Semi-finals Start on Monday
Author: Henk Wals
Date: April 30, 2006
Dutch
Monday ProBuild Lions host Renes/Binnenland for the first game in the semi-finals of the play-offs. ProBuild and Renes will battle each other in a best-of-five series. Last season the semi-finals had the same match-up and it was Binnenland who swept the Lions 3-0 then. This season Binnenland completed another 3-0, a seasons sweep this time, beating the Lions two times on their home court in Landsmeer. On the other hand ProBuild came out victorious in the semi-finals of the first half season's tournament. However, coach Laki showed himself optimistic about the coming series. "The key is to stay focused and aggressive. If we execute well and play sharp, there is no team that can beat us in a series of five or seven games."
The series start Monday May 1st in Landsmeer at 8.30 PM CET. The second game will take place in Barendrecht on Wednesday and the third Saturday in Landsmeer.
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Lions Reach Semi-Finals
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: April 26, 2006
Amanda Davidson scored 21 points and Tanya Bröring added 16 as the Lions reached the semi-finals of the play-offs through a 54-86 rout of the Nijmegen Wildcats. Sharon Bos showed she is on the way back from her injury with a double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Nadine Boesaart almost reached the same result, with 10 points and 9 rebounds. Kati Burrows came in early foul-trouble and finished the game with 8 points.
At the break the Lions trailed with one point, 29-28, but in the third period, when the game was tied 39-39 they placed a 0-20 run to take 39-59 lead. Amanda Davidson and Nadine Boesaart both had two 3-pointers down the stretch.
Coach Laki Lakner who showed himself upset during a time-out in the second period because of what he called a lack of intensity, said he enjoyed the second half of the game. "Somehow we came out the locker room with a different attitude, finally playing as aggressively as we should. And see what happens: we win the second quarter by more than 30 points. I hope we can sustain this level of intensity through the rest of the play-offs."
After the third period ProBuild led by 45-63 and widened the gap to 50-78 after another (0-9) run in the fourth.
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Belinda Bos Probably Out for the Season
Author: Henk Wals
Date: April 25, 2006
Dutch
Tuesday at practice Belinda Bos stepped the wrong way and dislocated her knee. She was taken to a hospital to have her knee x-rayed. Without having seen the photo's trainer René Wormhoudt estimated Bos will be out for four weeks. "Belinda's knees are loose jointed due to former injuries, so I don't think she ripped any tendons, but we'll have to wait for the x-rays to be sure."
Wednesnight the Lions travel to Nijmegen for Game 2 in the best-of-three series against Wildcats. Coach Laki Lakner was optimistic about the results. "I'm confident we can finish the series there. Belinda's injury is a set-back, of course, but we have a deep bench and we'll get the job done."
Game starts at 9:30 PM CET.
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Lions Roll to Game 1 Victory
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: April 24, 2006
Amanda Davidson scored 20 points and Kati Burrows added 16 points on 6-out-of-7 shooting from the floor, as the Lions rolled to a 83-62 victory on the Nijmegen Wildcats in Game One of the postseason. Tanya Bröring chipped in with 14 points.
The Lions used the second period to gain a 61-43 lead and cruised thereafter.
Nevertheless coach Laki Lakner did not look too happy after the game. "I thought offensively we played reasonably well", he said. "We were almost 50% from the field and executed well most of the time. But on defense we were lacked aggression. If we allow 63 points to a team like Wildcats, apparently there's something wrong and I'm worried about that. If we play defense like this in the Semi-Finals the season probably will be a bit shorter than what we're hoping for."
After the first period the game was tied 12-12, but in the second quarter Amanda Davidson sparked a 11-0 run with a 3-pointer, 25-17. A trey by Kati Burrows widened the gap to 32-19 in the 7th minute.
Amanda Davidson scored 13 of her 20 points in the fourth period.
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Play-off Time
Author: Henk Wals
Date: April 23, 2006
Dutch
Monday night the play-offs kick off for ProBuild Lions, as the 7th seeded Nijmegen Wildcats visit Landsmeer for the first game in a best-of-three series. The Wildcats started the season with high hopes, having kept their core of talented Dutch players in tact and two Americans added to their roster. But the results were disappointing, leading to a coach-change in the month of December. The Lions met the Wildcats twice, routing them 86-49 in Landsmeer but having some more difficulties in Nijmegen, where the game was tied 47-47 after three periods. Only in the fourth period the Lions opened the throttle and came out victorious 53-75.
The second play-off game will take place Wednesday in Nijmegen. If a third game is needed, it will be in Landsmeer on Friday Night.
Monday's game starts at 8.30 PM CET.
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ProBuild Drops Last Game in Regular Competition, 97-91
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: April 17, 2006
| Scoreboard |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
OT |
T |
| Yellow Bike |
19 |
21 |
22 |
12 |
23 |
97 |
| Probuild Lions |
20 |
17 |
21 |
16 |
16 |
91 |
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ProBuild Lions wasted an almost perfect game from Kati Burrows, who scored 35 points on 12-out-of-16 shooting from the floor in a 97-91 loss to Yellow Bike Den Helder. Tanya Bröring scored 24 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and scored a crucial 3-pointer which sent the game to overtime. Amanda Davidson chipped in with 11 points.
The result did not affect the standings, as both ProBuild and Yellow Bike Den Helder secured their play-off positions. Center Sanne van Eerden did not play for the Lions because of showing flu-symptoms.
In overtime the Lions came up short, as Yellow Bike scored three 3-pointers in the first two minutes, taking a 85-76 lead. Kati Burrows scored 7 points to narrow the gap to 93-87, and Amanda Davidson hit two free throws to make it 93-89 with 22 seconds on the clock. When fouled, however, Yellow Bike's Cherie Lea and Daisy van de Berg did not falter from the free throw line. Amanda Davidson's last score was just for the record.
Coach Lakner said he thought his team still lacks some sharpness, but that he is confident for the upcoming play-offs. "We allowed them 40 points in the first half, which is a little to much. Offensively I'll have to say we did a good job, shooting 48% from the floor. Amanda had a bit of an off-day, judging by the numbers she put up the last two games, but I was really pleased to see Kati showing her full potential in this game. Obviously she's getting in game-shape now, and tonight she really was amazing."
After the first period the Lions led by one point, 19-20, but at the start of the second period Den Helder scored six consecutive points to make it 26-20. Kati Burrows and Tanya Bröring both scored 3-pointers to bring the lead back to the Lions, 30-31, but by halftime ProBuild looked at a 40-37 deficit.
In the third period Yellow Bike's Cherie Lead buried a 3-pointer to give her team the largest lead of the game, 58-50, but at the end of the quarter the Lions had cut the deficit to four points again, 62-58.
With 1.38 minutes to go and a 74-69 score in the regular game time Amanda Davidson was fouled, but uncharacteristically missed both free throws. However, next Tanya Bröring's running jumper (74-71) was followed by an air ball from Cherie Lea on the other and Bröring drilled a trey in the last seconds to send the game to overtime.
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ProBuild Lions Clinch Second Seed
Author: Henk Wals
Date: April 15, 2006
Dutch
Saturday ProBuid Lions clinched the second seed by staying home and doing nothing. In Barendrecht Yellow Bike Den Helder rolled to a 61-66 victory on Renes/Binnenland, which means Binnenland can't catch up with the Lions anymore. By clinching the second seed, the Lions secured home-court advantage throughout the first two rounds of the play-offs. In the first round ProBuild will meet Wildcats Nijmegen in a best-of-three series. If the Lions reach the semi finals, Renes/Binnenland or Lely Amsterdam will be their next opponent.
But first tomorrow the Lions travel to Den Helder to battle first seeded Yellow Bike in the last game of the regular season. Not much is at stake there, as both teams secured their play-off positions. But both teams will want the win, as if only because both coach Laki Lakner of ProBuild and coach Meindert van Veen of Yellow Bike are known to hate to loose.
The game starts at 2 PM CET.
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Lions Can't Contain Binnenland
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: April 12, 2006
| Scoreboard |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
OT |
T |
| Probuild Lions |
17 |
11 |
15 |
15 |
8 |
66 |
| Renes Binnenland |
11 |
12 |
18 |
17 |
14 |
72 |
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The Lions led by 10 points in the second period, but could not hold on the rest of the way in a 66-72 loss in overtime to the visiting team of Renes/Binnenland. The Lions wasted a 22-point effort by Amanda Davidson and a double-double from Kati Burrows, who had 11 points and 10 rebounds. But they got little help from their teammates: no other Lions managed to score double digits.
Coach Laki Lakner criticized the referees after the game, but his colleague Brian Benjamin said the Lions had to look to themselves first. "Let's face it: lately some sloppiness has crept into our game. We just were not sharp enough and simply made too many mistakes. Against the lower seeded teams we got away with that, but Binnenland is a smart team, which is obviously able to capitalize on the mistakes we make. If we want to get to the play-off finales, we obviously have to do better than this."
ProBuild led most of the game, finishing the first period with a 17-11 lead and holding a 28-23 advantage at halftime.
In the third period Binnenland closed the gap to two points, 43-41. In the 4th minute of the last quarter Amanda Davidson had a steal and a lay-up to make it 50-46, but Laura Kooij hit a trey for Binnenland to cut the deficit to one point, 50-49.
The game stayed close until the last minute, when Tree Jackson, who scored 24 points for Binnenland, hit two free throws to give her team a 56-58 edge, but Sanne van Eerden grabbed an offensive rebound and had a lay-up to tie the game and take it to overtime.
In overtime Tanya Bröring gave the Lions its last lead, 62-60, but Jackson had a basket and Kooij hit another 3-pointer to make it 62-65 with 2 minutes to go. Irene Sloof scored 62-67 for Binnenland, Sharon Bos had a driving lay-up for the Lions, but the Sloof hit a 3-pointer for a 64-70 edge. Amanda Davidson brought the Lions within four points with 28 seconds to go, but next missed a 3-pointer after Tanya Bröring stole the ball for the Lions. In the last seconds Laura Kooij secured the win for Binnenland from the free throw line, 66-72.
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ProBuild meets Renes/Binnenland in a Midweek Game
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: April 10, 2006
Dutch
Wednesday the ProBuild Lions host Renes/Binnenland for a midweek game, the second to last game of the regular competition. Renes/Binnenland is loaded with Dutch talent and has four or five members of the Dutch national team on their roster. ProBuild is 0-2 against Binnenland in the regular competition, but was victorious in the semi-finals of the first half competition tournament at the end of January. If the Lions win on Wednesday, they secure the second seed. If they loose, they have to win the last (away) game against first-seeded Yellow Bike Den Helder to stay in second place. If the Lions win both games, and Yellow Bike drops its game against Binnenland, the Lions ends in first seed, which gives a maximum home advantage during the play offs.
Game starts at 20.30 PM CET.
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Lions Complete Season Sweep of Perik Jumpers
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: April 1, 2006
| Scoreboard |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
T |
| Perik Jumpers |
19 |
22 |
18 |
21 |
80 |
| Probuild Lions |
20 |
27 |
19 |
26 |
92 |
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Amanda Davidson's family is visiting the Netherlands and watched their relative score a season-high 32 points as the Lions cruised to a 80-92 win on Perik Jumpers. Davidson shot 12-out-of-17 from the floor and grabbed 6 rebounds.
Rookie-center Sanne van Eerden scored 14 points and Belinda Bos added 13.
It was the Lions' fourth victory on the Jumpers this season.
Sharon Bos was sidelined with a sprained thigh muscle, while Kati Burrows (lightly sprained ankle) and Gerda Heinen (lightly sprained calf muscle) played through their injuries.
Luckily two young players stood up to fill the voids. Gerda Heinen's younger sister Bettine and Sanne van Eerden both played well, as coach Brian Benjamin stated after the game. "With Sharon [Bos] out and Gerda [Heinen] and Kati [Burrows] hampered by injuries, it is comforting to see two young players stand up and take over the game. Amanda [Davidson] of course was great, and Belinda [Bos] also did a good job, but they got a lot of help from Bettine [Heinen] and Sanne [van Eerden]. Defensively we could have played better, allowing 80 points is not quite up to our standard, but offensively we played a good game, shooting 50% from the floor. We also did a good job rebounding."
Bettine Heinen scored 9 points and collected 7 rebounds.
ProBuild led by six points at halftime, coming of a one-point-lead after the first period.
At the end of the third period the lead was increased by one point, 59-66.
Amanda Davidson scored 14 points in the last period to secure the victory. With five minutes on the clock she scored a 3-pointer to make it 65-73, hit two free throws after Perik Jumpers'coach Eelco received a technical and buried another trey to give the Lions a 13-point lead, 78-65.
The Jumpers did not recover from that blow and the Lions cruised to a 80-92 victory.
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Perik Jumpers, Again
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: March 30
Dutch
Saturday the Lions travel to Tubbergen in the East if the Netherlands, to battle Perik Jumpers once again. After last weeks encounter in the Dutch Cup Competition, this time the two teams meet for the third time in the regular competition. The Lions are 3-0 against the jumpers this season. Nevertheless coach Laki Lakner warned his team not to underestimate the Jumpers, who lost only two games on their home court, once against the Lions and once against first seeded Yellow Bike. The Lions will play without forward Sharon Bos, who is suffering from a muscle strain in her thigh.
Game starts 8:00 PM CET.
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ProBuild Waives Center Susan Peters
Author: Henk Wals
Date: March 27
Dutch
The ProBuild Lions management had decide to waive center Susan Peters. She will be replaced by 6.2 center Sanne van Eerden, who already made her first minutes in the Dutch Cup Final.
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Dutch television
Author: Tine Sierink
Date: March 27
Dutch
Sunday there was a short item on Dutch television with a report of the Cupfinal Perik-Probuild. You can look at it here. Text is in Dutch.
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Lions Win Dutch Cup
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: March 25, 2006
| Scoreboard |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
T |
| Perik Jumpers |
14 |
12 |
11 |
11 |
49 |
| Probuild Lions |
12 |
15 |
21 |
15 |
62 |
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The ProBuild Lions won their second big prize of the season. Amanda Davidson scored 15 points, Tanya Bröring had 14 and Sharon Bos had a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Lions to a 62-49 victory on Perik Jumpers in the Dutch Cup Final. Kati Burrows contributed 8 points and 11 rebounds.
Coaches Laki Lakner and Brian Benjamin celebrated the victory. "I love it when a plan comes together", Benjamin said jokingly. "But it is true. Last summer we set our goals and made our schemes, and everything is going according to plan until now."
Laki Lakner said he was proud of his team. "Our ladies are determined to win. Even if they don't play well, like tonight, they fight as hard as they can. That's what I like about this team. Tonight we struggled on offence, especially the first half. At half time we had hit 9-out-of-19 free throws."
Lakner said he credited Perik Jumpers for giving the Lions a hard time. "They're a talented team and they can walk of the court with their heads up. They put up a fight."
Sharon Bos scored 6 points in the opening quarter and Amanda Davidson added four as the Lions crept to a 14-12 lead at the end of the period. In the second quarter Amanda Davidson made a lay-up and Gerda Heinen had a score to make it 23-19, but Sefanja Orsel and Annemieke van der Goot both svored for Perik to even te score, 23-23. At halftime the Lions trailed by one point, 26-27.
The game stayed close until the end of the third quarter, when Amanda Davidson nailed a 3-pointer
to give the Lions a 45-37 lead. Sefanja Orsel hit a free-throw for the Jumpers, but Gerda Heinen had a driving lay-up to widen the gap to 9 points at the end of the period, 47-38.
At the beginning of the fourth period, however, Perik Jumpers scored 6 consecutive points to narrow the gap to cut their deficit to three points again, 47-44. But next Amanda Davidson made two free throws and hit a short jumper from the baseline, 51-44. Next Tanya Bröring had a driving lay-up to push the advantage to 53-44 with four minutes to go in the quarter.
With star-forward Melissa Pater sidelined with five fouls Perik Jumpers was not able to ignite another burst, allowing the Lions to cruise to a 62-49 win.
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Coach Laki Lakner has Confidence in his Team
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: March 23, 2006
Dutch
How does coach Laki Lakner prepare his team for the Cup Final? "Thoroughly as always", he says. "I'm a perfectionist, I don't want to leave anything to chance. We played two games against Perik Jumpers, with the coaching staff we watched a whole pile of DVD's of games they played, we analyzed their plays and players over and over again, so we know all their strengths and weaknesses."
Lakner said he has faith in his team, especially in its ability to play solid defense. "That's our strong point. To be honest, lately we haven't played our best games defensively, but I have no doubt we will be sharp, Saturday, when it really counts. On Perik Jumpers' website I read coach Eelco velthof said he and his team don't feel any pressure because they're not the favorite to win, but personally I think pressure is not bad and even necessary. Great athletic achievements are often made under pressure. Saturday we have a big game, so naturally we feel pressure, and that's a good thing, because I'm sure we can handle it and turn it into something positive."
"We have the best record, and we beat Perik Jumpers twice this season, so obviously we're the favorite to win the Cup. But they're a good offensive team and we definitely do not underestimate them. We take this game very seriously."
"Last year I coached Lely in the Finals against the Jumpers and we lost by one point at their home court. I was really upset then, and I don't want to go through that again. So, I do everything to make sure that we win this game."
"We leave on Friday and take a hotel in Rotterdam. We'll eat something and then watch the tape of our last game against Perik. Saturday morning we'll practice on the court we're going to play on, in the afternoon we'll rest and then we're ready to kick some ass out there…"
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Cup Final
Author: Henk Wals
Date: March 22, 2006
Dutch
Satuday night ProBuild Lions meet Perik Jumpers for the Finals of the Dutch Cup Competition in Rotterdam. Both teams have lots of experience in battling in the Finals. The Jumpers are in the Finals for the 4th time in five years and the Lions for the 5th time in six years, although both teams met only once, in 2001, when Perik won by 59-57. In 2003 and 2005 the Jumpers won the Finals again. ProBuild, on the other hand, until now never succeeded in winning the Finals. But that's all going to change Saturday, won't it?
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Davidson Sparks Lions to Win over Amazone
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: March 18, 2006
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Amanda Davidson scored a season-high 28 points to lead the Lions to a 82-70 victory on AutoCAD Amazone. With this win the Lions are 4-0 against Amazone this season.
Davidson sank four 3-pointers and scored 10 points in the pivotal fourth quarter. Kati Burrows also had a good game, with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Sharon Bos contributed 15 points and 7 rebounds and Gerda Heinen chipped in with 11 points.
Coach Laki Lakner said he thought his team played a good game offensively, scoring 82 points and hitting 47% from the field. "But defensively we are struggling the last four or five games," he said. "We allowed 70 points, which was really not necessary. We certainly have to work on that the coming week, with the Cup Final coming up." Lakner said he thought Davidson and Burrows both played well.
The Lions looked at a 12-14 deficit at the end of the first period, but led 32-26 at halftime.
In the third period Sharon Bos hit a jumper to score 43-36, but a 3-pointer by Shannon Mathews sparked a 0-7 Amazone-run to even the score, 43-43. The game stayed close until the end of the third quarter, when the Lions led by one point, 51-50.
In the second minute of the fourth quarter Kati Burrows scored and hit a bonus to give the Lions a 58-52 lead. Jinga Gosschalk hit a free throw for Amazone, but next Tanya Broring scored and Amanda Davidson stole the ball and ran the court for a lay-up, 62-53. Davidson secured the lead by hitting her third and fourth 3-pointer, scoring ten points in the quarter.
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AutoCAD Amazone
Author: Henk Wals
Date: March 16, 2006
Dutch
Saturday the regular competition enters its second stage: the five top seeded teams will meet each other one more time before the play-offs starts (the "Elite-A"). The same goes for the five last-seeded teams, who will fight for three play-off spots (the "Elite-B"). For ProBuild's schedule, see programma.
Saturday AutoCAD Amazone (5th seed) visits Landsmeer. Amazone and ProBuild met three times this season, twice in the regular competition and once in the Dutch Cup Competition. In all cases the Lions won. Which is according to coach Laki Lakner no reason to get overconfident, because Amazone's "big three", Shannon Mathews, Tywanna Imnon and Jinga Gosschalk have shown to be able to combine for some stunning performances.
Game starts at 4 pm CET.
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Lions Win Catfight, 53-75
Author: Henk Wals
Picture: Tine Sierink
Date: March 12, 2006
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ProBuild Lions needed just one good period to beat the Nijmegen Wildcats. The Lions struggled for three quarters, but got their game finally going in the last. After three periods the game was tied 47-47, but in the fourth the Lions had a 6-28 run. In the last period four players from Wildscats were sidelined with five fouls.
Coach Laki Lakner said he expected his team to win the game against the 9th seeded Wildcats, but that he would have liked to have some more effort from the beginning. "Obviously we underestimated them, starting the game not sharp, playing sloppy defense and shooting 8-31 from the field in the first half. In the fourth period they got tired and they came into foul trouble and we capitalized on that, which was good, but our spurt was a little late in my view."
At the break the Lions trailed 32-28.
Amanda Davidson started the third period with a feed on Kati Burrows, next blocked a shot at the other side of the court, and another one, allowing Gerda Heinen to run the court and have a lay-up. On the next possession Davidson had a basket herself to give the Lions the first lead since the beginning of the game, 32-34. But the next eight minutes the Lions did not score a field goal.
In the fourth period Belinda Bos sparked a 2-26 Lions-run with a 3-pointer and a score, 49-54, and Amanda Davidson followed up with her third 3-pointer, 49-57.
Amanda Davidson scored 17 points and hit 3-of-3 3-pointers. She also had two blocked shots. Tanya Broring had 16 points and Sharon Bos added 12 points and 11 rebounds. Kati Burrows had 7 points and 6 rebounds in 17 minutes of playing time.
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