By TBHS | Posted: Thursday September 7, 2017
Friday 25 August saw TBHS take out the three championship titles we were competing for: Senior A, Junior A and Junior B
This was a pleasing result as last year we were unable to win any of these finals. Only our Senior B (social) teams failed to make the finals but were competitive in their grade, one team making the semi -finals.
The Junior B final was won by TBHS Black, a Year 9 team coached by Glenn Austin. It was a pleasing effort against an athletic, tall Opihi side, and was played in an excellent, competitive spirit by both teams. After trailing in the first half, excellent defence and some inspired scoring allowed TBHS to gain the lead and extend this, restricting Opihi to just a few points in the second half. All TBHS players contributed in a genuine team effort.
In the Junior A game, TBHS White was coached by parent Ange Black. This was our top Year 10 team and was expected to do well against a young but improving, well-coached Roncalli side. Despite a competitive and hard fought first half, TBHS were able to pull away with some effective defence, leading to fast break baskets which opened up the game and gave the team a comfortable lead. Jack Crossan led from the front and was responsible for a number of defensive steals, exciting baskets and scoring assists. He deserved his MVP award for the Junior A final and was ably assisted by RJ Newth, Andrew Cheung, Harry Black, Seb van den Bosch, Connor Crotty, Lachlan Hyde, Quinn Motley and Josh Grey. The TBHS Junior Basketball tournament team comprises the best available players from the White and Black teams (above). We wish them all the best next week in the Ashburton tournament.
The TBHS Senior A defeated Roncalli College to claim the title. Roncalli won this last year and still fielded a useful side. With the exception of TBHS’s James Watt, Roncalli competed in height with our team and claimed a majority of rebounds in the first half. Although hard-fought, this was a very scrappy and disjointed game where neither side shot consistently and failed to get into a rhythm for any period of time. TBHS prevailed because they were able to punish Roncalli with fast breaks, which allowed a lead to develop. However, this lead was not made comfortable until the last quarter with a final score of 62-48. Ben Aicken won the MVP award. James Watt competed strongly, scoring steadily, and all of the team contributed, despite a lack of the desired consistency.
