Peter Crawford
July 23, 2020
Graeme Anstey
- Nationality: AUS
- Date of Birth: 28/10/76
- Place of Birth: Melbourne (VIC)
- Position: CTR
- Height (CM): 210
- Weight (KG): 82
- Junior Assoc: VIC - Melbourne
- College: San Jose State (1996–1997) / North Texas (1998–1999)
- NBL DEBUT: 23/10/02
- AGE AT DEBUT: 26
- LAST NBL GAME: 26/03/03
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 26
- NBL History: Townsville 2003
- Championships: 0
- None
BIO: Graeme Anstey was born in Melbourne (VIC) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Melbourne basketball program.
FAMILY: Graeme’s brother, Chris Anstey also played 373 games in the NBL.
NBL EXPERIENCE
Graeme Anstey made his NBL debut with the Townsville Crocodiles at 26 years of age. He scored four points in his first game.
Townsville entered the 2002/03 season with Brad Davidson, Shawn Harvey, Ray Owes and Chris Novak exiting the team after the Crocodiles had missed the playoffs the previous year.
Robert Rose, Pat Reidy, Andrew Goodwin, Mike Kelly, Peter Crawford, Andrew Rice, Andrew Murdock, Graeme Dann and Kelvin Robertson returned from the previous season’s group, while Ian Stacker added Adonis Jordan and Graeme Anstey.
The Crocodiles opened the season with road losses to Canberra 88-94 and Wollongong 104-116 before falling to Sydney 88-96 in their home opener. Townsville’s season began slowly, and Jordan (18.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4 assists across 4 games) was released four games into the season as a result.
Wayne Turner (19.3 points, 7 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 2 steals) replaced Jordan and became one of the league’s best all-round imports, earning All-NBL Third Team honours and sharing Townsville’s club MVP award with Reidy.
Reidy (19.6 points, 8 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.1 steals) led Townsville in scoring and was selected to the All-NBL Second Team.
Anstey (1.9 points and 1.7 rebounds across 15 games) saw limited playing time in his only season with Townsville during a year where the club surged back into the playoffs.
Other key contributors this season included Rose (16.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.4 steals), Goodwin (12.7 points and 6.8 rebounds), Kelly (12.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.2 steals), Crawford (10.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.5 assists) and Rice (9.8 points and 4.8 rebounds).
After the poor start, the unshaven Crocodiles pledged not to pick up a razor until they had won five games in a row. They were 2-0 into the pledge after beating Sydney 94-92 on the road, then kept growing the beards as the wins continued.
That fifth straight win came in Adelaide, where Townsville trailed the 36ers by 18 points with 2 minutes and 50 seconds left before stealing a 114-112 victory behind the closing group of Turner, Crawford, Shane Froling, Rose and Rice.
The pledge became the turning point of the season, with Townsville stretching the run from five wins into a league-equalling 16-game winning streak that lifted the Crocodiles from the bottom half of the ladder into the top three.
The Crocodiles closed the regular season with a 106-104 home win over Melbourne, extending their winning streak to 16 games and finishing third (19-11). Townsville finished with a 12-3 record at home and 7-8 on the road, while Stacker was named NBL Coach of the Year.
The qualifying finals opened in Wollongong, where the Hawks defeated Townsville 97-87 in front of 4,391 fans to take the first game of the series.
Game two moved to Townsville, where the Crocodiles fell short again in a 101-102 loss to Wollongong in front of 5,257 fans, but under the NBL playoff system Townsville received a second chance and advanced to the semifinals.
The semifinals opened at the Townsville Entertainment Centre, where Sydney defeated the Crocodiles 124-107 after trailing by three at half-time, with Chris Williams (26 points), Matthew Nielsen (25 points) and Kavossy Franklin (25 points) leading the Kings, while Reidy (29 points) was Townsville’s best.
Game two moved to Sydney, where Townsville produced one of its best playoff wins of the season, defeating the Kings 113-91 in front of 7,284 fans and forcing a deciding game three.
The series stayed in Sydney, where the Kings defeated Townsville 114-99 in front of 6,025 fans before going on to win the 2003 NBL championship.
Graeme Anstey played one season in the NBL. He averaged 1.8 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 0.1 assists in 15 NBL games.
NBL TOTAL STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-03 | 26 | Townsville | 19-11 (3) | 15 | 87 | 28 | 25 | 2 | 8 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 12 | 28 | 43% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 4 | 6 | 67% | 45% | 43% | 8 | Totals | 15 | 87 | 28 | 25 | 2 | 8 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 12 | 28 | 42.9% | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 4 | 6 | 66.7% | 46% | 43% | 8 |
NBL PER GAME STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-03 | 26 | Townsville | 19-11 (3) | 15 | 5.8 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 43% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 0.3 | 0.4 | 67% | 45% | 43% | 8 | Total | 15 | 5.8 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 42.9% | 0.0 | 0.0% | 66.7% | 46% | 43% | 8 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
|---|
STATE LEAGUE EXPERIENCE
- Broadmeadows (1996), Werribee (2006), Waverley (2007), Perry Lakes (2010)
Anstey joined Broadmeadows for the 1996 season before his college years at San Jose State and North Texas.
Anstey joined the Werribee Devils for the 2006 Big V State Championship Men season, with Werribee finishing 7th on the ladder with a 6–12 record.
Anstey joined the Waverley Falcons for the 2007 Big V State Championship Men season, and Waverley finished 2nd with a 14–4 record.
Anstey joined the Perry Lakes Hawks for the 2010 SBL season, and Perry Lakes finished 6th with a 15–11 record before being eliminated in the quarter-finals.
COLLEGE
Anstey played college basketball at San Jose State during the 1996-97 season before transferring to North Texas, where he later competed in 1998-99 after sitting out the 1997-98 season as a transfer.
Anstey suited up for San Jose State in 1996-97, a season the Spartans finished 13-14 overall and 5-11 in Western Athletic Conference play under head coach Stan Morrison, and he was used as a reserve center while the program placed sixth in the WAC’s Pacific Division standings.
In that 1996-97 season, Anstey appeared in 10 games and made two starts, totaling 20 points (2.0 points per game) while shooting 9-for-23 from the field (39.1%), going 0-for-0 on three-pointers, and making 2-of-4 free throws (50.0%).
Across those 10 games at San Jose State, he recorded 22 total rebounds (2.2 per game), split evenly with 11 offensive rebounds and 11 defensive rebounds, and he also finished with 0 assists, 8 steals, 0 blocks, 10 turnovers, and 15 personal fouls while logging 129 total minutes (12.9 minutes per game).
After leaving San Jose State, Anstey’s transfer process included a 1997-98 season in which he did not play, before he entered the rotation at North Texas in 1998-99 and was listed as a Melbourne, Australia native on opponent scouting materials during that season.
In 1998-99, Anstey played for a North Texas team that went 4-22 overall and 4-12 in Big West Conference play under head coach Vic Trilli, and he appeared in 12 games as the Mean Green navigated a difficult season in the league’s East Division race.
During that 1998-99 season at North Texas, Anstey averaged 3.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 0.1 assists per game, and his year also included time missed due to a pelvic-bone inflammation issue that sidelined him during the season.
Across his NCAA Division I career, Anstey played in 22 total games between San Jose State and North Texas, including four total starts, and he completed his collegiate career prior to 2002 after concluding his final season at North Texas in 1998-99.
Related
HAVE MORE INFORMATION ON THIS PLAYER?
Whilst we try to source as much information as we can for every player who has ever played in the NBL some information on a player profile may be missing. If you have additional information on a player you'd like us to add to a profile, please send it to us using the enquiry form below.
Submissions are then sent to info@aussiehoopla.com