Aug. 15, 2007
Hobart, Australia – Luke Zeller (Washington, Ind.) registered double figures for the third straight outing as he finished with 12 points and eight rebounds in leading Athletes In Action to a 125-92 victory over the Tasmanian All-Stars on Tues., Aug. 14, The contest was played at the Aurora Sports Stadium in Newtown, Hobart. With the victory, AIA picked up its first win of its Australian exhibition tour.
AIA controlled the pace of the game from the beginning but only held an 8 point first quarter margin. However, a near flawless second period opened up the game. AIA only turned the ball over once in the second 12 minutes and rode 10 Ray Shafer points to a 67-42 Halftime lead. Oregon’s Shafer scored 16 of his game high 24 in the first half. AIA shot 59 percent from the floor in the first half and limited the Aussies to only 38 percent.
Tasmania made a run to start the second half, pulling to within 15, but that was as close as they would get. In all, seven AIA players scored in double figures led by Shafer and Texas A&M’s Josh Carter (19 Points). Colorado Christian’s Brian Stamer added 15 points and 12 rebounds. Wes Johnson of Iowa State also finished with 15. Whitney Robinson and Miami’s Jimmy Graham added 11.
Zeller, Graham, and Shafer each had eight rebounds. AIA out-rebounded the Tasmanian All-Stars 67-39 for the game. AIA also had 20 second-chance points to the Tasmanian’s two.
AIA travels to Perth for three games with the NBL Perth Wildcats, beginning on Thurs., Aug. 16 at the Lakeside Recreation Centre in North Lake, Perth.