New Zealand Beat Ukraine to Remain Alive at FIBA Basketball World Cup

It was do-or-die for New Zealand as they took on Ukraine in their fourth match at the FIBA Basketball World Cup. They did enough to remain alive, though, finishing with a 73-61 win.

Entering the game at 0-3 for the tournament and coming off a drubbing from the USA, the team was full of intensity, wanting to salvage something from what has so far been a disappointing tournament.

Mika Vukona, Isaac Fotu and Casey Frank were all impressive against a bigger Ukraine front line. All hustled well, aggressively chasing loose balls and throwing themselves on the ground. Along with guards Tai Webster and Kirk Penney, this was the key reason why New Zealand were able to out-rebound their opponents 48-25, including 18 boards on the offensive end.

The bench was outstanding, too. Along with Fotu and Frank, Everard Bartlett and Corey Webster made big contributions, with Bartlett scoring 14 points in what was one of his best games for New Zealand.

A lack of production from the latter three of that group was a key reason for their loss to Dominican Republic earlier in the tournament, so it would have been encouraging to see all have good performances. Webster was more selective with his shot while Frank fought hard for position down low against bigger opponents.

Fotu was perhaps the best of the lot, though. He proved difficult to box out, rebounding well and also showing the ability to score in the post and shoot from the outside. He finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, which is impressive for a player with two years remaining in college.

New Zealand's only true superstar, Penney, finally found some form as well. After having struggled in his opening three outings, Penney made good cuts in this game to shake a defence that was paying him a lot of attention, giving him some open shots. He finished with a game-high 17 points.

It was not always looking so comfortable for New Zealand, though, and there were patches where they did not look good at all. After a strong start where they shot out to a lead, they finished the first quarter poorly, showing a lack of energy and allowing Ukraine to take a 19-18 lead into the first break.

They came out firing from there, as the three hustling forwards began to throw their bodies around and became a problem. By doing this, they got their team multiple second-chance opportunities on the offensive end and forced Ukraine into some tough shots at the other end.

New Zealand were more composed on offence, too. While they had a handful of sloppy turnovers, they passed the ball well, got better looks outside and attacked the hoop aggressively. Webster in particular looked good driving while Bartlett, Penney and Fotu shot well.

It's far from a done deal for the Tall Blacks, though. They now face Finland in what is also a must-win game. Should they win this, it will then come down to point differential as a three-way tie for third, fourth and fifth place is likely.