Gus Dallow and Jameer Reed are members of the New Zealand team that are headed to the 2023 FIBA U17 World Cup in Turkey next year after the Kiwis claimed silver at the FIBA U16 Men’s Asian Championship in Doha, Qatar that finished Monday morning (NZT).

New Zealand went down 79-76 to Australia in a gripping Grand Final with Jameer equal second highest scorer for the men in black, scoring 12 points.

After finishing with a 3-0 record in Pool play New Zealand easily accounted for hosts Qatar in the Quarter-Finals winning a one-sided contest 110-33 before taking care of China in the semi-final with an 86-69 victory.

The Grand Final was the first time that New Zealand and Australia have faced each other at the FIBA U16 Asian Champs since 2015 when an almost equally close contest was won 91-85 by Australia. That game saw future senior national team players Sam Waardenburg, Dan Fotu and Brayden Inger suit up for New Zealand – all three of course out of Rangitoto College and former Harbour representative standouts too.

The 2023 Secondary Schools National Championships began in Palmerston North on Monday. Here is how the four Harbour schools at the champs have fared on the opening days:

Defending champions Westlake Girls High School have begun their defence with five straight wins to finish top of Pool A with victories over Fielding High School, Rotorua Girls High, Christchurch Girls High, Rangiora High and St Peter’s School, Cambridge.

Takapuna Grammar School have also enjoyed strong performances in Pool D with wins against St Mary’s College, Wellington, Waimea College, Sacred Heart College, Lower Hutt and Auckland rivals Mt Albert Grammar School. They did suffer a 10-points defeat (85-75) at the hands of Hamilton Girls High School but finished second in their pool with a 4-1 record.

Northcote College are searching for their first win in Pool B after suffering four straight losses including an opening game loss (105-59) to championship favourites St Andrew’s College, Christchurch. 

Rosmini College are the sole Harbour representative in the Boy’s Tournament but their chances of making a fifth straight grand final hang by a thread. Last year’s silver medallists opened their campaign against Fielding High School with a 93-75 win but then suffered a narrow losses against Hamilton Boys High School (65-64) and Wellington College (80-76).

The Breakers first NBL regular season fixture will be against Cairns Taipans at Spark Arena on Saturday September 30 with a later than usual 8.30pm tip-off. That should be an intriguing tie with the Taipans featuring former Harbour stars Sam Mennenga and Sam Waardenburg in their ranks – Mennenga making his NBL and professional debut in his home town!