Hutt Valley Surprise
Tagged in: Tournaments
Hutt Valley’s under-15 boys knew just how much to bend without breaking in Rotorua on Monday.
The Hutt almost gave up double-digit leads but held on for surprise wins over North Harbour and Canterbury on day one of the Oreo Under-13 and Under-15 National Championships at the Rotorua Events Centre.
Up 16 points in the fourth quarter, Hutt saw their lead shrink dramatically in the final minutes against Harbour, holding on for an 80-78 win, then led by as many as 15 points against defending champions Canterbury in their night game before it closed to five points in an 82-72 win.
“It’s because of the style of defence we play,” said coach Joe Hemi, referring to his team’s aggressive press defence that forced Harbour and Canterbury into turnover after turnover, and fast-break points.
“The boys get mentally tired and they just have to be there at the end. We’ve really got some good guys with good presence. They’ve been in situations like this before.”
With guard Kurt Robinson leading the way with 26 points against North Harbour and forward Tyler Tane top-scoring with 18 points against Canterbury, Hutt Valley used their also got quality performances from role players Nico Buckrell, Emory Beck and Elliot Stubbins.
“I was pretty confident with these two games because nobody knew us. We were unknown. Nobody knew who we were, we didn’t go to nationals last year. We qualified but didn’t go because the host team took the last spot.
“These boys have been together for about a year now. It’s pretty much the Hutt Valley team plus two from St Bernard’s. They’ve just come off junior secondary school premierships. They’re getting some good chemistry.”
Hutt Valley were one of 29 teams to escape day one unbeaten and one of 13 teams to book quarterfinal places.
Six of eight under-15 boys quarterfinals berths were sorted on day one, with Nelson and Massey in pool A, Wellington and Waikato in pool C and Counties Manukau in pool D joining Hutt Valley in the elite eight.
Harbour and Canterbury will battle for the second pool B quarters place, while Otago and Whangarei will meet to decide the second qualifier from pool D.
Only one top-eight spot remains in the under-13 girls division, with seven 2-0 teams. Counties Manukau and Nelson from pool A, North Harbour in pool B, Hawke’s Bay and Waikato in pool C, and Canterbury and Waitakere City from pool D will be joined by either Rotorua or Mid Canterbury in the quarters.
Crucial games on day two at the Rotorua Events Centre include under-15 boys defending champs Canterbury’s showdown with North Harbour at 7.30pm on court one, along with Otago’s game with Whangarei at 12.30pm on court five.
Hometown team Rotorua, following their first round upset of Porirua, will play for a place in the under-13 girls quarterfinals against Mid Canterbury at 2.15pm on court two.
While the under-15 boys and under-13 girls top-eights have almost been confirmed, the under-15 girls and under-13 boys get down to business on day two with two games each to decide qualifiers.
Six teams went into triple-figures on day one, with Canterbury and Waitakere in the under-13 girls, North Harbour and Canterbury in the under-13 boys, and Waikato in the under-15 boys and girls.
Counties Manukau’s Joshua Young was the first day’s leading scorer, dropping 36 points on Whangarei in an 87-74 win in under-15 boys pool D.
Other players to go over 30 points on day one, included Hibiscus Coast’s Jaylen Gerrand, going for 31 points against Wellington in a 76-63 win in the under-13 boys pool C; Waikato’s Aaron Keppler with 32 points against Auckland in under-15 boys pool C; and Otago’s Henrie Njobanti raining in 30 points in a 78-67 win over Porirua in under-15 boys pool D.
Game On - Daily News (72KB pdf)
