Basketball On The Internet.

TOWNSVILLE Crocodiles coach Shawn Dennis was one of the happiest "new" faces in the NBL when he heard the emphasis was going to shift to entertainment this year.

For "entertainment" substitute the word "skill" if you prefer because it may actually more accurately reflect what NBL Pty Ltd is going for this season and beyond.

About 10 days ago Dennis was looking for the right player to add to his rotation to fill in the gap while Peter Crawford recovered from injury and/or as insurance for Mirko Djeric.

The London Olympian's rehab from surgery to remove ankle bone spurs has been slightly slower than anticipated and with an initial question-mark also over Djeric - now pretty much resolved - Dennis was trialling several players for the 11th man role.

Brisbane Spartans guard Scott Kenny earned his trial with the Crocs - and two preseason games with the Cairns Taipans - after a breakthrough SEABL season where he topped the league in made three-pointers (41.7 per cent) and averaged 21.4 points per game.

Dennis had been impressed with Kenny but had a genuine concern.

"Kenny can shoot the ball but the biggest issue for him is he's slightly built," Dennis said.

That would have told against him in the rough-and-tumble world of the NBL, circa 1993-2013, because of the overtly physical nature of the way the game was being played and officiated.

When news broke Mal Cooper was now officially General Manager of NBL officials, with Ray Hunt and Bill Mildenhall alongside for good measure, it was clear the league wasn't kidding about its "entertainment" policy.

Just to be clear, there are no rule changes, just rule enforcement.

This is how the new policy went last week in Cairns, as reported today at News Limited sites: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/basketball/taipans8217-aaron-fearne-and-hawks8217-gordon-mcleod-first-nbl-coaches-hit-with-8216back-to-future8217-officiating/story-fnii09gt-1226716348765

Earlier tonight in Christchurch, the Melbourne Tigers beat New Zealand Breakers 83-80 in a preseason game where the adjustment appears to have been quite quick.

They meet again in Wellington on Thursday in a Blitz match where winning each quarter will be important too.

But for Dennis, the news has been a godsend because it meant he comfortably could sign Kenny, his misgivings no longer relevant.

Remember, Dennis was assisting at Perth Wildcats last season and saw first-hand the heavy treatment meted out on a weekly basis to shooting guard Kevin Lisch.

Not that the Wildcats were innocents, mind you, but if Lisch hadn't been as powerfully built, he never could have coped with such extremes of physical attention. 

That is no longer an issue for Scott Kenny. Or Shawn Dennis.

"He can flat out shoot and is a very good athlete. He will suit our style of play," Dennis said of the 24-year-old.

Skilled players are on the way back.

IN LJUBLJANA yesterday, Ukraine and Latvia advanced to the second round of the European Championship in Slovenia.

The Ukrainians beat Britain 87-68. Latvia, with 15 points from Kristaps Janicenoks, defeated Macedonia 76-66, eliminating the 2011 semi-finalists.

On the final day of group play, defending champion Spain won its fourth in five by beating Georgia 83-59 to reach the second round, Ricky Rubio leading the Spaniards with 16 points.

Finland beat Greece 86-77 in a match between two already qualified teams. Petteri Koponen scored 29 for Finland, while Nikos Zisis had 19 for Greece.

Italy will finish on top of Group D, with Finland second and Greece third.

Ukraine dominated from the start for their fourth win from five games.

"They (Britain) had a chance to advance depending on what happened but we also wanted to advance, and it was important to our players to advance by winning,'' Ukraine coach Mike Fratello said.

(Yes, THAT Mike Fratello.)

"Now we'll move on and try to keep going.''

Spain trailed by one with just over three minutes left in the second quarter when Rudy Fernandez made a three-point play to put his team ahead by two. Spain then went on a 15-2 run to put the game away.

Latvia outscored Macedonia 27-16 in the first quarter after starting the game with a 12-0 run.

"The plan was to be real aggressive, play aggressive defence. Because of that, we got so many fast breaks,'' Latvia's point guard Dairis Bertans said.

"We haven't been (to the second round) for so many years and we had a really tough group this year.''

Lithuania advanced to the second round despite losing 78-72 to Bosnia-Herzegovina, while Germany knocked out Israel.

Bosnia needed to win by 10 to squeeze out Lithuania and led 72-58 after Mirza Teletovic knocked down a three-pointer with 5:22 left.

Teletovic finished with 31 points but Lithuania cut the deficit and went through.

Croatia advanced by beating the Czech Republic 70-53.

JUST in case you are interested, in the Tigers-Breakers NBL match tonight in Christchurch, the boxscore highlights were:

Melbourne 83 (Dennis 21, Morrison, Tomlinson 14; Tomlinson 6 assists, Macmillan 10 rebounds; Dennis 3 steals) d New Zealand 80 (Johnson 18, Corletto 17, Vukona 12, Abercrombie 10; Bruton 4 assists; Vukona 12 rebounds; Vukona 2 steals). Qtr by qtr: 24-25, 14-18, 20-15, 25-22.