Boomers Break Through For First Victory

The Boomers have broken through for their first win in Beijing, trouncing Iran by 38 points at the Olympic Basketball Arena.

Brian Goorjian’s team bounced back from disappointing efforts against Croatia and Argentina to record a moral boosting 106-68 victory this morning.

West Australian Shawn Redhage had his best game of the Olympic tournament so far, scoring nine points, grabbing two rebounds and a steal in his 11 minutes on the court.

The Perth Wildcat came off the bench to be Australia’s sixth highest scorer behind Brad Newley (24 points), Patrick Mills (15 points), Chris Anstey (13 points), Andrew Bogut (10 points) and David Andersen (10 points).

The Boomers set up their victory with a fantastic offensive display in the opening term, outscoring their Asian opponents 28-15. From there the result was never in doubt as the Australians moved to a 1-2 tournament record and out of bottom place in Group A.

Australia now face Russia on Saturday in a clash that will determine whether they will proceed to the next round of the Olympic tournament.