Damn I could feel those Sam Young dunks from the media bench! That'd have to be one of the coolest few minutes of NBL basketball in years.

The Crocs are a Will Hudson type away from great success next season, especially if Blanchfield can maintain this month's form over the course of a campaign.

Markovic shot 2/11 tonight and look at what he achieved. Incredible player that needs to stay in this league.

Young tried real hard for the last 2.5 quarters of it, but they really needed the guy to set a tone early. There was one play in specific that got him going in the second, I just forget which. Anyone know what he was barking at Markovic in that unsportsmanlike foul scenario?

Btw Ogilvy had just six FGAs against a small frontcourt. 'Sup with that?

Watch his (Ogilvy) numbers improve with a PG running the offense and getting him the ball in the right spots at the right times and not just letting Sam Young go 3 on 1.

Agree entirely on ogilvy, big quality low post target who never sees the ball crazy! Look at Conklin, the crocs continue to get him the ball in great position in the post and he regularly finishes strongly.

I just hope the crocs can see it through till next season and maintain the bulk of their roster as they are really starting to see the benefit of what Dennis is trying to achieve.

Markovic and norton is a quality and very exciting Aussie pg rotation

PC playing less of a role but still great spot up shooter, Djeric plays hard and is only very young and will continue to improve.

Blanchfield improving dramatically this year just needs consistency, pace can play 1 to 3 and does a bit of everything, love him posting up smaller guards.

Conklin is a beast and a definate keeper, Holmes keep as a veteran bench big.

Hinder retiring and vandy out IMO. Crocs need another post target to play starting centre, Brandt maybe and an athletic 4.

Need someone to protect the rim next year and they could make some noise.

Was a very entertaining game. Young actually played like the NBL LeBron and really put on a show, but Blanchfield made it a great duel at SF, he is going to be a heck of a player.

He's not yet the all-around player Sam Mackinnon was, but their per 40 minute stats at the same age make interesting reading:

Blanchfield: 18p, 58%2p, 42%3p, 8r, 2a, 2s, 1b
Mackinnon: 14p, 56%2p, 27%3p, 8r, 5a, 2s, 1b

At 22 was the first time Mackinnon tried to impose himself on the game more consistently, and it seems Blanchfield is starting to come out of his shell at the same age.

I would like to see them bring in a young big like andrija dumovic full time (he's their DP) on close to league minimum and sign a legit aussie center to start. Nevill anyone? Keep everyone else except for Pace who needs to be replaced with someone who can stretch the floor, whether an aussie or import. Offer PC and Holmes half of what they are on now because its all theyre worth at this stage. Take it or leave it.

Conklin needs to learn how to rebound and norton how to shoot. Go 7 players deep and have the rest as league minimum guys.

Good to see Townsville closer to the 3500 mark as well. 3399 people in attendance.

At the start of the season they were hovering around 2900 so it's an improvement. Not where they need to be, but definitely an improvement

*changed username from above.

Instead of chucking in a big name centre straight away, you have to think about Conklin first. Imo you want a rebounding and intangibles guy who doesn't take shots or positioning from the best post player in the league. Don't know anything about Angus Brandt, but I'm not so sure Luke Nevill would be the best fit, because he's at his best when scoring and not a great rebounder (which is a must for this small team).

You need a checklist of the main things required from a frontcourt:

- low-post scoring
- midrange scoring
- pick and roll/pop scoring (meaning he can read seams and generally find open space)
- rebounding
- defense
- effort
- mobility to some extent (because this league is quite fast and crossmatches are quite common)

There are other things like passing that are handy but probably not absolutely necessary. Anyway Nevill is a great player yes, but I don't think he brings much in the way of those last four points. Granted he's probably a touch more mobile than you'd expect from a 7'2" guy, but still.

Personally I like Will Hudson because he will do all of those things well (except for post scoring), and he'd probably have competitions with Conklin to see who will go harder every night. Because consistent energy is what the team needs--Conklin only gets pumped (in a positive way) when he gets in rhythm; Hudson may keep the whole team's energy in check. And I reckon the scoring potential of those two combined is easily enough to make a defense collapse for the outside guys.

The PC scenario is a head scratcher with the minutes he gets. You wonder what kind of role he will get next season.

That's a good stat, Paul. They're also similar in that they could also go missing on any given night as well, right? Mackinnon was a confidence player when he was young too?

Yeah definitely, the three game home win streak helps. They've always been impressive in second halves but have learned how to start better recently.

A Hudson / Conklin frontcourt would get my approval. Tough as nails and not so expensive. I think we need to give Blanchfield the keys next season too. He needs to be at around 15/20 shots a game. He needs a fire under his ass so he doesn't go missing. Mackinnon was the same.

As well as his spot up J, he's really starting to come off curls with purpose too.

@ Paul, just curious do you have Creek's per 40 stats I wonder how he compares to MacKinnon and Blanchfield

Per 40 minutes for Blanchfield, Mackinnon and Creek (a few months younger than the other two) look like this:

Creek: 22p, 56%2p, 32%3p, 10r, 3a, 1s, 1b
Blanchfield: 18p, 58%2p, 42%3p, 8r, 2a, 2s, 1b
Mackinnon: 14p, 56%2p, 27%3p, 8r, 5a, 2s, 1b

Definitely the biggest thing Blanchfield has got out of playing under Dennis is his rebounding. He is a much more complete player now he uses his athleticism on the boards.

The Crocs really need Norton and Blanchfield to evolve their game. Toddy Blanchfield is gonna be a great player.

Norton is definately coming along nicely, shooting the three at 42 percent ( 8th in nbl) and 87 percent free throw shooting. They were both weaknesses last year. Would love to see him take guys off the dribble a bit more, because he is lightening quick. Very happy with his improvement this year.