Tuffin exacts revenge over old Taranaki team in Wellington rout

The Wellington Saints quickly got back to their winning ways in the New Zealand National Basketball League (NBL) as they dominated at home over the cellar-dwelling Taranaki Mountainairs, 89-63, at the TSB Bank Arena on Saturday, June 19.

With the win, Wellington got back to second place in the standings with a 9-2 record while Taranaki stayed rooted at the cellar with a 1-10 slate.

Six Saints reached double figures in scoring, led by Tohi Smith-Milner’s 15 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals.

Meanwhile, Fil-Kiwi forward Ken Tuffin bounced back with a 13-point outing on 4-of-6 shooting in just 21 minutes against his former team, one day after going scoreless in the loss to the Hawke’s Bay Hawks.

Off a decent 20-12 start after the first quarter, the Saints wasted no time, and fully seized control of the game with a 14-5 run, capped by a Smith-Milner three at the 6:27 mark of the second for the 34-15 lead.

It was all Wellington from that point onwards as the Saints topped off the rout with a 31-point gap, 87-56, after a Taane Samuel layup with 3:36 left in the fourth frame.

Only three Mountainairs clinched double-digit scoring in the sorry loss, led by Tai Wynyard’s game-high 15 points on a 7-of-11 clip.

Wellington will get six days of rest after this back-to-back set, and will next face the Nelson Giants on Friday, June 25. – Rappler.com