CBA Winter Club Basketball Results 2013   WeekendingSunday 15^th September

 By Club Basketball Correspondent: Bruce Martin, with the aid of Dan Chan, Piet Van Hasselt, James Lissaman, Richard Kenny and stats extraordinaire Sharon Erwood.

Other contributions from clubs with stats and copy would be appreciated and used whenever possible.  Email: bruceymartin@hotmail.com

 ALL STARS ACTION

Teams picked from the four training centres have been competing in the Year 5/6 and Year 7/8 All-Stars competition and contested Semi-finals last weekend.

The Gators club and school teams look to be the CBA ‘Club of the Year’ having fashioned a very proud record this season with nine of its teams making semi’s of which seven have won through to their respective finals this Saturday, showing a strong base for future years. Four of the Gators teams have been dominate in the All-Stars competition with players selected from the four competitions run out of Cowles, Pioneer, Bishopdale Y and Wharenui/Middleton gyms covering year 5-6 and 7-8 age groups.

 ALL STARS SEMI-FINALS

 All Stars Yr 7-8 Boys: Gators 34 (Isiah Morris 20, Jonte Britten 10) Pioneer Pacers 32, Bishopdale YMCA 46 (Cameron Malone 16, Hsin Chen 11) Eastern Wolverines 42 (Joel 16). Grand Final this Saturday 10am: Gators v Bishopdale.

 All Stars Yr 5-6 Boys: Bisholdale YMCA 33 Wolverines 32, Gators 33 Pioneer Pacers 23. Grand Final this Saturday 9am: Bisholdale YMCA v Gators.

 All Stars Yr 7-8 Girls: Pioneer Pacers 50 Wolverines 35, Gators 51 Bishopdale YMCA 9. Grand Final this Saturday 10am: Pioneer Pacers v Gators.

 All Stars Yr 5-6 Girls: Bishopdale YMCA 29 Wolverines 24, Gators 70 Pioneers Pacers 4. Grand Final this Saturday 9am: Bishopdale YMCA v Gators.

 Men’s Premier Championship Semi-Finals

 Atami cruised into its 11^th straight Men’s Premier club basketball championship final after a comfortable 83-60 demolition of Gators in the 1 v 4 semi-final in Cowles Stadium on Saturday. There were big smiles on the faces of University fans after their side won through to its first championship final in the past 11 years. University powered away from a rather flat Wolverines to win 77-65 after having finished bottom in the Hoban trophy competition. The Premier Men’s final between Atami and University will tap off at 6pm.

 Atami all team work as it thumps Gators 83-60

In a pressure situation game Gators attacked early, but with both sides not giving an inch, the foul count rose dramatically in the first quarter and free throws were the order of the day. Ritchie Howell was stopped on several occasions as he got inside the Gators defence, putting in five free throw points as the game unfolded while Chris Duthie led a lack-lustre Gators reply. Duthie drove the lanes strongly with numerous Atami defenders standing in his way, slotting several amazing baskets, free throws and a triple pointer.

Rusty Thompson ranged free and wide and with support from the foraging Paul McFarlin Atami edged ahead to a 23-14 lead by quarter-time. Atami maintained a very tight defence throughout, slowly extending its lead. Matt Stevenson and Kaye McKee tried to lift the Gators efforts but cool defence thwarted any come-back as Atami extended its lead slowly to 43-31 by half-time and 58-42 by the third break.

Duthie continued with his never-give-up attitude, slotting a hard-earned 21 points despite close marking. Thompson shone for Atami with 24 points. Atami’s uncompromising defence saw it clock up a 28-17 foul count as Gators continued to look for holes in the Atami defence. Former Tallblack Jeremy Kench made a small difference for Gators in the second half but was limited to just 11 points.

 University inspired by Marty Davidson thumps Wolverines 77-56

Wolverines were extended by a fired up University, determined to make its first Grand final after 11 years of trying. Marty Davidson has become an inspirational leader for several seasons and a key member of the team for the eight seasons he has been in the club and it has finally paid off with the first time he has made a final. Marty has a very keen eye to steel balls regularly or throw his body on the line in pursuit of the loose ball and this enthusiasm is uplifting to his team-mates.

Wolverines on the other hand came to the semi’s with several key players away or injured. Lionel Hopgood had to work the boards at both ends putting back 19 points while grabbing rebounds and Mike Kinley and Dean Le Warne were hard pressed by roving defence from the students.

For University, Daniel Pau’u stepped up in the early exchanges as University pulled to a 19-11 lead by quarter-time while Kinley splashed in a couple of triple pointers to lift Wolverines, closing the gap to 30-36 by the turnaround.

The third-quarter was evenly matched with the students ahead 53-45 when the expected Wolverines feared last-quarter challenge was expected but solid defence and quick changes in pace saw University extend its lead through a solid team effort with Brent Fisher (17 pts, 15R) and Matt Campbell (13, 10R) the main contributors.

University also had the advantage, scoring 16-6 points from its bench and 20-6 second chance points and out-rebounded Wolverines 54-31, pulling away in the final quarter by 21-10 to set up a dream final against the mighty Atami, a tribute to the coaching skills of  the clubs mentor Piet Van Hasselt.

 Scorers were:

Atami 83 (Rusty Thomson 24, Paul McFarlin 16, Ritchie Howell 13, Scott Howell 10) Gators 60 (Chris Duthie 21, Jeremy Kench 11). HT: 43-31. University 77 (Brent Fisher 17, 15R, Daniel Pau’u 14, 10R, Matt Campbell 13, 10R) Wolverines 56 (Lionel Hopgood 19, 12R, Dean Le Warne 12, Michael Kinley 10, 5R). HT: 36-30. Grand Grand Final this Saturday 6pm: Atami v University.

 Women’s Premier Championship Semi-Finals

 Fourth ranked Lincoln University almost brought off a stunning upset in the Women’s semi-final with Patron’s trophy winner Halswell coming from behind  in the closing stages through the efforts of the Baker sisters, Jess and Emily and a three from Anna Williams to sneak home 52-50 despite some last minute heroics from Lincoln’s Kate McLaughlin.

University which has been in eight straight finals, winning seven, crushed Minties with a strong second-half effort 56-36 after the game was levelled 25-25 at the turnaround. It was in both 2005 and 2006 when Halswell last appeared in a Championship final which they lost. While Wolverines, now the bases of the Lincoln University, was the only side to have stopped University’s clean sweep when it won the 2009 final.

 

Halswell scrapes home for its first final since 2006 pipping Lincoln 52-50

Lincoln University hit the court running squeezing out an 11-2 lead against the Patron’s trophy winner Halswell. Lincoln had the measure of Halswell in the first championship round and knew it could upset them if they carried the game to Halswell. The Wildcats captain Shea Crotty marshalled her team well and set up numerous strong attacking moves and had tight defence restricting the Haslwell scoring. A better effort in the second quarter saw Halswell starting to find some baskets that had been hard to come by through determined Lincoln defence. The second and third quarters were evenly matched with Bridgette Lawn defending for the students while Charisa Theyers slipped her marker for several timely baskets.

Halswell rotated its bench frequently in trying to find workable combinations but shots were not dropping. Wildcat Cecilia Zambrini broke the Lincoln defence in the last quarter as Halswell closed the gap with every passing moment Anna Williams produced a vital trey to close the game even closer as the Lincoln efforts stalled. Both sides had their chances to close out the game but couple of free throws to Zambrini and one to Lori McDaniel put Halswell in the lead to scrap home by the barest of margins.

 University strong second half leads to a 56-36 win over Minties.

Charlotte Elley continued her recent good form as she led the defending champions University to a must win game against the unpredictable Minties. Minties were again without the services of livewire Gemma Hazeldene who is overseas with NZ Netball and lacked drive and penetration.

By quarter-time University were in control ahead 15-10 but Minties came back to level at the turnaround 25-25. Hayley Gray endeavoured to lift the Minties efforts but was stopped by pressure defence while Laken Wairau asserted her authority on the game as University applied pressure to pull steadily away in the second spell. Jaime Campbell closed out the boards for University making life difficult for Minties.

Scorers were:

Grade Championship Semi-Finals:

University 56 (Charlotte Elley 21, Laken Wairau 19) Minties 36 (Hayley Gray 13). HT: 25-25.

Halswell 52 (Jess Baker 12) Lincoln University 50 (Kate McLaughlin 13, Bridette Lawn 10). HT: Lincoln 25-18.

Grand Final this Saturday 4.15pm: University v Halswell.

Men’s Under 23 Championship Semi-Finals

In the Men’s Under 23 semi’s Gators had too much teamwork for a gallant Atami, winning a finals berth 83-69 while an on-fire Lincoln University started strongly against Wolverines and held its own before winning the other finals berth with a 87-72 victory.

Grand Final this Saturday 11am: Gators v Lincoln University.

Dan the Man Chan sends his report on Saturday morning’s action in Cowles stadium.

#2 Wolverines v #3 Lincoln University (72 – 87)

A much anticipated semi-final bout saw the mighty Wolfpack lock horns with the red-hot Lincoln Bulls for the fourth time this season; only this time, it was ‘Win or Go Home’.

From the get go, the upbeat tempo and ‘run and gun’ transition basketball gave hope for an exciting match and it did not disappoint. Lincoln took advantage early, and quickly soared out to a 22-13 lead by the end of the first quarter, largely thanks to an unexpected shooting display from diminutive point guard Aled Jones (25 points, 4/5 3pt FG). Running a high set pick and roll, the Wolverines defense opted to go under the screens but Jones, not known for his shooting, nailed three treys in the first ten minutes and made it four for the match in a clutch performance. Coming into the game, Jones had only managed to connect on 11.4% from beyond the arc this season.

On the flip side, the young Wolverines team couldn’t buy a field goal as Lincoln pulled away to their largest lead of the game (19 points) in the second, as floor spacing power forward Nick Erwood (28 points, 9 reb), who is well in contention to take out the Kia Race to MVP award, carried his team on his back.

A more aggressive and hungry Wolfpack took the floor in the third quarter – big man Kieran Ball (12 points, 12 reb) and combo guard James Levings (20 points, 11 reb) showed some scoring prowess in the latter stages to put up a fight, along with captain Oli Davies (14 points, 9 reb) and back-up point guard Taylor Britt (11 points), who provided a spark off the bench with three ‘triple pointers’ to bring Wolves back within eight points at one stage.

Although it was a valiant effort to keep the match alive, the speed and ease at which Lincoln got to the hoop became too much for Wolves, as the lead opened up again and Lincoln were able to claim their first-ever finals berth in the U23 competition. LU’s small forward Joe King (16 points) and former U20 Finals MVP Isaac Williams (12 points, 10 reb) managed to notch up double figure scoring numbers as well.

#1 Gators v #4 Atami (83 – 69)

In a crucial semi-final, the experienced machine that is the Gators squad managed to keep a perfect record against a scrappy Atami outfit winning comfortably, 83 – 69. As usual, ex-Junior Tall Black and superstar point guard Chris Duthie led the men in green with 24 points. Athletic swingman Jozef Knottenbelt, who was selected into the 2012 U19 National Tournament Team, added 12 points; NZ U18 guard Ihaka Pink sliced his way for 12 points, and U23 Canterbury power forward, Alex Jellie, nailed some classic midranges on his way to 10 points.

The scores were locked at 48-all late in the third quarter but the Gator boys’ went on a run stretching over the last few minutes of the third and the start of the fourth, which sealed the victory.

Energetic Atami swingman Callan Tucker described the match as a game of runs. “Everytime we inched closer to their lead, they would just match our runs man. It was hard.” Nifty Atami point guard Bryn McLennan ran well in transition for his 20 points, aided by the Cashmere duo of Kyle Tikao (13 points) and George Love (10 points). The scoring savant Cam Chalmers was contained tightly by the stingy Gators defense.

Scorers were:

Under 23 Semi-Finals:

Gators 83 (Chris Duthie 24, Jozef Knottenbelt 12, Ihaka Pink 12, Alex Jellie 10) Atami 69 (Bryn McLennan 20, Kyle Tikao 13, George Love 10). HT: 35-27. Lincoln University 87 (Nick Erwood 26, 9R, Aled Jones 25, 6R, Joseph King 16, 6R, Isaac Williams 12, 10R) Wolverines 72 (James Levings 20, 11R, 7TO, Ollie Davies 14, 9R, Kieran Ball 12, 12R, Taylor Britt 11). HT: 45-33.

Men’s Under 20 Semi-Finals  

Burnside outsmarts Lincoln 65-56 to defend its title

Lincoln got the early measure of the defending champion Burnside taking a 20-15 first-quarter lead through the efforts of Sam Riley and Stu Erskine. Rugged defence from Burnside saw them get a share of the action, leaving the door open for Jahnim Campbell and Shou Nisbett to pounce quickly in reply. A better second quarter saw Burnside go ahead 36-32 at the turnaround. The hard working Josh Coard feeding the ball inside to the roaming Oliver Fairbrother while the rest of the Burnside team were keeping a close eye on Lincoln’s sharp-shooter James Cawthorn.

After Burnside was given a 30 point lesson at the recent Premierships, Lincoln should have pulled away but the third-quarter was point for point. Burnside started to regain much of its lost confidence as passes stuck and baskets fell while Lincoln was forced to defend more astutely. Nisbett (16) and Campbell (14) continued his lightning strikes as the time ran down. Burnside led the last quarter 18-12 to gain the win and a chance to set up a double repeat for the Burnside school. The normally prolific scorer Cawthorn was restricted to 12 points for Lincoln while Erskine kept the score ticking over with 16 points.  

 

Middleton Grange Gators pounds Boys High 74-45.

The unbeaten Middleton Gators raced away to a huge 21-4 lead through the efforts of Regan Burnett and Peter McLean while Scott Ralston got among the paint early for Boys High. Nathan Campbell led a re-vitalised High school effort in the next period as his team slowly closed the gap to trail 36-26 by half-time. Ihaka Pink picked up the pace for Gators in the second half with the alert McLean moppng up some untidy play. Andre Tamagushiku foraged strongly for Boys High but had difficulty in penetrating the Gators defence. John Suddens found wide gaps in the Boys High defence as Gators stretched its lead in the final quarter.

Scorers were:

Men’s Under 20 Semi-Finals:

Burnside HS 65 (Shou Nisbett 16, Jahnim Campbell 14, Josh Coard 14, Oliver Fairbrother 10)

Lincoln HS 56 (Stu Erskine 16, James Cawthorn 12). HT: 35-32. Middleton Grange Gators 74 (Ihaka Pink 19, Regan Burnett 14, Peter McLean 12, Jonny Suddens 10) Christchurch Boys HS 45 (Nathan Campbell 12, Andre Tamagushiku 10). HT: 36-26.

Grand Final Saturday 2.30pm: Burnside HS v Middleton Grange Gators.

Boy’s Under 17 Semi-Finals

The Wrap kindly supplied by Richard Kenny – Thank you Richard

For Christchurch and Shirley Boys, last Saturday was a case of so near yet so far as they went down in their respective finals by 7 & 8 points. Meanwhile for the winners Middleton & Burnside, an enthralling contest awaits on Saturday with a lot on the line for both teams. For Burnside White, the defending champion, a chance to claim back-to-back Under 17s titles and for Middleton the opportunity to shake off the disappointment of the last few years as they have been at or near the top in the regular season but have faltered in the finals series. Is this a pre-cursor to the Under 20s final involving the same schools? I don’t think so as this final has a lot going for it as well.

Burnside HS 78 Shirley Boys HS 70

In a see-sawing and close encounter, Shirley couldn’t quite complete a remarkable return to the final going down to Burnside 78-70 in their semi-final but full credit to coach James Dean for the way he has pulled that team back to being competitive after Shirley received such a knock to their basketball programme after the February ’11 quakes and I hope for continual building and success for Shirley in the future. Meanwhile for Burnside it is a chance to do the double back-to-back with their 20s team in their respective final as well. As for this game, despite a big three to beat the shot clock by Oliver Fairbrother midway through the opening term, Shirley finished the stronger to lead 22-19 at quarter time. In the 2^nd quarter again Burnside beat the shot clock not once but twice and the momentum from that plus Oliver Fairbrother leading them from the front with a game high 34 points carried Burnside to a 41-38 lead. After a tight, low-scoring 3^rd quarter from both teams, Burnside found another gear in the 4^th to gain a 10 point lead midway through the final term and although challenged from there, were able to hold on to book their place in the final. For Burnside Oliver Fairbrother led the way with 34 points including 13 in the 1^st quarter, Kazuki Tsukiji scored 14 and Kyle Louis and Blake Alps both contributed 12. Shirley’s top scorers were Will Grocott (18 points), Oliver Lidstone (14 points) and Patrick Rodger (10 points).

 

Middleton Grange Gators Green 67 Christchurch Boys HS 60

After a tight first-quarter with Middleton leading 16-15, Bobby Morris’ side started to gain the upper hand as they dominated play during the 2^nd and 3^rd quarters to take a 53-36 lead into three-quarter time. You would have thought that Middleton almost had it won except someone forgot to tell Quinn Clinton (10 last quarter points) and Boys High as they started to hit their shots and made a charge at the Gators. Fortunately for Middleton they held their nerve well to win 67-60 and set up a mouth-watering final game against Burnside. Sam Riley was an impressive presence inside for Middleton and he was the game’s top scorer with 21 points. He was well supported by Sam Lees with 17, Amosa Faitaua-Nanai (15) and Barclay Miller (8). For Boys High, Jake Anseil top scored with 17, Quinn Clinton (will he be All Star 5?) with 14 and Tullan McGuinness and Ben Harris both with 9.

 

Scorers were:

Burnside White 78 (Oliver Fairbrother 34, Kazuki Tsukiji 14, Blake Alps 12, Kyle Louis 12) Shirley Spartens 70 (Will Grocott 18, Ollie Lidstone 14, Patrick Roger 10). HT: 41-38. Middleton Grange Gators Green 67 (Sam Lees 19, Sam Riley 17, Amosa Faitaua-Nanai 16) Christchurch Boys HS 60 (Jack Ansell 17, Quinn Clinton 14). HT: 37-26.

Grand Final Saturday 11am: Burnside White v Middleton GG Green.

Men’s Division One Semi-Finals

PlaceMakers 59 v Uni of Canterbury 45

The two long-term rivals on the court and the best of mates off the court will clash again in the Division one final with Fraser Costley (Placemakers Wolves) looking to out-manoeuvre the wiley Jamie Graham (Wolverines).

In a low scoring encounter on Sunday, John McDonald got around the boards with 20 points as Placemakers held off a strong challenge from University to win 59-45 while Wolverines booked a Finals berth with a 58-34 win over the unpredictable Atami.

 

Scorers were:

Place Makers Wolves 59 (John McDonald 20, Cameron Costley 9) University 45 (Tim Richardson 15, Chris Grant 13), Wolverines 58 (Jamie Graham 13, Carl Willocks 12) Atami 34 (James Burrows 6).

Grand Final this Saturday 12.45pm: Placemakers v Wolverines.

Women’s Division One Semi-Finals 

Another great weekend for women's div 1 basketball! 

Royal 76 v Gators 48

Semi finals proved to be tough going for Royals who couldn't break away from Gators with some good shooting from the 3 point range. 

Good Defence, led by Hayley Fletcher and some sharp shooting on the outside by Candice Costley, helped the Royals ladies to edge away from season rivals gators 

Anna Spark took it to the Royals ladies and scored 22 points. Fierce contesting between Anna and Pina Lissaman saw Anna commit an unsportsmanlike foul and sent Piña to the line shooting two. From here the gap was just too large to bridge and Royals maintained their "undefeated" status which puts them in the finals against a strong Minties side.

Checker 51 v Minties 63

Minties put out the defending champion Checkers in a closely fought battle before prevailing 63-51 in the other semi. Estelle Uren, a Minties mainstay piled on the pressure and the baskets flowed as she notched up 32 points while Kelly Wilson replied with 17 for Checkers.

 Royals go into the Final favorites as it has soundly beaten Minties by around a 25 point margin on the two occasions they met this season. Royals are on target to reclaim the WD1 title it last held in 2009 and, after having been defeated in finals in 2011 and 21012, has its sights firmly focused on a WD1 championship for 2013.

 Scorers were:

Royals 76 (Jo Casey 26, Candice Costley 20) Gators 48 (Anna Spark 22, Lori Haisty 19), Minties 63 (Estelle Uren 32) Checkers 51 (Kelly Wilson 17, Helen Neighbour 12).

 

Grand Final this Saturday 2.30pm: Royals v Minties.

 Women’s Under 20 Semi-Finals

 Piet Van Hasselt sent in this report

UC WOMEN'S U20s CLINCH FINALS SPOT
The Women's U20 defending champion side became the third UC side into the weekend finals with a comprehensive win over Pioneer Red-CGHS on Sunday afternoon at Cowles Cauldron, 71-51. The Sussan Graham-coached side matched Graham's uncompromising defensive style when she was a former Canterbury Wildcat with a full-court pressure game throughout. UC had a balanced scoring attack with seven players scoring at least five points headed by Esra McGoldrick with 17 points. Sapphire Wairau slotted two long-bombs in her 10 point tally. Paige Willman showed her talents in the post going left and Andrea Prinsloo had a stellar fast break jump stop, fake and fly-by move as they both posted 10 points. Olivia Clarke and Captain Georgia May-Jensen worked hard on the boards with put-backs. Pioneer Red-CGHS had some strong players in their line-up featuring Wildcat forward Gabby Edmondson who topped the charts with 20 points. UC's relentless pressure wore them down, and after establishing a large double-digit lead in the second quarter, they didn't let up until the final buzzer. The undefeated Women's U20 side will now play Rangi Ruru in the grand final next Saturday, 12.45pm, Cowles Cauldron.

UC 71 (Esra McGoldrick 17, Paige Willman 10, Sapphire Wairau 10, Andrea Prinsloo 10, Olivia Clarke 8, Georgia May-Jensen 5, Meg Witterick 5, Ari Graham 2, Rose O'Shea 2, Tsubasa Nisbett 2) Pioneer Red - CGHS 51 (Gabby Edmondson 20, Tiarre Scott 12). HT 38-23.

 

Scorers were:

University 71 (Esra McGoldrick 17) Pioneer Red – CGHS 51 (Gabriela Edmondson 20, Tiare Scott 14), Rangi Ruru 54 Halswell 39.

Grand Final this Saturday 12.45pm: University v Rangi Ruru.

Mid-week Men Championship

Checkers White regained the Mid-week Men’s championship title with a solid 49-29 win over Burnham last Wednesday.

Terry Brunel who had been struggling for baskets in recent months knew he was due and unleashed  four might three-pointers, two in each half, to give his Checkers side a little relief from the on-going pressure from the army boys.

Checkers had all the moves worked out through Maurice Cokery and never let up its strong defence moves as it shut down the busy Brad Fraser and Ben Shaw while Vince Lawford slipped in four baskets before fouling out late in the game.

Last year’s champion University had a very close encounter with Raiders but withheld strong pressure in the closing minutes to win 51-47 in the third pace play-off game.

The Bishops had a marathon 113-62 over the Sphinx with Simon Meggett hitting 33 for The Bishops.

The Special O team went out on a high with a narrow 45-35 win over Pioneer Pacers, helped by fast breaking runs from Bradley Garner.

 

Scorers were:

Grand Final: Checkers White 49 (Terry Brunel 12, Paul Isitt 12, Nigel Buchanan 11) Burnham 29 (Vince Lawford 8).

Play-off 3^rd place: University 51 (Stuart McGirr 16, Nick Gee 14, N Gee 14) Raiders 47 (Jason Ray 18).

Play-off 5th place: The Bishops 113 (Simon Megget 33, Jack McDougall 29, Corey Crump 26, Murray Kennedy 20) Sphinx 62 (James Taylor 21, Victor Chu 16, Jilong Zhang 14).

Play-off 7th place: Bandits 49 (Rijjin Valiao 17, Nelson Santos 11) Lincoln University 44 (Fabian Kupe 19, Cam Shearer 11),

Play-off 9th place: Royals 44 (Chris Petch 15) Goauld 35 (Matthew Findsen 16, Ashley Bensley 10),

Play-off 11th place: Special Olympics 45 (Bradley Garner 19, Jason Roberts 11) Pioneer 35 (Dillan McLaughlan 12). 

 Mid- Week Women Championship

 Richard Kenny sent in his reports

Mid-Week Women Grand Final:     

CYA upsets Halswell Red 45-36

With the year’s top 2 women’s teams qualifying for the final, it looked to be a tight fight all the way, Halswell especially keen to get the win and complete the perfect season which few have done in Christchurch club basketball history, while CYA have been their closest challenger all year. After the teams traded early baskets, Halswell produced a brief 6-0 run to hit the front early highlighted by a clever duck and weave by the inspirational Jo Mumm. Courtney Greisman then converted on a nice drive for CYA as they brought the game back on level terms at 12 all with 5 minutes left in the 1^st half. As half time approached, Halswell’s Kirsty Jones converted a long 2 and Halswell took an 18-14 lead into the half. In the 2^nd half Jo Mumm again found the spark as she passed to her teammate Gina Papahadjis who converted on the fast break. The game became a game of momentum and lead swings as CYA hit 8 quick points to take the lead before Halswell responded with 8 of their own. CYA’s Carrel Gunn then lobbed a big 3 point shot that was banked to spark a 7-2 run to tie it up at 30-30 setting up an exciting last 10 minutes or so. For 5 minutes the scores stayed at 30 all before CYA’s Belinda Campbell broke the deadlock which seemed to give them a lift and a re-kindling of their hunger to win. CYA scored again followed by the teams trading baskets to see CYA up 38-36 in the dying minutes but alas, the last few minutes would be anti-climatic as the challengers produced the last seven points of the game to win their first Mid-week title 45-36. For Halswell a case of what might have been but for CYA a hunger satisfied as they converted their opportunities when it mattered.

 

University finishes strongly, beating Checkers for third 35-26.

By Bruce Martin

The University Mullions will be a side to be in contention for higher honours next season as they will be mostly back next season having not played together before, according to Piet Van Hasselt, the students chief cook and bottle washer. His young proteges have improved immensely throughout the season and carried its play-off game against the more experienced Checkers line-up with much determination. Chrissy Bell led the way for the students especially in the first half and with support from Kate Dore and the busy Nina Pau’u took University to a handy 22-12 half-time lead.

Katelin Russ drove the Checkers fightback with some assistance from Chrissy Willetts, but formidable defence from University through the work of Adela Knottenbelt and Anna Erwood kept Checkers at bay and a strong third placing for the students.

 

Richard Kenny sent in his reports

Mid-week Women’s Consolation Final

Royals 34 Haslwell Green 31

Royals delivered the goods to finish the 2013 season on a winning note defeating Halswell Green 34-31 in a tight playoff for 5^th/6^th. Despite not having their uniforms for about eight minutes, the Royals managed to stick close to Halswell as both teams traded baskets early. Ten minutes in Halswell held a slender lead of 9-6 before the Royals started finding their range, in particular Lesley Dick who scored 10 of the Royals next 12 points. On the back of that, Royals would finish the first-half with a 16-5 run giving them a 22-14 lead at the break. 3 more early points to the Royals and they seemed to have the game in their command and control. However someone forgot to tell Halswell as they went on a 12-0 run of their own to hit the front with about eight minutes to play. Halswell had several opportunities from the free-throw line to put the game beyond reach but constantly couldn’t convert, Jo Fogarty (9 points) especially having nailed her first three free-throws missed her next seven from the line. It would prove costly as the Royals again held their nerve and begun to convert the clutch baskets when they were needed most and answering a never say die attitude from Halswell all the way. A good finish to the season by Cathy Hyland’s Royals mob.

 

Scorers were:

Mid- week Championship Grand Final:

CYA 45 (Carmel Gunn 9, Ingrid Kaptein 9, Jane Lattimore 9) Halswell Red 36 (Jo Mumm 11, Gina Papahadjis 9). HT: Halswell 18-14.

Play-off 3^rd place: University 35 (Chrissy Bell 13) Checkers 26 (Katelin Russ 9).

Play-off 5th place: Royals 34 (Leslie Dick 10) Halswell Green 31 (Linda Massie 9, Jo Fogarty 9).

7^th Place: Pioneer.