Boomers Destroy Greece B Team

The Australian Boomers have opened up their pre Olympic campaign with a lop sided victory over the Greek B National Team. The 87-60 score line probably flatters the Greek side. 

The side that Greece has chosen to represent them at the Farewell Series is disgraceful. They are young, soft and tiny. They have no interior size whatsoever and their ability from the perimeter has nothing going for it. How on earth does this prepare us for what the Olympics is going to offer?

Last night Aleks Maric, Australian Centre, could do no wrong as there was nobody who could deal with his size. Many people are praising him after his efforts last night. I don't believe it just yet. I'll wait until he matches up with Anderson Varejao of Brazil or Marc Gasol of Spain before I make my judgement. In this series however he should be racking up numbers for fun and it will do his confidence no harm. We will need a strong inside presence to free up our outside guys. 

I thought our point guards were great. Patty and Delly both showed great vision and leadership. Mills was on fire throughout the contest and showed why the Boomers will be relying heavily on him during their campaign. There aren't too many point guards around the world who will be able to stay in front of him on the break. If he can continue to be hot from outside the three point line through July/August the Boomers will be in great shape. 

I was appalled by our inability to secure the defensive rebound. There were times when the Greeks were racking up consecutive offensive rebounds. The size in which we possess over this Greek B team is scary. Brett Brown's timeout early in the third said it all. He looked disgusted and had every right to be. I think the big's in game two, which is on tonight, will be making sure the Greeks only get one look at the basket. 

I think we have the pieces there to be really competitive come London. I just believe that we could have found a more competitive team to help us out. Last night there were calls from Andrew Bogut to maybe have played games against an Australian B Team instead. I totally agree with this. They could have easily formed another team and even added an import or two to help out. I think this is something to think about in the future especially knowing Greece have their Qualifiers next week. 

I think the Aussies start to click into gear tonight and we may see an even bigger margin than what we did last night. However basketball is a funny game!