May 05 2023
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School Basketball

Prems and Senior A basketball seasons underway

The 2023 Premier and Senior A seasons tip-off on Friday with some juicy match-ups in prospect in both the Girl’s and Boy’s competitions.

Once again the high school reports on Lacey Lowdown will be brought to you in conjunction with our two major supporters. Thank you to Dynamic Sport New Zealand for their coverage of the Boys competitions and Northern Kāhu for their support of the Girls games.

In Premier Boys action the two 2022 trophy winners square off at St Kentigern College. Visitors Rosmini College were the Prems champs last year while St Kent’s were the Zone 1 Tournament winners.

The first North Shore derby of the season sees Rangitoto College entertain Westlake Boy’s High. Both teams have a new head coach – Karl Noyer has taken the reigns at Westlake while Chanel Pompallier has taken charge at Rangitoto.

Newly promoted St Peter’s College take the short trip along Mountain Road to face off against Auckland Grammar School. St Peter’s went unbeaten in 2022 as they dominated the Senior A competition – they would love to start 2023 in winning fashion against their near neighbours.

Sacred Heart College will host Mt Albert Grammar in the other game. Heart won just two games in 2022 but will be hoping the top flight experience gained last year will stand them in good stead for a stronger showing this season.

The Premier Girls competition boasts two new teams in 2023 with both promoted teams facing tough first-up assignments.

Northcote College face the daunting prospect of hosting Westlake Girls High, the 2022 National Champions. Westlake have a much changed lineup with six seniors having moved on so Northcote will relish the early opportunity to cause an upset.

Takapuna Grammar dominated proceedings in Senior A last year and head to St Kentigern College in an attempt to open their campaign with a victory.

Mt Albert Grammar, beaten finalists in 2022, have an away trip to take on Baradene College in a contest that is expected to be extremely close while Epsom College will head over to College Hill to face St Mary’s College.

The opening round of Senior A Boys fixtures features a game between the two promoted teams as Selwyn College take on Kelston Boys High.  

Avondale College, runners-up to St Peter’s last year, will visit Liston College while Dilworth School and Manurewa High School are also on the road. Dilworth head over The Bridge to take on Northcote College while Manurewa will visit Mt Roskill Grammar School.

The Mt Roskill and Manurewa match up is a double header as the respective girls teams will also face off in Girl’s Senior A action.

Carmel College and Rangitoto College begin life in Senior A with challenging fixtures. Both teams recently lost their play-off games to remain in Prems and will be hoping to begin their season with victories. Rangitoto entertain One Tree Hill College while Carmel are away against Avondale College.

Auckland Girls Grammar School entertain Massey High School in the remaining fixture. 

The Northern Kāhu season begins in July with memberships and game tickets available shortly at https://www.kahu.basketball

Top quality sports clothing and products are available for purchase 24/7 from Dynamic Sport New Zealand. Click on this link to view their superb range https://dynamicsport.co.nz

Apr 06 2023
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School Basketball

Sacred Heart and St Peter’s secure Prems berths

April 6

The Auckland Secondary Schools Boys Premier Grade Play-off games were completed this week with the results determined in contrasting styles.

St Peter’s earned promotion in a narrow tense encounter while Sacred Heart College were runaway winners as they protected home court and the much coveted spot in the top grade.

In a tense intriguing contest St Peter’s College won a nail-biter in the Auckland Schools Premier Grade Play-off Game defeating Liston College 65-61.

St Peter’s, the 2022 Senior A champions, made a terrific start taking the first quarter 23-14 with Gus Dallow, Bailey Smith and Montana Ekeroma each knocking down triples.

Any suggestion that the first quarter was a sign of things to come were quickly dispelled by the hosts as they made it a three-point game at the half (37-34). A late triple from Zyhmon Moreno and 5 points from Rasheed Ieremia brought Liston back into the game.

The third quarter mirrored the second with Liston having the better of the exchanges – a brace of scores from Marvellous Michael, Dhon Lao and Ieremia helped Liston forge a 53-50 three-quarter time lead.

Both sides struggled to make baskets in the fourth as the tension ramped up, in fact there was only a combined eight field baskets made in the period.

Jeydin Ale made a couple of those for Liston but it was the combination of Dallow (nine final quarter points), Bryan Masters and Mario Nola that got St Peter’s over the line.

Dallow, a 2022 New Zealand U15 international, finished with a game high 17 points while Masters and Nola each made critical threes as Saint Peter’s edged the final period 15-8 to clinch the win and promotion.

St Peter’s 65 – Dallow 17, Ekeroma 13, Smith 9, Manio 6, Masters 5

Liston 61 – Ieremia 12, Ale 11, Moreno 6, Michael 6, Juan 6, Lao 5

In the second play-off game Sacred Heart College overpowered Avondale College to win 120-66 but in the early stages that margin of victory appeared highly unlikely.

In fact it was Avondale that made the early running with Deuel Lelaulu, Jaycob Holmes and, in particular, Liam Takenaka-Wesley causing the hosts defence a few problems. 

Avondale led 25-18 at quarter time and when Takenaka-Wesley scored immediately after the break Avondale had put together a 9-0 run.

Nate Muller kept Avondale in the ascendancy but the tide began to turn in favour of Sacred Heart after back-to-back scores from Tyrell Cocker.

Matt Schuler reduced the deficit further before Jerome Jakeman levelled the tie at 34 points apiece with a basket in transition.

Takenaka-Wesley kept Avondale in the hunt with a pair of threes but after a couple of transition dunks from Cocker (he had 14 points in the second period) and a triple from Jamie Vile it was Heart that were pumping at the half-time break – ahead 56-41.

Lelaulu scored on the resumption but soon after centre James Tipelu picked up his fifth foul. The Avondale centre’s absence was sorely missed as Heart ran in 28 points in the third – Preston Tuaputa, Josh Tengblad and Matt Fautuaalii-Taia the beneficiaries of some sloppy Avondale defence.

With the three-quarter time score 84-51 in Heart’s favour, and the result determined, both teams were able to give extended minutes to their bench players.

In the closing stages the large contingent of home supporters were treated to some fine shooting from Vile and Snowdon while Muller and Raymond Korboe showcased their range from deep for the visitors.

Avondale remain in Senior A for the 2023 season while Sacred Heart will be keen to build on their Prems experience from last season which culminated in a prized first ever appearance at the 2022 Secondary Schools National Championship.

Sacred Heart 120 – Cocker 23, Fautuaalii-Taia 18, Tuaputu 17, Snowdon 14, Jakeman 13, Vile 13, Tengblad 9

Avondale 66 – Takenaka-Wesley 21, Muller 16, Lelaulu 16, Holmes 8

The bottom two Senior A teams in 2022 have both been relegated and replaced by the top two teams from Open Grade.

Selwyn College defeated Aorere College 86-79 while Kelston Boys High School return to Senior A after beating Macleans College 69-56.

Apr 05 2023
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School Basketball

Northcote College win promotion to Premier Grade

Northcote College, after a long hiatus, are back in the Auckland Schools Girls Premier Grade after a commanding 78-48 win against Rangitoto College in the promotion/relegation play-off game on Tuesday.

Games are not won and lost in the opening quarter but Northcote certainly opened the contest with a statement of intent.

Nikki Gear nailed a corner three on the first possession to initiate a 10-0 opening salvo prompting Rangitoto coach Justine Reed to call a timeout.

Zaara Sain’s scooped layup got Rangi on the board but the first quarter belonged to the visitors who led 24-10 after ten minutes.

The large crowd were treated to an exciting second quarter as fortunes ebbed and flowed.

Ester Roberts knocked down a triple and with Maddison Skelton and Mela Andrews making shots the Northcote lead was shaved to 29-21.

Northcote would regain the initiative via Lily Morgan and DJ Hannah only for Roberts and Eva Veale to counter – Northcote ahead 40-28 after a fast paced first half.

The second half couldn’t have started worse for Rangi as Gear stole the restart inbounds pass before converting an uncontested layup while Lizzie May dropped her fourth triple (of five) to stretch the lead to 45-28.

Skelton got the scoreboard moving again for the hosts but it would be a quarter dominated by Northcote, and DJ Hannah in particular. 

The livewire guard was responsible for a couple of steals and 8 points as the Northcote lead stretched to an unassailable 62-34 by the three-quarter mark.

With the result not in doubt both teams gave opportunities to their bench players in the closing minutes – Lisa Gear and Grace Giles taking the opportunity to impress.

After a long absence Northcote – the national champions back in 2006 – will return to the top tier of schools basketball in Auckland for the 2023 season. Rangi will set about their rebuilding in Senior A.

Northcote 78 – Hannah 24, May 15, Morgan 14, N Gear 13, L Gear 6

Rangitoto 38 – Roberts 17, Skelton 9, Andrews 9, Giles 3

Apr 04 2023
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College Hoops

Takapuna Grammar headed to Prems

April 4

Takapuna Grammar School, on the back of 40 points from Bailey Flavell, won 71-64 at Carmel College in the play-off for a Premier Grade spot for the 2023 season.

Takapuna, the Senior A champions last season, appeared to be cruising to victory midway through the third period when the led by 17 points, 46-29. However Carmel weren’t going down without a fight and roared back into the contest with a 16-4 run to trail by just 5 points at the three-quarter mark (50-45).

With Ruby Railton dominant in the low post and guards Imogen O’Rourke and Hannah Bellett forcing turnovers Carmel made it a single point game at 57-56 with a shade under five minutes to play to set up a tense finish.

Amy McKenzie eased the Taka nerves with a nice finish and soon after Flavell nailed a corner three to give her team some much needed breathing space.

Railton replied with another inside bucket but Flavell scored six straight to take the Taka lead out to double digits with two minutes to play (69-59).

Mackereth cancelled out another Railton score and although Carmel scored the last four points of the game Takapuna had done enough to secure the win.

Earlier in an understandably nervy start it was Carmel, with Zahara Tibbotts to the fore, that made the better start scoring the first six points of the game.

It took Taka over six minutes to score their first field goal, courtesy of Mackereth and her free throw tied the scores at 13 all at quarter time.

The early stages of the second period were tight before Taka put together a 15-8 run to go into the half-time break with a 35-23 advantage.

Flavell and Mackenzie further increased the lead in the early stages of the third before Carmel embarked on their stirring comeback.

Unfortunately for the hosts it wasn’t quite enough and it’s Takapuna that will play Premier basketball next term with Carmel slotting into Senior A.  

Takapuna 71 – Flavell 40, McKenzie 11, Mackereth 10

Carmel 64 – Railton 23, Bellett 14, O’Rourke 11, Tibbotts 7

Mar 20 2023
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College Hoops

The weekend wrap from March Madness

March 20

Ella Bradley at Elite Eight of NCAA Division II Tournament, Charlotte Whittaker our remaining hope in Division I, Junior College Nationals about to begin. It’s fun to follow and record.

All this and more:

March Madness: Heartbreak and Success in Latest Games
Mar 17 2023
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Breakers by Numbers, NZ Breakers

Wrapping up the major Breakers numbers from the season

That record Game 4 crowd was something special.

Following the Game 5 Grand Final defeat in Sydney the curtain has come down on a hugely entertaining and successful Sky Sport Breakers season. Whilst the ultimate prize eventually eluded them the club can take immense pride in turning the disaster that was the 2021-22 wooden spoon into an almost successful march to the championship in 2022-23.

There were many memorable games during the season but for those present Grand Final Game 4 played in front of 9,742 fans at Spark Arena took the biscuit. Not only was it a record crowd for a basketball game in New Zealand but the atmosphere and passion of the supporters was spine tingling – it will live long in the memory.

Here are the key numbers from the season:

Jarrell Brantley and Derek Pardon were the only two players to play all 36 games, rookie coach Mody Maor guiding the club to an overall record of 22-14.

Brantley, the Breakers Most Valuable Player of the Year Award winner, led the scoring amassing 581 points with Barry Brown Jnr not far behind with 544 points.

The other main scoring contributors were Derek Pardon (424 points), Will McDowell-White (366) and Izayah Le’afa (359).

Tom Abercrombie’s defensive masterclass in Grand Final Game 4 in which he garnered 6 steals set a new career mark for the Breakers skipper. It also equaled the record held by another Breaker’s great Mika Vukona for the most steals by a Breaker in a play-off game.

Abbo has extended his Breakers all-time appearance record to 399 games. He has also further extended the club’s all-time records in the following categories:

Points to 4,319

Blocks to 215

Wins to 226

In addition he is second all time in rebounding behind Mika Vukona and steals behind Dillon Boucher.

Surely Tom will be back in 2023-24 to play his 400th game and take those records to greater heights!

Will McDowell-White’s emergence as an elite point guard was a joy to behold. In addition to his 366 points he dished 200 assists and pulled down 175 rebounds.

He now has 390 career assists in 78 games at exactly 5 per game. That moves the Aussie into heady company as only Cedric Jackson, with 6.4 dimes per game, has a better Breakers career average. 

Those 390 assists already place him 8th on the Breakers all-time list which is led by Paul Henare (901).

Derek Pardon led the team in blocked shots (38) and rebounds (290). His 38 blocks in a single season have only been bettered by Ben Pepper, Ekene Ibekwe and Shawn Long.

Rob Loe has moved up the Breakers all-time list on a number of statistical categories during the season:

66 blocks – 7th all-time

145 appearances – 10th all-time

68 wins – 11th all-time

542 rebounds – 12th all-time

Roll on the 2023-24 season only seven months to wait!

Mar 16 2023
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College Hoops

Ella Bradley headlines March Madness wrap

March 16

March Madness is set to get hectic over the coming days as over 20 Kiwis take the court in different tournaments.

Check the fixture list in the attached story.

A belated congratulations to former Waikato and St Peter’s School standout Ella Bradley. She and her University of Texas at Tyler team emerged victorious from a titanic struggle against Lubbock Christian to reach the Elite Eight at the NCAA Division II National Championships.

Full story here: https://nz.basketball/march-madness-minimum-20-kiwis-involved-in-championships/

Mar 10 2023
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NZ Breakers

Breakers on the receiving end of rough treatment?

March 10

There is all to play for this weekend as the Sky Sport Breakers take on the Sydney Kings in Games 3 and 4 of the NBL Grand Final with the five games series locked at 1-1.

The Breakers coaching staff and hierarchy have said nothing publicly but behind closed doors there must be some furrowed brows when they look at the box scores from the five NBL play-off games played to date involving the New Zealand team.

After all there are a couple of statistical categories in which the Breakers trail alarmingly. Over the three semi-final games against Tasmania Jack Jumpers and Games I and 2 against the Kings they trail the foul count 119-94. By that I mean the Breakers have been called for 25 more fouls than their opponents – an average of 5 per game.

Perhaps not surprisingly the trips to the foul line see the Breakers beaten up badly – 137 free throws taken by their opponents to 107 by the Breakers. A differential of 30 opportunities or 6 per game or almost a third more for the opposition.

It was equally lop sided overall in the regular season against the Kings. In game 1 back in November the count was almost even with Sydney called for one more foul (23 to 22) and the Breakers visiting the charity stripe on one more occasion (30-29).

Games two and three were a different matter entirely with the Breakers called for a total of 46 fouls compared with the Sydney-siders 27. As a result trips to the foul line were massively in favour of the Kings (55-32).

Michaela Aylen and Vaughan Mayberry are the best two NBL referees, of that there is no doubt, and one or both have officiated the Breakers play-off games thus far. But even they might be surprised by the discrepancies that have occurred on their watch!

Let’s hope the scales are more evenly balanced in the remaining games of this captivating Grand Final series.

It would be nice to put to one side the impression the NBL (and referees) favour the big market clubs in Melbourne and Sydney. 

Go Breakers!

Mar 05 2023
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College Hoops

March Madness Update #3

March 5

The Washington State Cougars dream run at the Pac 12 Conference Tournament has carried them all the way to the Grand Final.

Having seen off second seed, and number three ranked team in the nation, Utah in the quarter-finals they powered away from third seed Colorado (that included Charlotte Whittaker) in the fourth quarter to win 61-49. Charlisse Leger-Walker led the WSU scoring with 15 points to go with 3 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal. 

The reward for Washington State is a first ever championship game which will see them match up with UCLA on Monday after they ousted number one seed Stanford in the other semi-final.

Also headed for a first ever grand final are Wofford College. Helen Matthews had 5 points, 5 rebounds and a couple of assists as regular season champions Wofford beat UNC Greensboro to advance to the Southern Conference tournament championship game. Wofford will meet the number two ranked Chattanooga in the final on Sunday, the winner of course advancing to the NCAA Tournament beginning March 15.

Tayla Dalton scored 11 points, claimed 6 rebounds and dished 4 assists while Jade Kirisome, playing her 108th Division I game, made both her 3-point attempts for 6 points as St Mary’s College were beaten 82-77 by Pacific. The second round defeat eliminated St Mary’s from the West Coast Conference Tournament (WCCT).

There was better news from the WCCT with BYU working their way to the semi-finals with a 66-56 win against San Francisco. Arielle Mackey-Williams and Kaylee Smiler combined to make 6 from 7 threes. Mackey-Williams finished with 14 points while Smiler, playing her 101st game for BYU, scored 6 points.

University of California Irvine clinched a share of the Big West Conference regular season title with a 52-44 victory over CSU Bakersfield.

Freshman Akiva McBirney-Griffin, an NBL championship winner with Otago Nuggets in 2021, has enjoyed a solid freshman year earning 8 starts in his 28 appearances.

Flynn Cameron had 16 points and 5 assists as UC Riverside clinched third seed at the Big West Conference Tournament after a 73-72 overtime win at Cal Poly. The 5 assists pushed Cameron up to fifth spot on UCR’s single season record for assists made – he has 108 in 32 games in this campaign.

Older brother Tobias Cameron scored 10 points as Abilene Christian wrapped up Western Athletic Conference regular season play with a 72-54 defeat at the hands of Sam Houston.

Colorado State completed Mountain West regular season fixtures with a 92-84 victory over New Mexico. James Moors with 8 points, on 4 from 5 shooting, plus 5 rebounds in the win.

Mar 04 2023
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College Hoops

March Madness Update #2

March 2

Washington State have seen off second seed, and number three ranked team in the nation, Utah 66-58. Charlisse Leger-Walker finished with 15 points making 4 from 7 threes including a clutch effort with 8 seconds to play when WSU’s lead had been trimmed to just three-points.

The reward for Washington State is a semi-final match up with Charlotte Whittaker and the University of Colorado. Whittaker scored 4 points in their 62-54 defeat of Oregon State.

Those 4 points brought up 300 career points for the Cantabrian forward.

Helen Matthews filled the stats line as Southern Conference regular season champions Wofford College beat Western Carolina 71-56. Matthews finished with 11 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, a block and a steal in the Southern Conference tournament opening round.

Tayla Dalton scored 12 points and Jade Kirisome 5 points as St Mary’s eased to a 74-43 win against Loyola Marymount in the first round of the West Coast Conference Tournament.

Ashlee Strawbridge scored 8 points as New Mexico State (10-8) rounded out the regular season with a 70-64 win against Sam Houston.

In her 50th NCAA Division I game Grace Hunter scored 7 points as Cal State Bakersfield were defeated 52-46 by Long Beach State.

In NCAA Division II play Ella Bradley claimed 7 rebounds to accompany 11 points as the University of Texas at Tyler beat West Texas A&M 75-54 to reach the semi-finals of the Lone Star Conference Tournament.

Eckerd College bowed out at the semi-final stage of the Sunshine State Conference Tournament. Hannah Wentworth scored 6 points as #2 Eckerd went down 60-52 to #3 Lynn. 

Making a vital free-throw with just 4 seconds left on the clock Marvin Williams-Dunn (3 points) and Ouachita Baptist ousted top seed Southern Nazarene from the Great American Conference Tournament winning 70-67. Nazarene had won 15 games on the bounce and were ranked 11th nationally.

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