'Sir Reg' still owns forgotten 40-minute scoring record

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The late “Sir Reg” Reginald Biddings is a victim of recency bias.

Biddings, who passed away in 2017 aged 59, still holds the record for the highest scoring 40-minute game in NBL history with 63 points for Forrestville against Bankstown in 1981.

Six-time MVP Bryce Cotton’s 59 points for the Perth Wildcats against the New Zealand Breakers in December 2024 are always celebrated as the most points in the 40-minute era but rarely with the caveat *second* 40-minute era.

NBL history buffs know, but the new generation of NBL fans can easily be forgiven for not recognising “Sir Reg”.

As part of basketball.com.au’s Every NBL Player Ever archive, Billings and former West Adelaide Bearcats and Adelaide 36ers scoring machine Al Green are the focal point of the highest scoring individual games in league history.

Green, now 72, holds the all-time record with 71 for the Bearcats against Frankston in 1984, the first year of the 48-minute era.

Legendary Australian basketball journalist Boti Nagy tells a beautiful story about Biddings lobbying for more column inches in the newspaper after he arrived in Adelaide in the early 80s.

Nagy writes: “(Biddings) came into the offices of The News newspaper one morning and asked to see me.

“Hey man, who is this Gee-Off guy always writing about Al Green?

“It took me a minute to work out he had only previously seen the name Jeff written that way. So when he saw “Geoff”, it became Gee-Off to him.

“He meant Geoff Roach, The News’ Sports Editor at that time, who wrote a weekly sports wrap and rarely failed to mention Green’s burgeoning exploits.

“Come on, man. What have I gotta do to get some ink around here?

“His 40-minute record 63-point game was just a few weeks off. It has sat in the record books since 1981 as the most in a 40-minute game and sits second as the most in any game, 40 or 48 minutes!

“I just got the hot hand, and when you get the hot hand, man …”

Most Points in a Game – Individual (all time)

1. 71 Al Green (West Adelaide) vs Frankston 25/05/84 (48-minute game era)
2. 63 Reg Biddings (Forestville) vs Bankstown 12/04/81 (first 40-minute game era)
3. 61 Shane Heal (Brisbane) vs Townsville 23/09/94
4. 60 Al Green (West Adelaide) vs Sydney 05/05/84
5. 60 Andrew Gaze (Melbourne) vs Newcastle 11/07/87
6. 59 Al Green (West Adelaide) vs Coburg 19/05/84
7. 59 Andrew Gaze (Melbourne) vs Illawarra 27/07/91
8. 59 Bryce Cotton (Perth) vs New Zealand 1/12/24 (second 40-minute game era)
9. 58 Andrew Gaze (Melbourne) vs Newcastle 20/09/86
10. 57 James Crawford (Perth) vs Melbourne 06/09/87

Most Points in a Game – Individual (since 2009)

1. 59 Bryce Cotton (Perth) vs New Zealand 1/12/24
2. 53 Bryce Cotton (Adelaide) vs Cairns 19/10/25
3. 51 James Batemon (Brisbane) vs Perth 16/11/24
4. 50 Chris Goulding (Melbourne) vs Sydney 9/3/14
5. 49 Kirk Penney (New Zealand) vs Adelaide 21/1/10
6. 49 Bryce Cotton (Perth) vs Adelaide 8/12/24
7. 49 Bryce Cotton (Perth) vs Adelaide 7/2/25
8. 47 Jack McVeigh (Cairns) vs New Zealand 19/12/25
9. 46 Mitch Creek (South East Melbourne) vs Sydney 18/12/22
10. 46 Chris Goulding (Melbourne) vs Perth 9/11/24

The NBL has three statistical eras.

Era 1: Original 40-minute era (1979-1983)

• 40-minute games
• Two 20-minute halves
• No three-point line until 1983
• Fewer teams
• Fewer games

Era 2: 48-minute era (1984 to 2008-09)

• 48-minute games
• Four 12-minute quarters
• More possessions
• More scoring opportunities
• Most offensive records set here.

This is where:

• Al Green scored 71
• Andrew Gaze averaged 44.1ppg
• League scoring peaked
• FG% peaked
• Assists peaked

Many of the "all-time" volume records are here because teams had 20% more game time than in the 40-minute eras.

Era 3: Second 40-minute era (2009-10 onwards)

• Four 10-minute quarters
• FIBA rules
• Analytics influence
• Three-point heavy offences