Jetlag plagued the New Zealand men's basketballers as they faded in the final quarter against Estonia -- but there were promising signs from the new-look Tall Blacks nonetheless.
Estonia rallied back from 2 points down to score the final 11 points, winning 58-49 today in the capital Tallinn.
The tourists touched down less than 48 hours before the game, following a draining 35-hour journey from New Zealand.
But Tall Blacks coach Nenad Vucinic's discounting the jetlag factor -- and he maintains the game was valuable as a first hit-out for the young team despite the loss, which came on the back of a poor final quarter.
There were three debutants including Junior Tall Black Rob Loe, the promising 17-year-old giant who starred at the recent FIBA under-20 world championships in Auckland, and Vucinic says Loe played well in his first senior international.
The Tall Blacks play Estonia again tomorrow morning in their second of eight European tour games in 12 days.
