LACEY LOWDOWN

The New Zealand Under 16 Women met Queensland North on the final day of the Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Saturday in a 7^th/8^th classification game.

The two teams had met on the opening day of the Championships, New Zealand winning on that occasion 79-63. It was a tighter finish this time but the scoreline was still in favour of the Kiwis 61-53.

The Waikato pair of Charlisse Leger-Walker and Ella Bradley paced the New Zealand effort, both contributing 16 points.

Once again forward Sharne Pupuke-Robati was ruled out of the contest due to injury but the New Zealand team coped sufficiently without their leading rebounder tying the count on the boards 41-41.

Bradley scored the first 6 points for the Kiwis and Rosalia Samia a triple as the Kiwis were edged 17-16 in the first quarter.

New Zealand kept Queensland North to just 7 points in a decisive second period won 16-7. A Briarley Rogers three and a pair of Caitlin O’Connell baskets helped give the Kiwis some breathing space at half-time – 32-24 ahead.

Taranaki’s Isabelle Cook and Bradley scored 10 points between them in the third but Queensland were only six points behind with three minutes left in period. A seven points scoring burtst from the experienced Leger-Walker rebuffed the Queensland effort and gave New Zealand a 51-39 three-quarter time advantage.

When Bradley and Leger-Walker stretched the advantage further it appeared New Zealand would cruise to victory but they went scoreless for four minutes allowing Queensland to close to within 5 points, 55-50, with 3:19 to play.

Up stepped Bradley, having her most productive game of the tournament, to score and push the advantage back to 7 points. Jordyn Maddix and Leger-Walker, who played the whole fourty minutes, ensured a New Zealand victory would not slip from their grasp.

The win gave New Zealand a 5-4 record and a seventh place finish in the tournament.

NZ Scorers: Charlisse Leger-Walker 16/13/6, Ella Bradley 16/7, Isabelle Cook 8/6 Jordyn Maddix 5, Rosalia Samia 5, Caitlin O’Connell 4, Briarley Rogers 3, Gracie Hasler-Ewin 3, Rashaan Smith 1

The NZ team were dealt a major blow before the start of their classification game at the Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Friday. Forward Sharne Pupuke-Robati was ruled out of the contest against Victoria Country Women with an ankle injury.

Despite being without the tournament’s leading rebounder New Zealand made a solid start to lead 22-13 at quarter time.

Jordyn Maddix made a couple of threes as she and Charlisse Leger-Walker accumulated 8 points each.

Forward Rashaan Smith made 6 quick points but the Kiwis found their lead wiped out in the second period and entered the half time interval behind 35-34.

Ella Bradley and Gracie Hasler-Ewin restored the New Zealand advantage as both teams grappled for the lead. Rosalia Samia landed a three for the Kiwis but that sparked a decisive 10-2 run from Victoria Country who closed the third 57-48 ahead.

Leger-Walker nailed a three to keep the Vic lead to manageable proportions but a series of missed free throws undermined the Kiwis attempt to make a comeback. Briarley Rogers made a three and Leger-Walker converted her fourth trey of the game but Vic still led 68-57 with just under four minutes to play.

Bradley got it back to 9 points but that was as close as New Zealand got, Victoria Country recording an 81-68 win.

Despite Pupuke-Robati’s absence the Kiwis only trailed the rebounding count 43-39. However making just 4 from 12 free throws and being on the receiving end of a 10-0 blocked shots stat helped consign New Zealand to a loss. The result means the Kiwis will play for seventh and eighth on Saturday, the final day of competition.

NZ Scorers: Charlisse Leger-Walker 20/7, Ella Bradley 11, Jordyn Maddix 8, Rosalia Samia 7/5, Rashaan Smith 6, Briarley Rogers 6, Gracie Hasler-Ewin 4/11, Isabelle Cook 4, Caitlin O’Connell 2

Following their quarter final loss the previous day the New Zealand Under 16 Men were playing-off for places 5-8 at the Australian State Championships on Friday.

Pitched against Queensland South, a team they had beaten by 15 points in pool play, the Kiwis made a sluggish start trailing 12-11 at quarter time and 32-25 at half-time. Mitchell Dance and Joseph Hylton were the best of the Kiwis at the break with 5 points each.

Queensland still led by 9 points past the mid point of the third quarter before New Zealand made its move.

The team’s leading three point shooting exponent Tom Cowie landed a trademark three. The shot prompted an 8-0 run to bring the Kiwis to within a single point, 37-36. Cowie again plus a Williams-Dunn trey kept the margin to one at three-quarter time 43-42.

What had been a tight tussle became one way traffic in the fourth as New Zealand completely dominated the closing period.

Hylton, Dance, Cowie, Shalom Broughton and Kainoa Lepou all made scoring contributions to a match winning 19-3 run.

The 23-7 fourth quarter propelled New Zealand to a 65-15 victory and a play-off game for fourth and fifth on Saturday.

Broughton had a game high 14 rebounds and Cowie a game high 4 assists.

Leading NZ Scorers: Tom Cowie 13, Mitchell Dance 13, Kainoa Lepou 11, Shalom Broughton 8/14, Joseph Hylton 7, Marvin Williams-Dunn 5, Ezrah Vaigafa 4, Jared Thornton 2, Morgan Trott 2

Despite a combined 41 points from Southland guard Tom Cowie (25 points) and Joseph Hylton (16 points) New Zealand Under 16 Men were beaten 79-68 by Victoria Country at the quarter-finals stage of the Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Thursday.

Cowie scored five early points and off loaded a couple of assists to forward Shalom Broughton as New Zealand shaded the first quarter 15-13.

Coach Dave Mackay constantly shuffled his substitutes in the second period as the previously free scoring Kiwis struggled to make baskets. Forward Morgan Trott executed a block and then converted at the offensive end but New Zealand, managing just 12 points in the period, trailed 34-27 at the main break.

New Zealand slipped to 14 points behind early in the third before Marvin-Williams Dunn landed a three to reduce the Vic advantage to eleven, 45-34.

Hylton carried the New Zealand team on his back either side of three-quarter time. The Harbour swingman scored 13 of New Zealand’s 15 points although they trailed 58-49 with six minutes to play.

The next two minutes proved decisive as New Zealand failed to score on four successive possessions allowing Vic to stretch out to a 15 points advantage, 64-49.

Cowie, the Kiwi’s leading scorer on the night, scored 7 late points and Logan McIntosh scored from beyond the arc but it was not enough as New Zealand slipped to a disappointing 79-68 loss.

New Zealand will now play-off for places 5-8 on the final two days of the tournament.

NZ Scorers ; Tom Cowie 25/5 assists, Joseph Hylton 16/9, Shalom Broughton 7, Kainoa Lepou 6, Logan McIntosh 5, Mitchell Dance 4, Marvin Williams-Dunn 3, Morgan Trott 2

The New Zealand Under 16 Women won an important pool game on day four of the Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Wednesday.

The Kiwis dominated the closing stages of a tight encounter to record a 68-57 win against South Australia Country.

New Zealand led 50-42 at three-quarter time but three consecutive turnovers at the start of the fourth gave South Australia a leg up to cut the deficit to two points, 52-50.

Following a timeout called by coach Angela Perrott-Hunt New Zealand regained their composure to rattle off a decisive 10-0 run.

Sharne Pupuke-Robati ran the floor for a basket after a Charlisse Leger-Walker defensive block.

Gracie Hasler-Ewin made a short-range basket, as did Pupuke-Robati, with guard Caitlin O’Connell providing a couple of neat assists. Ella Bradley completed the surge with a brace of baskets.

A 62-50 lead with 2:26 to play was too much for South Australia. New Zealand, under the leadership of Leger-Walker, exhibited fine composure down the stretch. The Waikato guard produced a stats stuffing 15 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks.

Perrott-Hunt was pleased with the way her team responded after that crucial time-out in the fourth quarter. “I told the players to stay calm and stick with the game plan. I thought they did that admirably. There are always waves to ride and we did that” she said.

Earlier South Australia Country had shaded the opening quarter 20-21 before New Zealand hit back in the second period to lead at half-time 35-29. Jordyn Maddix made a pair of threes at the start of quarter two to give the Ferns a lead they would not surrender.

The teams traded baskets in the third with the trio of Pupuke-Robati, O’Connell and Leger-Walker each making 5 points in the period to keep New Zealand ahead.

The Kiwis weathered the storm in the fourth to finish third in Pool A with a 4-2 record and a quarter-final appointment with Queensland South on Thursday.

The leading scorer in the tournament Shyla Heal, daughter of legendary Australian player Shane Heal, leads Queensland South. As Perrott-Hunt says “Her match up with Charlisse (Leger-Walker) will be well worth watching.”

Tall Ferns head coach Kennedy Kereama spoke to the team following the game. He complimented the team on their performances to date and wished them well for the upcoming play-off action.

NZ Scorers v SA Country: Charlisse Leger-Walker 15/13/6/4/3, Sharne Pupuke-Robati 18/12, Caitlin O’Connell 10, Jordyn Maddix 6, Ella Bradley 8/5, Gracie Hasler-Ewin 9, Isabelle Cook 2,

As anticipated the New Zealand Under 16 Men had little problem accounting for Northern Territory in their sixth and final pool game at Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Wednesday. New Zealand beat NT 104-37 only giving up double-digit points in the first quarter.

With such a decisive scoreline the New Zealand coaching staff were able to share the court time evenly amongst all ten of the playing members. Nine of the team played between 17 and 23 minutes with captain Shalom Broughton, who has carried a heavy workload in the tournament to date, put on light duties with just 15 minutes of action.

A 30-12 first period in favour of the Kiwis set the tone for the remainder of the game as every quarter was won by a margin of thirteen points or more.

The scoring was led by Harbour swingman Joseph Hylton (16pts) but nine players scored eight points or more.

A one sided rebounding count, 59-23, laid the foundation for the convincing win with more sterner tests ahead when play-off action begins on Thursday.

The Men finished second in Pool play and cross over to play Victoria Country in a quarter-final on Thursday.

A number of the team featured prominently in individual statistical categories for the overall tournament. Tom Cowie is fourth in the three point shooting percentages (48%) having made 12 from 25 attempts. Cowie is also third in the assists category averaging 4.3 per game. Joseph Hylton has made 16 from 20 free throws at 80% and is fourth in that category. Mitchell Dance leads the New Zealand scoring with 113 points at an average of 18-8, 6^th on the competition scoring list. Shalom Broughton is eighth on the rebounding list with 52 at 8.7 per game,

NZ Scorers v Northern Territory; Joseph Hylton 16, Marvin Williams-Dunn 15, Mitchell Dance 13, Kainoa Lepou 13, Logan McIntosh 10, Tom Cowie 8/6 assists, Morgan Trott 8, Ezrah Vaigafa 8, Shalom Broughton 8, Jared Thornton 5

Full stats here.

The New Zealand Under 16 Men remained on course for a top two place in their pool at Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Tuesday by beating Queensland South 73-58.

Both teams had lost just once entering the contest but it was New Zealand that started the strongest taking the opening period 22-14. The Rosmini College trio of Joseph Hylton, Marvin Williams-Dunn and Mitchell Dance contributed 16 of the points.

New Zealand continued to hold the upper hand in the second with Kainoa Lepou and Dance making threes as the lead stretched to 40-25 at half-time.

Despite not scoring in the last three minutes of the third the Kiwis, with Logan McIntosh scoring 5 points in the quarter, led 58-41 at the last break.

When Tom Cowie made a basket to give the Kiwis a 65-47 lead with 5:50 to play it appeared a comfortable win was secured. However Queensland South had other ideas and mounted a 9-0 charge inside two minutes to close within 9 points.

Coach Dave Mackay was forced to use a couple of quick timeouts. His words obviously did the trick as the free scoring Dance responded with 8 straight points, including a pair of threes, to ease the New Zealand nerves.

Sam Broughton corralled 10 boards as the Kiwis edged the rebounding contest 48-42 whist Dance led all scorers with 27 points. His scoring splits of 59% (10/17FG), 50% (4/83PG), 75% (3/4FT), make fine reading.

Next game is Wednesday against Northern Territory.

NZ Scorers; Mitchell Dance 27/8, Shalom Broughton 10/10, Logan McIntosh 7, Joseph Hylton 6/7, Tom Cowie 6/3 assists , Marvin Williams-Dunn 6, Kainoa Lepou 5, Jared Thornton 2, Morgan Trott 2 Ezrah Vaigafa 2

Full stats here.

The New Zealand Under 16 Women played Western Australia Country on day four of the Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Tuesday.

The Kiwis established a 15-6 first quarter lead with Harbour guard Jordyn Maddix nabbing a couple of baskets and Charlisse Leger-Walker scoring six points.

Ella Bradley, Leger-Walker’s team mate at St Peter’s, Cambridge scored 6 points in the middle of the second period as New Zealand stretched their lead to 18 points, 33-15, with four minutes to play in the quarter.

The back end of the half wouldn’t have pleased New Zealand coach Angela Perrott-Hunt as WA mounted a 12-3 run to close within nine points.

Bradley made yet another basket to keep New Zealand ahead 40-29 at the interval. Leger-Walker and Bradley led all scorers at half-time with 11 points and 10 points respectively.

A dominant 26-9 third quarter quashed any prospect of WA further denting the New Zealand advantage. Maddix, Caitlin O’Connell, Sharne-Pupuke-Robati and Leger-Walker all scored multiple baskets in the scoring frenzy.

The final quarter was more sedate as New Zealand closed out a 78-52 win to improve their record to 3-2 ahead of a game against South Australia Country on Wednesday.

Prior to the game Leger-Walker and Pupuke Robati featured strongly in a couple of overall tournament statistical categories.

Charlisse was second in scoring (17.5ppg) and second in assists (5.3apg). Sharne was second in rebounding (11.8rpg) and fourth in points scoring (16.8ppg).

NZ Scorers : Charlisse Leger-Walker 16/8, Sharne Pupuke-Robati 12/8, Jordyn Maddix 11/8 assists, Ella Bradley 10, Gracie Hasler-Ewin 8/9, Briarley Rogers 7, Rashaan Smith 6 Isabelle Cook 4, Caitlin O’Connell 4

Full stats here.

The New Zealand Under 16 Women had a tough two game schedule on day three of the Australian State Championships in Melbourne on Monday. The Kiwis came away with a win in the morning and a loss in the afternoon.

In the morning game 20 points and 15 rebounds from Sharne Pupuke-Robati and a triple double threatening 22 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists from Charlisse Leger-Walker helped propel New Zealand past ACT 77-62.

New Zealand established a 20-13 lead in the first quarter helped by threes from Jordyn Maddix and Briarley Rogers.

The Kiwis gained a double-digit advantage midway through the second period but were unable to fully shake off a determined ACT team.

A Leger-Walker triple ended a four minutes scoring drought in the third, Rosalia Samia and Gracie Hasler-Ewin also made baskets but the lead was still only ten points, 53-43, at three-quarter time.

A decisive 10-3 run at the start of the fourth, that included 6 points from Pupuke-Robati, gave the Kiwis the breathing space they wanted to record a second straight win.

NZ Scorers v ACT: Charlisse Leger-Walker 22/8/8, Sharne Pupuke-Robati 20/15, Jordyn Maddix 9, Briarley Rogers 6, Gracie Hasler-Ewin 6/8, Isabelle Cook 5 Caitlin O’Connell 3 Ella Bradley 4, Rosalia Samia 2

Taking on Victoria Metro is a daunting task at the best of times, after all they have won 14 of the last 16 Australian U16 Women’s National Championships.

Giving them a 23-6 start is not a wise move but unfortunately that was the hole the Kiwis had dug at the end of the first quarter.

New Zealand responded well in the second but still trailed 48-26 at the interval.

Guards Jordyn Maddix and Briarley Rogers both landed triples but a turnover count of 15-3 at the half hurt the Kiwi effort.

NZ continued to keep pace with their more fancied rivals and shaded the third (16-14) as Rosalia Samia, Sharne Pupuke-Robati, Gracie Hasler-Ewin and Maddix all found the basket.

An 8-0 start from the opposition in the final period killed off any hope the Kiwis had of putting a dent in the Victoria lead. The reliable Pupuke Robati broke the run but the Kiwis ran out of gas at the end of a long day losing 80-53.

NZ Scorers v Vic Metro: Sharne Pupuke-Robati 21/ Charlisse Leger-Walker 9/7, Gracie Hasler-Ewin 6, Jordyn Maddix 5 Briarley Rogers 4, Rosalia Samia 4, Isabelle Cook 3, Caitlin O’Connell 1