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FIBA issues 13 suspensions from Australia-Philippines brawl

19th July, 2018
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It'll be Australia taking on Kazakhstan in their next World Cup qualifier.(Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
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19th July, 2018
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FIBA has issued a whopping 13 suspensions from the infamous ‘basketbrawl’ between Australian and the Philippines in their recent World Cup qualifier.

Ten Philippines players, two Philippines coaches, and three Australian players were all suspended for their role in the fight that caught the attention of sporting news outlets around the world.

Controversially, Chris Goulding was issued a one-game ban for ‘unsportsmanlike conduct’, despite his role in the brawl appearing to be little more than getting piled on by several Filippino players.

Daniel Kickert, whose elbow to the head of an opponent arguably started the brawl, received a five-game suspension for his involvement, while Thon Maker was handed a three-game ban for ‘unsportsmanlike conduct’ his flying karate kicks around the court.

The suspensions apply to international matches only, meaning neither the NBA nor NBL are affected by the ruling.

Basketball Australia were also fined roughly $135,000, which was partly due to ‘abuse and/or tampering of equipment’ – in line with Philippine allegations that the Boomers had ripped up sponsors markings during their warm-up.

However, the report found no Australian players or officials had made racist comments throughout the match.

Kickert’s five-game suspension was the second-longest of any of the bans handed out. Only Calvin Abueva received a longer penalty, with his six-game suspension only that length because of his poor prior record.

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Roger Pogoy, Carl Cruz, Jio Jalalan (five games each), Terrence Romeo, Jayson Castro William, Andray Blatche (three), Japeth Aguilar and Matthew Wright (one) were all rubbed out by basketball’s governing body, while assistant coach Joseph Uichico (three matches) and head coach Vincent “Chot” Reyes (one) were also banned.

The national Filippino basketball federation was fined $337,000, while their next FIBA World Cup qualifier will be played in front of no fans or television cameras.

Only one Filippino player, Gabe Norwood, escaped suspension.

In addition to the team penalties, the match referees have also been stood down for their failure to control the match and are ineligible to officiate international matches for one year.

Basketball Australia CEO Andrew Moore said they “regretted their involvement” in the incident and thanked Australian basketball fans for their understanding. He called the findings “comprehensive” said the penalties were “significant” on both teams.

Calling the accusations of racist comments “absolutely baseless”, Moore thanked FIBA for the “thoroughness” of the process they undertook and deemed it “unlikely” they would challenge Goulding’s ban, although admitted it was “tough to swallow” that he could be suspended despite being under such a large pile-up.

Moore also admitted it “wasn’t the smartest decision in the world” for Australian players to rip up sponsor decals during their warm-up, seemingly hinting they wouldn’t contest the $135,000 fine.

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However, he did note that FIBA’s findings claimed Australia didn’t do enough to restrain their players in the brawl, which he seemed visibly unhappy with, only saying that the incident happened very quickly and that they’d “peel away the layers” in their own review.

When asked for his opinion on the appropriateness of the Filipino penalties, Moore said it wasn’t his job to comment their sanctions, but noted that their next match would be played behind closed doors, with no crowd or television coverage, which he called a “double penalty”.

He said it was arguably the highest possible penalty short of banning them from qualification.

NBL chief executive Jeremy Loeliger reiterated that the suspension would not apply to the domestic competition, and thanked FIBA for its comprehensive investigation.

“While it was certainly a regrettable incident it was by no means a reflection of Australian basketball,” he added.

Australia had already built a substantial 31-point lead when the incident broke out in the third quarter.

While the match was not abandoned – despite so many Filippino players being ejected they couldn’t even field a side – the home team eventually fouled themselves out of the game to force an early finish.

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