Boomers vs New Zealand Tall Blacks two game series kicking off in Sydney.

Although you will hear the players talking about this series being about gaining a better seed at the 2010 World Championships in Turkey, I happen to disagree.

Any time the Aussies and the Kiwi's play against each other you have to live in the now, not look forward to 2010. Plus when you look through both rosters, there are a lot of new faces who will be wishing to please their new coaches before they head off to play in their respective domestic leagues around the world. Leaving a lasting impression will help get yourself a ticket to Turkey.

When you first look at the lineups, you think the Aussies should win this series in a canter but history will show if you underestimate your opponent the unthinkable is possible.

While the Kiwis's have lost a few game winners in Phill Jones (currently working on his scuba diving in Cairns) and Pero Cameron (currently stuck at Crust Pizza on the Gold Coast) to retirement, they still have top dog in Kirk Penney that can singlehandly win a game on his back.

In saying that, there is no way Brett Brown will do a 2001 Phil Smythe.

What I'm interested in seeing is how some of these new young guys perform in the green and gold.

Aron Baynes is heading over to Lithuania after this series so it will be good to get a look at the former Washington State Cougar. With our front court possessing some depth, a good performance during this series will not hurt the chances for future national team's.

During the Boomers international travel this off season, Nathan Jawai has been Australia's best big. He will want this to continue as he prepares to head back to join the Dallas Mavericks in his quest to become a NBA "player". He needs to stay out of early foul trouble against the Kiwi's to maximise his effect on the series.

It will be interesting to see how Brett Brown rotates the shooting guard position. With Brad Newley being a lock for the World's, this is an opportunity for James Harvey and Peter Crawford to show their value at the international level.

Teen sensation and St Mary's bound Matt Dellavadova has retained his spot despite the return of "steady Eddie" Damien Martin from a broken arm.

One of these guys will ride the pine as Adam Gibson has cemented his role as the lead point guard.

One of the Kiwi's that seems posed to explode is wing player Tom Abercrombie. Long and athletic, Abercrombie's match up with Newley should be one for the viewers to watch closely.

He (abercrombie) seems comfortable putting the ball on the floor and getting to the basket. If he knocks down a few early "J's", it will put some pressure on the defense to make a decision as to how best defend him. Plus, this will take some of the scoring pressure off Penney.

In the end I believe the defensive pressure that the Boomers will apply will wear the Kiwis down over the forty minutes. The Kiwis are in a remodelling phase and flat out do not have the horses to match the Aussies.

Aussies to win 2-0 with an average win margin of 20.