U14 Kea Into Semis
Tagged in: Athletes, National Teams, NZ Koru
New Zealand put one team into the semifinals on day four of the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup and have four more teams in quarterfinals on Friday.
The under-14 Kea boys became the first New Zealand Koru Tour team to progress to the final four, with a 78-58 win over their mates on the NZ Koru team on Thursday afternoon in Albury, New South Wales.
The Keas lost their final pool game 80-64 to the NSW Kookaburras to finish 3-2 in pool A, and will now face the Vic Bushrangers, who finished first in pool B, in the second semifinal.
The Korus were edged 51-48 by the Western Australia Sandgropers but held onto third in pool B at 2-3 as the Kiwi teams went 6-8 for the day, the tour group’s most wins since posting seven on day one.
An agonising 54-52 last-minute quarterfinal loss to the South Australia Magpies saw the under-14 Kea girls dip out of title contention, after they completed pool play second in pool A at 4-1 after a 67-63 win over the NSW Kookaburras.
The Koru girls lost their final pool game, 65-62 to the WA Sandgropers, to finish 0-5, and then fell to hosts Albury Wodonga 67-52 in a classification playoff.
The under-16 grade is the focus of Friday, with all four teams matched up in tough quarterfinals.
Despite an 84-56 loss to end section play on Thursday, the Kea girls were the highest qualifiers, finishing third in pool A at 2-3, while New Zealand’s other quarterfinalists all finished fourth in their pools and will match-up against pool winners in the last eight.
Both the Koru boys and girls won their final pool games against the WA Sandgropers – the boys 68-58 and girls 60-45 – to avoid going winless and qualify for the playoffs. The Kea boys fell 79-58 to the NSW Kookaburras in their final pool game to finish at 1-4 in pool A.
The under-18 Koru boys recovered from having to forfeit their afternoon game on Wednesday with several players ill or injured, to beat the SA Sharks 79-66, their first win of the tournament. The Kea boys fell heavily 99-43 to the Vic Goldminers to also sit at 1-4.
With a 73-70 win over the SA Sharks, the under-18 Koru girls improved to fifth at 2-3, and could yet force their way into the top-four.
Two games confront the under-18 teams on Friday to complete pool play, before classification games on Saturday.
Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup
Thursday, January 15
Under-14 Boys
NSW Kookaburras 80 NZ Kea 64 (Joseph Kang 28, Dion Mau’u 9)
WA Sandgropers 51 NZ Koru 48 (Matthew Bird 14)
Quarterfinal
NZ Kea 78 (Joseph Kang 34) NZ Koru 58 (Brandon Gleaves 26)
Under-14 Girls
NZ Kea 67 (Rata Ngatai 16, Terina Wanoa 14, Keretina Hakaraia 10) NSW Kookaburras 63
WA Sandgropers 65 NZ Koru 62 (Shevanna Sullivan 21, Petra Dye-Hutchinson 9)
Quarterfinal
SA Magpies 54 NZ Kea 52 (Terina Wanoa 10, Annabelle Jenkins 10, Keretina Hakaraia 10)
Classification Playoff
Albury Wodonga 67 NZ Koru 52 (Laken Wairau 18, Petra Dye-Hutchinson 9)
Under-16 Boys
NSW Kookaburras 79 NZ Kea 58 (Thomas Vodanovich 16, Joshua Young 14)
NZ Koru 68 (Timothy Apisai 15, Taylor Davidson 15, Quentin Potts 11) WA Sandgropers 58
Under-16 Girls
NSW Kookaburras 84 NZ Kea 56 (Chelsea McQueen 10, Morgan Roberts 9)
NZ Koru 60 (Hana Wilkinson 19, Lucy Heenan 15) WA Sandgropers 45
Under-18 Boys
NZ Koru 79 (Shaquille Hohipa-Wilson 24, Nick Davies 19) SA Sharks 66
Vic Goldminers 99 NZ Kea 43 (Benjamin Mackay 13, Alfonso Horomia 10)
Under-18 Girls
NZ Koru 73 (Elizabeth Hayman 20, Dallas Frederikson 14, Josie Stockill 11, Hannah Wong 11) SA Sharks 70
