Basketball New Zealand

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New Zealand boys continued their great form at the Australian U16 Championships with a 95-38 win over West Australia in pool play at Tamworth.

The encounter was evenly poised through the opening quarter, but the Aussies couldn’t respond to a 31-9 second quarter. The Kiwis shot 58% from the field and forced their opponents into 38 turnovers, gathering 22 assists along the way.

As a team, they also blocked 12 shots, with Otago’s Richard Rodger swatting six single-handedly. New Zealand has six players score in double figures, led by North Harbour’s Matt Freeman and Canterbury’s Jackson Stent with 15 apiece.

The NZ boys improved their record to 3-1 and meet Queensland South, also 3-1, on Wednesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, the NZ girls lost their way over the second half of their 30-54 loss to New South Wales Metro.

The Kiwis kept pace with their rivals through the opening quarter and were only three points astray at halftime, but an 18-6 third period saw they drop off the pace. They conceded 22 offensive rebounds and committed 26 turnovers, gifting NSW enough possession to attempt 23 more shots from the field.

Canterbury’s Laken Wairau led New Zealand’s scoring with nine points, while New Plymouth’s Connie Poletti snared nine rebounds.

The girls are now 1-3 in pool play and face South Australia Metro (3-1) on Wednesday afternoon.

Australian U16 Championships
Tamworth, New South Wales
Boys
New Zealand 95 (Matthew Freeman 15, Jackson Stent 15, Kane Keil 13, Logan Hunt 11, Liam Stanley-Tasi 11, Geronimo Doyle 10) West Australia Country 38
Q1 14-10
HT 45-19 (31-9)
Q3 65-30 (20-11)
FT 95-38 (30-8)
Box Score

Girls
New South Wales Metro 54 New Zealand 30 (Laken Wairau 9)
Q1 13-13
HT 22-19 (9-6)
Q3 40-25 (18-6)
FT 54-30 (14-5)
Box Score