NBL Round 4 : More Upsets To Come?

Already in Round 4 of NBL action we have seen the Wildcats beat the Tigers by 4 in Melbourne and the Taipans show up as rude visitors in New Zealand, winning by 11 at the North Shore Events Centre. Both of these, whilst not Earth-shattering, were upset victories for the visiting teams. Are there more upsets to come in Round 4?

Tonight the Wildcats try to follow up on their victory with a visit to the Wollongong Hawks. Kavossy Franklin has not been his usual self for the Hawks in the last couple of games and they will need for him to fire up if they are to beat one of the top form teams in the competition. However the Wildcats certainly have been relying on the streaky outside shots of both Darnell Hinson and Peter Crawford of late and will need their inside men to contribute to ensure the win.

A Stern Prediction: Wildcats by 8

The Gold Coast Blaze are visited tonight by the Sydney Spirit, as two of the lower rung teams of the league battle it out. Shane Heal is hopeful of leading his team to a first win of the season and pull them out of the situation of being the only team to be winless. Former Houston Rocket Juaquin Hawkins will be playing through the pain and that inspiration, along with a rabid home crowd, should be enough to pull the Blaze through to a deserved first win.

A Stern Prediction: Blaze by 5

Tomorrow night the Melbourne Tigers will host the dangerous Adelaide 36ers, who welcome the questionable fitness of Adam Ballinger and Aaron Bruce into the squad for the match. Adelaide have already shown that they are a team to be feared with numerous options all over the court, however the cornered Tigers will be looking to make up to their loss to the Wildcats and should please their home fans with a W.

A Stern Prediction: Tigers by 8

The extremely busy Wildcats will be in Sydney to take on the Spirit tomorrow night as well. This could be a rare 2008-09 opportunity for the Spirit to snare a prized scalp, with the Wildcats playing their third game in four days and possibly showing the signs of travelling across the wide Nullarbor. The Spirit have the weapons on a good night (Derrick Low, Matt Knight, Liam Rush, Dave Gruber) to shock some teams and this may be just that night.

A Stern Prediction: Spirit by 3




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