LACEY LOWDOWN

My spies tell me that the Girls Premier Grade make up game from round one between Mt Albert Grammar and Westlake on Monday night was a high quality encounter.

Played at MAGS the first half was extremely tight with the first quarter tied 20 points apiece and the hosts just shading the half 35-34.

Jada Manase, 12 points in the half, and Jordyn Maddix exchanged a pair of threes in that opening half with a late trey from Riana Rangi-Brown keeping MAGS in front. Guard Emme Shearer was prominent for the visitors with a dozen points at the break.

Opposing forwards Sophie Dil and Sharne Pupuke-Robati profited in the paint early in the third but with a couple of late buckets from Trinity Peau MAGS edged to a narrow 55-50 three-quarter time lead.

Shearer scored eight final quarter points for Lake but Peau matched that, Rangi-Brown added six and Monica Kelly iced a MAGS win with a late triple.

MAGS are now 3-0 and join Massey High and Auckland Girls Grammar at the top of the table. The MAGS v Massey match up on Friday should be a good one with both teams in good form. Also on Friday Westlake will host Orewa.

Score: MAGS 75 – Peau 21, Rangi-Brown 16, Manase 8, Pupuke-Robati 12

Westlake 61 – Shearer 22, Davidson 9, Maddix 8, S Dil 8

Premier Standings

3-0 AGGS, Massey, MAGS

2-1 Rangitoto,

1-2 Westlake

0-3 Carmel, Avondale, Orewa

We are only three weeks into the Auckland Secondary Schools Basketball season but already the newly formed Senior A competition is proving a hit.

My only beef, and it’s a minor one, would be the name of the competition. If the top eight teams in Auckland are playing in the Premier grade let’s have the next best eight playing in the Premier B Division, therefore creating A and B Premier divisions and providing more clarity to the structure of the Auckland High School basketball scene.

The Boys competition in particular is throwing up a large number of close games and encouragingly, very few blow-outs.

In week one the teams were feeling their way and there were some one sided encounters but in week two St Peter’s College, Avondale College, Manurewa High and Massey High all recorded victories but the margin was 6 points or less in three of those games.

Moving on to last Friday and the heaviest defeat was suffered by Liston College going down by 20 points to Northcote College although Liston only trailed by three points at half-time.

St Peter’s had to fight for the win against Manurewa eventually winning by 14 with Avondale only just squeezing past Pakuranga College (80-74) and there was an even tighter win for Western Springs College getting past Massey (84-80).

Manurewa dug themselves a hole in the first quarter at St Peter’s giving up 33 points to trail by 17 despite 10 points from Dominic Wallace.

It was raining threes on Manurewa as the hosts converted seven in the period via Christian Fromont, Luke Buckingham and Gerard Boersen.

Manurewa had much the better of the second quarter as Pafe Momoise went to work reducing St Peter’s lead to 41-31 at the break.

Fromont was back in the groove in the third draining another trio of triples (he hit seven in the game) but 6 points apiece from Wallace and Momoise kept the margin at ten points (62-52) at the three-quarter mark.

The same two suspects shared 19 points in the fourth but Boersen, Finlay Morris and Whititera Parata ensured it would be a third straight win for St Peter’s.

Score: St Peter’s 89 – Fromont 25, Morris 21, Boersen 14. Manurewa 75 – Momoise 31, Wallace 29, Alan Alani 9

Photo courtesy of Kelly Vivian at Spinnerchild Photography

Also digging themselves a first quarter hole was Liston College. Like Manurewa they conceded over 30 points in the opening quarter trailing 35-19 to Northcote College.

Miggy Falqueza and Jack Burton were the main beneficiaries of some suspect Liston defence logging 24 points between them in just 10 minutes.

Both would go on to record 30 point games as would Liston’s Dru Leusogi-Ape and he scored 11 second quarter points to drag his team back into the contest – down just three points, 47-44, at half-time.

The third quarter was a scoring frenzy with 66 points amassed in the period. Unfortunately Liston couldn’t maintain the momentum built up at the back end of the first half and they gave up 38 more points as Oliver Hayward and Dylan Courtney supported the good work of Falqueza and Burton.

Daysh Takimoana and Lev Prokefyev each scored 8 second half points for Liston but Northcote were untroubled in the closing stages as they logged a first win.

Score: Northcote 111 – Falqueza 36p/12r, Burton 35, Hayward 13p/16r, Courtney 12 Liston 91 – Leusogi-Ape 30, Prokefyev 13, Takimoana `12, Saxon 9

Senior A Standings

3-0 St Peter’s

2-1 Avondale, Manurewa, Western Springs

1-2 Northcote, Pakuranga, Massey

0-3 Liston

Keeley Tini contests a rebound

After finishing in the bottom two last season Massey High were forced to play through the qualifying tournament to retain a spot in the Auckland Secondary Schools Girls Premier grade for 2017.

Under new coach Aaron Leslie the team have made a fine start to the season and they were quickly into their work opening up a 19-13 first quarter lead at Rangitoto College on Friday.

Bella Elgar made 5 quick points as Rangitoto made a better start to the second quarter closing to within a point before a Shauna Povey And1 and threes from Alyesha Schuster and Terina Aratangi increased the buffer.

A high paced quarter ended with Ella Moore landing her second triple of the opening half to keep Rangi within striking distance, trailing 38-33 at the break.

Consecutive baskets from Kataleena Leslie were countered by Bella Elgar and Kaitlin Burgess – another Burgess basket tied the scores at 45 apiece with coach Leslie needing a timeout.

The hot hands of Moore and Burgess kept Massey at bay, but only just, 53-51 to the hosts at three-quarter time.

The scoring dried up for both teams in the early stages of the fourth but baskets from Elgar and Moore kept Rangi in the lead, 61-58, with less than three minutes to play. Sylvia Wieczorek banked a bucket and from there Massey, and Povey in particular, took charge.

The shooting guard scored 12 points, including an arching three, down the stretch to seal a third straight win for her team.

Score Rangitoto 65 – Burgess 19, Elgar 14, Moore 12, Spooner 10. Massey 69 – Povey 31, Aratangi 17, Wieczorek 11, Leslie 6

A couple of 30 points hauls from Tayla Dalton and Keeley Tini were the features of the Carmel College v Westlake Girls match up.

Jordyn Maddix and Tini shared 14 points in the opening quarter as Westlake made a strong start in the opening quarter of the local derby.

Courtesy of Dalton and Emily Broomfield, plus a late three from defensive linchpin Izzy Cattermole, Carmel were giving their more fancied rivals a real run for their money and only trailed 42-38 at the break. Dalton led all scorers at the interval with 19 points with Tini scoring 10 points for Lake.

Forward Kristin Talma was making her presence felt and complimenting the work of Tini, the pair eased Westlake to a 62-49 three-quarter time lead.

Millie Simpson scored a couple of late baskets and Dalton (33 points) was tireless for the hosts but the greater depth of Westlake was the telling factor in this one as Westlake finished strongly to record a second straight win.

Score: Carmel 62 – Dalton 33, Simpson 7, Broomfield 7, Green 6. Westlake 90 – Tini 30, Maddix 18, Talma 10, Davidson 8

Orewa College were down a couple of senior players against Auckland Girls Grammar, a team you need to be firing on all cylinders against in its current form. AGGS came out strong as expected and dominated the game from go to woe.

AGGS led 79-8 at half-time before ending a one sided affair 145-13 to the good. Observers report Grammar were still pressing when over 100 points ahead!

It was also largely one-way traffic in the Mt Albert Grammar v Avondale College fixture with MAGS winning a second consecutive game.

Score: MAGS 129 –  Peau 25,Rangi-Brown 22, Talo-Tomokino 18, Pupuke-Robati 15, Manase 11, Kelly 10. Avondale 24 – Michael 11, Wenyert 4

Premier Standings

 3-0 AGGS, Massey

2-0 Mt Albert

2-1 Rangitoto,

1-1 Westlake

0-3 Carmel, Avondale, Orewa

Results from Senior A Grade:

 Epsom 65 Mt Roskill 53

Pakuranga 38 St Kentigern 67

Diocesan 10 Birkenhead 61

Senior A Standings

3-0 Epsom

2-0 St Kentigern, Birkenhead

1-1 St Mary’s, Mt Roskill

0-2 Diocesan

0-3 Pakuranga

There were four good games in the third round of the Auckland Secondary Schools Boys Premier grade but none could match the finish at St Kentigern College.

Mt Albert Grammar were Robb-ed of victory against St Kent’s as Kyle Robb scored the last five points of the game to clinch an exciting 68-66 overtime victory.

With St Kent’s trailing 66-63 Robb banked a triple then was fouled after garnering a steal with 8 seconds left to play. He then showed a cool head by making the resulting free-throws to seal a dramatic win.

Earlier St Kent’s had given up a ten points lead in the fourth quarter to a fast finishing MAGS as Mandela Baledrokadroka and Xjana Luamanuvae-Su’a sliced through the home team defence to tie the game at 56 apiece in the regulatory 40 minutes.

The shooting prowess of Max Shorter and Zac Chan helped St Kent’s build a useful 44-34 three-quarter time lead as they slotted home seven triples between them.

However MAGS guard Baledrokadroka was a constant menace frequently finding his way to basket and he amassed 29 points in normal time. He then went on to score all of Mt Albert’s ten points in overtime but it was Robb that had the final say in a cliffhanger finish.

Score: St Kentigern 68 – Shorter 24, Chan 15, Robb 11, Chester 10. MAGS 66 – Baledrokadroka 39, Vink 10, Luamanuvae-Su’a 8

It was also close at Mountain Road where visitors Rosmini College claimed a hard fought 61-56 victory against Auckland Grammar.

Despite a couple of scores from Rua Winitana Grammar could hardly buy a basket in the first quarter trailing 15-6 at the first break. The Rosmini offence then ground to a halt in the second as Ellijah Andrews helped the home team to a slight 22-21 lead at half-time.

Mitch Dance, Reimar Cruz and Matt Sokol were prominent for Rozza in the third as the single point advantage swayed in favour of the visitors 41-40.

Treys from Tyler Martin and Marvin Williams-Dunn gave Rozza a small buffer, one they managed to maintain, despite eight final quarter points from forward Anzac Risetto and a triple from Leroy Brown.

Score: Grammar 56 – Risetto 18, Andrews 8, Winitana 8, Green 8. Rosmini 61 – Dance 21, Williams-Dunn 10, Cruz 10, Sokol 9

For most of the first three periods it appeared as if Kelston Boys High could cause an upset at Rangitoto College but a fine double double from Caleb Langridge ensured Rangi eventually prevailed 99-81.

To’o Mase opened the scoring for Kelston with Alex Anslow scoring twice for Rangitoto in reply.

A delightful Cam Stone pass set up Logan Anderson, the Rangi guard asking plenty of questions of the Kelston defence in the early exchanges.

A Kale Lawson trey tied the scores at 18 apiece but Caleb Langridge had the final say of the period, the hosts up at quarter-time, 23-18.

Liam Milne landed 5 quick points for Kelston but Langridge did the same for Rangi early in the second before a drive from Matangi Prescott followed by a three took Kelston to a 37-32 lead. Stone replied with a couple buckets but Prescott (14 points in the half) and Milne took Kelston to a 45-40 lead at the interval.

Triples from Harry Clarke and Anderson began proceedings in the third although a sweet fade away jumper from Prescott was easy on the eye, as was a triple that followed, 51-50 Kelston led.

A couple of Stone transition baskets and a brace of Langridge inside buckets helped the Rangitoto cause. The Rangi forward, well into double double territory, was having an outstanding game and his inside battle with Kale Lawson was a major feature of the game: 71-58 Rangitoto led at three-quarter time.

Shaun Falefa reduced the Rangi lead to single digits but an Ethan Mandeno triple gave Rangi further breathing space, 81-67.

Triples from Stone and Anderson stretched the lead to twenty points with 2:20 to play.

Lawson and Prescott, Kelstons best on the night, kept the score ticking over but the defending champions eased through the closing stages to record a 99-81 victory.

 Score: Rangitoto 99 – Langridge 29/14r, Andreson 26, Stone, 19/10r/7a, Clarke 13. Kelston 81 – Prescott 21, Lawson 19, Milne 8, Arellano 9

In the final game of the round Macleans College gave Westlake as much as they could handle early on before being overhauled in the second half to go down 89-76.

Macleans stormed out of the blocks to open up a 25-20 advantage and roared on by a vociferous home crowd led 45-38 at half-time. The duo of Blake van Uden and Alex Arthur landed 34 points between them heading to the locker room giving Zac Fitzgerald and his team plenty to think about.

Westlake came out firing in the third frame, Reuben Fitzgerald made 6 quick points and Matt Cairns-Hita, Alex Freeman, Josh Hidalgo and Mark Malinga all made triples, as the visitors amassed thirty points in the quarter to lead 68-61 with ten minutes to play.

Sai Kuvelkar sunk a couple of triples for Macleans but once again Thabo Manyere took charge when it mattered scoring 10 points down the stretch to ensure Westlake remain unbeaten.

Score: Macleans 76 – Arthur 26, van Uden 20, Kuvelkar 14. Westlake 89 – Manyere 22/11r, Fitzgerald 21/12r, Cairns-Hita 17, L Mannenga 11

Premier Grade Standings

3-0 Westlake

2-0 Rangitoto, Rosmini

2-1 St Kentigern

1-2 Auckland Grammar, Macleans

0-3 Kelston, Mt Albert

From James Lissaman

Basketball fans were treated to some exciting games this past week, and the Dowson Cup changed hands.

In The McDonald’s Whelan Trophy Competition, Christchurch Girls’ High had far too much size for an inexperienced Avonside team, easing to a 116-35 win, where five players reached double figures in scoring, and three above twenty: Aaria Rolleston (22p); Violet Eaton and Alana Wouters (21p apiece); Bella Luhetoa (15p); Sapphire Wairau (12p). Lincoln High recorded their first ever win in the competition over newcomers Hillmorton High, 62-56. Samantha McCrone (16p) and Maddy Craig (11p) led a balanced attack for Lincoln, while Michelle Scott (12p) and Holly Iafeta (10p) kept the hosts close. After coming close against Burnside last week, Rangiora was shell shocked by a tough Middleton Grange school, going down 94-42. Rangiora’s Stella Porter and Kaneisha Bond each snuck into double figures with ten points each.

After a close call last week in the #McDsTT, defending the Dowson Cup, Christchurch Boys’ High was forced this week to pass ownership over to Burnside, when they fell 72-57. Cashmere and Ashburton had a game resembling a grindhouse, with Ben Sheat’s team just pulling away to win 67-61. With three starters absent, some younger players had a chance to perform in a tough game, most notably Thomas Webley (24p 14r) and Mitch Mahon (17p 12r). The normally super-efficient shooter Ruben Stanley was harassed into a 2/17 shooting night, but was able to grab 11 boards in the win.

Linwood College and Lincoln High had an extremely entertaining game, where the lead changed hands multiple times in the last few minutes, and was tied at 89-89 before Tangaroa Faletolu (15p 6r) tipped in a game winner just before the clock read :00. Rhoi Sanchez was virtually unstoppable (38p 7r 6s) with Aislery Patoc (13p) and JC Kabigting (11p) also featuring in the scoring column for Linwood.

Middleton travelled up to Rangiora, and had 81 shots, but only connected on 20 of them, resigning them to a 61-56 loss, as they tread water with Angus McWilliam still nursing an injury. Ben Carlile-Smith had one of his best games (18p 15r) and Joash Castillo thrived behind the arc (5/15 for his 15p). St. Andrew’s reversed the result from their play in series against St. Bede’s, but only just: 73-71. Bedeans Tom Hughes (27p 12r); Caleb Conyers (16p 9r); and Joma Mabazza (10p) leading the way in what eventuated as a loss.

A very tight opening quarter (tied at 17-17) between Hillmorton and Riccarton had the hallmarks of another close finish, before Hillmorton was able go on a 24-4 run, and put that notion to rest, winning 105-60. Ihaia Kendrew (21p) and Rhys Kershaw (20p) were the main Hillmorton weapons, with Joshua Nickel (14p) and Jibraan Safi (10p) providing some scoring support. For Riccarton, Ozzy Yamit (13p); Carlton Chitongo (12p) and Orion Chau (11p) led the way. In a game played on Thursday, Cathedral took care of Kaiapoi 109-85, with Graeme Patu Vaegaau leading the way (23p).

Results:

Whelan

Christchurch Girls’ 116-35 Avonside Girls’

Kaiapoi 64-45 Burnside

Rangi Ruru 93-25 Ellesmere

Middleton Grange 94-42 Rangiora

Ashburton 103-50 Cashmere

Lincoln 62-54 Hillmorton

St. Andrew’s 62-38 St. Margaret’s

Thompson Division I

Christ’s 91-75 Shirley

Burnside 72-57 Christchurch Boys’ (new holder of Dowson Cup)

Rangiora 61-56 Middleton Grange

St. Andrew’s 73-71 St. Bede’s

Cashmere 67-61 Ashburton

Thompson Division II

Papanui 67-49 St. Thomas

Ellesmere 101-94 Hornby

Hillmorton 105-60 Riccarton

Cathedral 109-85 Kaiapoi

Linwood 91-89 Lincoln

Auckland Grammar School visited Westlake Boys High in arguably the game of the round in Auckland Premier Grade basketball on Friday night as two of the top four sides from last season went head to head. Despite a second straight thirty points haul from Tom Higgins a more balanced home side scoring effort prevailed to record an 85-78 win in front of a good sized crowd at Westlake.

Campbell Green opened the scoring for Grammar but point guard Josh Hidalgo scored a couple of baskets worthy of a highlights reel and Reuben Fitzgerald knocked down a pair of jump shots as Westlake forged a handy 23-13 first quarter lead.

Green executed a couple of strong baseline drives to give AGS impetus but a dunk and then a left handed put back from Thabo Manyere put a stop to that.

Lake led 33-24 with Grammar coach Dave Mackay needing a time out.

An Anzac Risetto tip in got Grammar on the move again, Manyere scored in transition but play was interrupted by a spate of fouls at the back end of the first half, one the hosts were content with as they led 38-28. Fitzgerald, with 10 points, led all scorers at the break.

Manyere showed his versatility by landing a triple to open the second half but five quick points from the tireless Tom Higgins and a reverse lay up from Leroy Brown kept Grammar in contention.

Westlake coach Zac Fitzgerald wasn’t happy with his team’s start to the half and called a timeout with offensive turnovers high on his agenda.

A Matthew Cairns-Hita three helped their cause, as did Malinga’s transition points.

Teancum McCarthy defied the tall timber to grab an offensive rebound and put back and when Brown scored on the break the scores were level 55 apiece, Lake protecting the slimmest of leads at three-quarter-time 60-59.

A Moors three followed by a mid range jumper from the same player moved Westlake 67-61 ahead.

A Cairns-Hita transition basket took Lake further ahead 73-61 before

Grammar became more and more dependent on their go-to man Higgins (he had 27 points in the second half alone) but despite his best efforts Lake was always able to retain close to a ten points buffer in the final stanza.

That lead was 81-69 after a score from Ethan Martin, who had a fine game, and despite late baskets from McCarthy, Higgins and Brown the hosts controlled the closing minutes to record a second straight win.

Score: Westlake 85 – Manyere 17pts/13rebs, Moors 15pts/6 blocks, Hidalgo 14, Cairns-Hita 12. Auckland Grammar 78 – Higgins 33, Brown 10, McCarthy 9

Rangitoto College and Rosmini College didn’t play last week as Rangitoto were in Croatia attending the Secondary Schools Basketball World Championships. Both teams opened their accounts with victories this week.

Rangitoto entertained new boys St Kentigern College, fresh off a first up win against Kelston last week, and it was the hosts that prevailed 71-58 despite 26 points from Max Shorter for St Kent’s

Cam Stone and Alex Anslow scored threes to give Rangi the early lead (19-13) and despite a brace of treys from Shorter the defending champs were well clear at half-time leading 38-21.

St Kentigern coach Aaron Young, returning to his old school, must have said the correct things in the locker room at the break as his team produced a much better showing in the third as Connor Mills and Shorter began to eat into the Rangi advantage. Logan Anderson, Zac Te Puni and Harry Clarke ensured the home team still had control at three-quarter time, ahead 56-41.

The outstanding Shorter landed a couple more triples in the fourth but Rangitoto ensured they made a winning start to the season.

Score: Rangitoto 71 – Te Puni 16, Anderson 11, Clarke 10. St Kentigern 58 – Shorter 26, Mills 10, Kyle Robb 6

Rosmini also got their season off to a winning start crossing the bridge to inflict a 71-58 defeat on Mt Albert.

Kruz Perrott-Hunt connected with an early three and Will Heather then scored 11 straight points as Rosmini forged a 22-14 first quarter lead.

MAGS guard Mandela Baledrokadroka had logged double figures before half-time courtesy of some penetrative drives but 11 points in the quarter from Marvin Williams-Dunn, including three triples, ensured Rozza were in control at the interval leading 45-26.

The third quarter was shared with Te Akau Pumipi and Clarke Aiono prominent for the hosts and Heather and Mitch Dance keeping the score moving for Rozza.

Any thoughts of a MAGS comeback in the fourth were extinguished by a balanced Rosmini offence that featured all ten players in the scoring column.

Score: Mt Albert 64 – Baledrokadroka 21, Pumipi 10, Xjana Luamanuvae-Su’a 9. Rosmini 89 – Heather 20, Williams-Dunn 16, Dance 12, Perrott-Hunt 12

Macleans College snatched a dramatic 59-58 win in the dying moments against Kelston Boys High. Trailing by a point in the closing seconds Macleans missed a couple of scoring opportunities on the final play but fortunately for them secured offensive rebounds. Finally, with two seconds left on the clock, Alec Lafotanoa put up a speculative shot that found the net much to the delight of his teammates.

Earlier Macleans had established a position of strength at the half-time break leading 29-16 with Alex Arthur, Sai Kuvelkar and Blake van Uden leading the way.

Kelston were much improved in the third period as Kale Lawson and Sam Brooking led something of a revival although they still trailed 45-38 at the third break.

Andrew Fei and van Uden appeared to be carrying Macleans to a reasonably comfortable win but they got a dose of the jitters in the closing minutes as Kelston, led by Lawson, mounted a charge.

Late points from Liam Milne, Matangi Prescott and Solomon Faapoi seemed to have clinched a comeback win for Kelston.

However it was Lafotanoa that had the final say and presented Adrian Boyd and his team with their first Premier win. Score: Macleans 59 – Arthur 17, van Uden 13, Kuvelkar 11, Fei 11. Kelston 58 – Lawson 17, Brooking 11, Denrick Arellano 9

Premier Grade Standings

2-0 Westlake

1-1 Auckland Grammar, St Kentigern, Macleans

1-0 Rangitoto, Rosmini

0-2 Kelston, Mt Albert

Senior A Results

Manurewa 68 Pakuranga 64

Western Springs 65 Avondale 59

Liston 73 Massey 76

Northcote 76 (Jack Burton 23, Miggy Falqueza 22, Oliver Hayward 13)

St Peters 98 (Gerrard Boerson 31, Christian Fromont 16, Finlay Morris 12)

Senior A Standings

2-0 St Peters, Manurewa

1-1 Western Springs, Pakuranga, Avondale, Massey

0-2 Northcote, Liston

By James Lissaman

In the McDonald’s Whelan Trophy Competition, Rangiora High looked like they were going to grab an upset win over a more favoured Burnside High School Team, up by 24 points heading into the final quarter. Paige Willman had other ideas though, scoring 13 points in a huge 33-7 quarter for Burnside, allowing Lori McDaniel’s team to sneak out with a 62-60 win. Burnside will look to tread water while Tsubasa Nisbet is nursing a fracture in her hand. Rangiora had a very solid showing from Kaneisha Bond (14p/8r) and Keeley Woolman-Smith (15p) where 10 players in the Rangiora team scored.

Over in Division II of the McDonald’s Thompson Trophy, Linwood had a trip into North Canterbury where they faced off against Kaiapoi High School. Rhoi Sanchez was outstanding off the bench (36p on 17/28 shooting), while Aislery Patoc had a solid 15p for the Linwood Boys. In the end though, Kaiapoi was able to just hang on at the end of the game 85-79 in their first ever McDsTT game.

In Division I, the Dowson Cup just about changed hands in Christchurch Boys’ High first ever defence, as St Bede’s flew out to a 23-9 lead after the first quarter. The second half wasn’t as kind to the visitors, as CBHS gradually fought back, 45-30, to escape with a 77-70 win. Bedean Tom Hughes was excellent finishing near the basket (22p 9r 4a), while teammate Caleb Conyers (16p) helped keep St. Bede’s in the game.

Middleton Grange and Cashmere had their traditional opening round match, and a huge crowd was entertained early, as Joash Castillo (14p) hit a tough prayer at the end of the first quarter, to make it a two point game (25-23) at the break. The rest of the game wasn’t as close, as Cashmere eased away to win 94-59. Cashmere had five double figure scorers: Ruben Stanley (19p); Connor McLaughlin (19p); Takeru Wakayama (14p); Tom Russ-Hofmans (12p/6r); and Mitch Mahon (12p/12r). The Gators on the other hand, only had Jarred Burnett (11p) joining Joash above ten points in the scoring column.

All Results:

Whelan

• Christchurch Girls’ 81-28 St Margaret’s
• Middleton Grange 101-37 Kaiapoi
• Rangi Ruru 72-31 Cashmere
• St Andrew’s 91-34 Avonside Girls’
• Burnside 62-60 Rangiora
• Ashburton 109-27 Ellesmere
• Villa Maria 64-48 Lincoln (Division II)

Thompson Division I

• Christchurch Boys’ 77-70 St Bede’s (CBHS defends Dowson Cup)
• Cashmere 94-59 Middleton Grange
• Christ’s 79-73 Ashburton
• Shirley Boys’ 89-67 St Andrew’s
• Burnside 68-60 Rangiora

 Thompson Division II

• Riccarton 75-69 Ellesmere
• Hornby 61-58 Lincoln
• St Thomas 61-54 Cathedral
• Kaiapoi 85-79 Linwood
• Hillmorton 69-56 Papanui

Hannah Wentworth in possession

The Girls Premier Grade competition also tipped off on Friday night but proved to be a little less competitive than the Boys League.

Avondale College stayed reasonably close to Massey High in the first quarter trailing 21-9 at its conclusion. Unfortunately it was all one-way traffic after that as Massey, with five players in double figures, surged to an 85-17 win.

Shauna Povey (17pts) and Sylvia Wieczorek (14pts) were in fine form having debuted for the Auckland Lady Rangers in the Women’s Basketball Championship last week. Also in double figures were Alyesha Schuster (17pts), Terina Aratangi (12pts) and Ashlee Tyacke (10pts).

The Rangitoto College versus Orewa College fixture was a much more even contest with Rangitoto prevailing 61-45.

Orewa led 10-6 after the first period but gave up 19 points in the second to trail 27-22 at half-time. Rangitoto extended their advantage in the third stanza (46-32) and closed out the win in the fourth.

Rangitoto’s Moania Spooner led all scorers with 24 points with Bella Elgar (12pts) also in double figures. Guard Hannah Wentworth (16pts) and Janke Pretorius (13pts) top scored for Orewa.

Carmel College received a mauling at the hands of defending champions Auckland Girls Grammar School going down 151-44. Unfortunately I don’t have any further details but suffice to say it can only get better for Carmel from here.

The fixture between Mt Albert Grammar and Westlake Girls was postponed.

Results from the newly formed Senior A Grade:

St Mary’s 79 Mt Roskill 64

Birkenhead 78 Pakuranga 43

Epsom 70 Diocesan 37

The 2017 Auckland Secondary Schools Premier competition is shaping to be the most competitive in recent years particularly in the Boy’s division.

The advent of the extended Qualifying Tournament, which recently saw 20 boys’ teams and 9 girls’ teams striving for the two available spots in each division, has increased the quality of the leagues.

So who did what in 2016, here is a reminder.

Rangitoto College, even with Sam Waardenburg unavailable for a good number of games, were the most consistent performers in the regular season but had the title snatched from their grasp by a fast finishing Rosmini High School in the final.

Rangitoto went on to win the National Secondary Schools title in dramatic circumstances and once again would appear to be the team to beat.

Auckland Grammar and Westlake Boys High rounded out the top four last year and it would be a surprise if they were not in contention again this year.

Junior Tall Blacks coach Daryl Cartwright will again lead Mt Albert Grammar. They finished fifth last year and will be hoping, like Kelston that finished sixth, to threaten the top four.

St Kent’s and Macleans coached by Aaron Young and Adrian Boyd respectively looked of genuine premier quality in qualifying and will surprise a few teams during the season.

Four of the incumbent teams have new coaches this year.

Carl Buck is at the helm at Kelston and former Westlake Boys student Zac Fitzgerald has assumed the reins at his old school.

An ‘old boy’ has also taken the head coach role at Rosmini where Matt Lacey has taken over from Dave Mackay. Mackay has moved across the bridge to take up an appointment as Head of Sport at Auckland Grammar as well as taking on the Prem’s head coach role.

In 2016 the Girl’s Premier competition was won by Auckland Girls Grammar after they defeated Mt Albert Grammar in the final. It won’t be a shock if these two teams also lead the push for honours in 2017.

Rangitoto College and Westlake Girls made the top four last year and although both have lost key seniors you can expect them to be competitive again with Tony Pompallier (Rangitoto) and Jody Cameron (Westlake) pulling the coaching strings.

Orewa College have lost the services of coach Tony Webster who has taken up a full time role with Tauranga City Basketball and they, along with Avondale College, round out the top six teams from last year.

Massey High emerged from the qualifying tournament unbeaten and could be the big movers this year as new coach Aaron Leslie inherits a largely unchanged squad.

Carmel College were the second qualifiers although coach Gareth Teahan is a realist and knows that just retaining a spot in the Premier competition will be an achievement for his inexperienced squad.

The leagues tip off this Friday May 5^th with the following fixtures:

Girls: AGGS v Carmel, Mt Albert v Westlake, Rangitoto v Orewa, Massey v Avondale.

Boys: AGS v Macleans, Mt Albert v Westlake, Kelston v St Kentigern.

The fixture between Rangitoto and Rosmini has been postponed as Rangitoto are in Croatia attending the Secondary Schools Basketball World Championships.