Perth Wildcats forward Jesse Wagstaff has been named the National Basketball League’s Player of the Week for Round 15 of the iiNet NBL Championship after leading his team to a strong win over the Gold Coast Blaze.
Wagstaff scored an NBL round-high 25 points, as well as adding five rebounds and one steal as the Wildcats recorded a 92-80 victory at Challenge Stadium on Friday to maintain their position atop the iiNet NBL Championship ladder.
Wagstaff shot the ball at 62% from the field, making 8-of-13 shots, as well as connecting on a perfect six-of-six free throws.
Making the performance all the more impressive was the fact that Wagtstaff actually came off the bench as a sixth man for the Wildcats and recorded those statistics despite logging just 21 minutes on court.
Gold Coast’s Adris ‘2Hard2Guard’ Deleon was also a strong candidate for the weekly honours in Round 15. The mercurial American guard averaged 19.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists as his team split their weekend double, bouncing back from the loss to Wagstaff’s Wildcats to defeat the Melbourne Tigers 73-60 on Sunday on the road.
New Zealand’s Thomas Abercrombie was also a leading contender after scoring 22 points and adding four rebounds and two assists in the Breakers’ 80-63 home win over Adelaide.
Townsville trio Eddie Gill, Michael Cedar and Jacob Holmes also all were closely considered after they played critical roles in the Crocs’ nailbiting double-overtime home win over the Sydney Kings.
Others considered for Player of the Week for Round 15 included Anatoly Bose (Sydney), Oscar Forman (Wollongong), Kevin Lisch (Perth), Andrew Warren (Cairns) and Adam Gibson (Gold Coast).
2011/12 iiNet NBL Championship Player of the Week Winners
Round 1 – Patty Mills (Melbourne Tigers)
Round 2 – Shawn Redhage (Perth Wildcats)
Round 3 – Julian Khazzouh (Sydney Kings)
Round 4 – Daniel Johnson (Adelaide 36ers)
Round 5 – Gary Wilkinson (New Zealand Breakers)
Round 6 – Eddie Gill (Townsville Crocodiles)
Round 7 – Jamar Wilson (Cairns Taipans)
Round 8 – Adris Deleon (Gold Coast Blaze)
Round 9 – Thomas Abercrombie (New Zealand Breakers)
Round 10 – Jamar Wilson (Cairns Taipans)
Round 11 – Adam Gibson (Gold Coast Blaze)
Round 12 – Eddie Gill (Townsville Crocodiles)
Round 13 – Cameron Tragardh (Melbourne Tigers)
Round 14 – Jerai Grant (Sydney Kings)
Round 15 – Jesse Wagstaff (Perth Wildcats)
