Grand final match-up headlines fourth day of the Basketball Qld u14 Boys State Champs (Under-14 State Titles )

A north v south grand final match-up headlined the fourth day of the Basketball Queensland Under-14 Boys State Championships. WATCH THE REPLAYS

We’ve had everything from upsets, to halfcourt buzzer beaters and dominant individual performances but now it’s all down to this as a north and south grand final match-up headlines day four of the Basketball Queensland Under-14 Boys State Championships.

Being hosted by the Northside Wizards at both the Northside Indoor Sports Centre at Zillmere and St Joseph’s Nudgee College, the tournament will come to an end today as teams battle for a gold medal.

REPLAYS

BOYS DIV 1 GRAND FINAL: SD Spartans def Cairns Marlins 59-40

A dominant second half has helped the Southern Districts Spartans add another gold medal to their trophy cabinet following a 19-point victory over a brave Cairns Marlins outfit to end the Basketball Queensland Under-14 Boys State Championships at the Northside Indoor Sports Centre.

Southern Districts and Cairns both came into the championship game undefeated after running through the pool stages and also recording victories over the Gold Coast and Townsville in the semi-finals.

But both teams found it difficult to score in the first quarter as the nerves seemed to get to the youngsters in such an important game with each side’s guards struggling to find their range from the perimeter early on.

Noah Kirk tried to put his team on his back early in the game but couldn’t find the bottom of the net with much consistency in the first half, however it was the big men in Jeremiah Willis and Stefan Stefanov, who sparked the offence for the Spartans as the team from southeast Queensland went into the halftime break with a slender three-point lead.

From there, it was all Spartans as Willis went to another gear in the third quarter and point guard Mitch Honeyman found his form, not only through scoring but controlling the tempo and creating for his teammates while Oliver Crum also started to click offensively, finding his way to the basket as Southern Districts quickly jumped out to a 23-point lead.

Kirk and Saxon Toyne continued to try and get Cairns back in the game with both scoring 11 points but it was too little too late as the Spartans fought off every run from the Marlins to finish with an 18-point victory and add another championship to the club’s already full cabinet.

The win also repeats the efforts of the same group two years ago after claiming the under-12 title.

Willis led the scoring with 20 points while Honeyman also had 13.

Replay: Boys Div 1 – Rockhampton Rockets v SWM Pirates Gold 64-59 (VIEW GAME IN THE MEDIA PLAYER ABOVE)

A 29-point performance from Rockhampton’s Elijah Girdler has helped his Rockets team earn a hardfought victory over the South West Metro Pirates to claim fifth spot at the Northside Indoor Sports Centre.

Both teams had performed consistently throughout the tournament but just missed out on progressing through to the semi-finals, however the Pirates and Rockets still had a lot to play for on the final day and it showed as each side kept fighting until the final siren.

But Girdler’s dominant offensive performance proved too much for the Pirates to overcome, as Rockhampton recorded a five-point win to finish their tournament.

Andrew Watene also had 13 points for the Rockets.

Lennon Bann was on fire for South West Metro with 33 points while Damon Casey also reached double figures with 10 points.

Replay: Boys Div 2 – Burdekin Wildcats v Townsville Lightning 51-45

The Burdekin Wildcats have finished their tournament on a high note after an impressive offensive display from Nathanael Minuzzo led his team to a six-point victory over their North Queensland rivals, the Townsville Lightning.

Minuzzo was the game’s leading scorer with 21 points as the Lightning could not stop the dynamic Wildcat as Burdekin earned 11th spot.

Jack Power provides valuable support for Minuzzo with 13 points.

Jake Daniels and Landon Wales were the leading scorers for Townsville with 10 each.

Replay: Boys Div 2 Bronze Medal Game – GC Breakers v RedCity Road 69-59

Four players have scored in double figures as a balanced attack from the Gold Coast Breakers proved too much for the RedCity Roar in the Division 2 bronze medal game.

After suffering close losses in the semi-finals, both teams were out to finish their tournament on a high and with a medal, but Gold Coast’s second team were the better team from the opening tip.

The Roar made several attempts at a comeback but the Breakers always answered back to finish with a 10-point victory and with a bronze medal.

Declan Partridge top scored for the Breakers with 12 while Luciano Hutchins (11 points), Alexander Walker (11 points) and Taj Moroney (10 points) all reached double figures.

Mitchell Johnson led the scoring for RedCity with 12 points, Orlando Alba and Jai O’Toole both had 11.

Replay: Boys Div 4 Grand Final – Hervey Bay Hurricanes v Moreton Bay Fire 68-46

Hervey Bay Hurricanes def Moreton Bay Fire 68-46

The Hervey Bay Hurricanes have won a rare state championship after a 22-point demolition of the Moreton Bay Fire in the Division 4 grand final at the Northside Indoor Sports Centre.

Kastor Andreasen was in form on the offensive end for the Hurricanes as the game’s leading scorer with 19 points while Elijah Joseph also contributed with 15 points for Hervey Bay.

Aaron Storeywood and Divine Taaru both recorded 10 points for the Fire.

Replay: Boys Div 2 Grand Final – SD Titans def SWM Pirates Purple 50-45

The Southern Districts Titans and South West Metro Pirates Purple have ended the Boys Division 2 tournament in perfect fashion, contesting a nail biting grand final to finish their season.

Each team matched each other’s runs throughout the final, with both the Titans and Pirates struggling to pull away from their opponent at any stage throughout the game.

But Southern Districts stepped up on both ends of the floor when it mattered to extend their lead in the fourth quarter and from there South West Metro couldn’t battle their way back as the Titans recorded a five-point win to claim the gold medal.

Finnegan Speare led the scoring for the Titans with 14 points while Lexus Lerome was impressive for the Pirates, also scoring 14 points.

Replay: Div 3 – Emerald Chargers v Toowoomba Mountaineers 64-53

Emerald Chargers def Toowoomba Mountaineers 64-53

Emerald Charger Julius Jurd produced one of the performances of the tournament to lead his team to a groundbreaking state championship after beating the Toowoomba Mountaineers in the Division 3 grand final.

Jurd was the best player on the floor from start to finish, connecting on 14 field goal attempts and making six free-throws to record 34 points as his Chargers ran away with an 11-point victory to take home the gold medal.

Levi Vine was also impressive for Emerald with 14 points.

Jacob Walker battled hard all game for Toowoomba with 18 points while Mabur Mabur had 10 points.

Replay: DIV 1 - Bronze medal: Gold Coast Waves def Townsville Heat 57-55

The Gold Coast Waves have fought off a fierce fourth-quarter comeback from the Townsville Heat to take home a bronze medal from the Division 1 state championships at the Northside Indoor Sports Centre.

Both teams were looking to bounce back from disappointing losses in the semi-finals after Townsville fell to North Queensland rivals, the Cairns Marlins, while the Waves went down to eventual champions the Southern Districts Spartans in an overtime thriller.

And it was Gold Coast, who came out the more desperate side, as the Waves were able to stall Townsville’s offence through pressure and physicality and were also able to get out in transition to help them jump out to an early double digit lead.

Gold Coast continued to extend their advantage in the second half and looked as though they were rolling towards an easy victory and a bronze medal.

But the Heat weren’t done yet, as they picked up their defensive intensity, which led to Gold Coast turnovers and layups for Townsville, who even claimed the lead with just 20 seconds left in the game.

But a crucial offensive rebound and putback allowed the Waves to take back the lead before Townsville had a last-second three-point attempt to win the game, but it rimmed out as the Waves held steady to finish with a medal.

Jett Wilson led the scoring for the Waves with 15 points while Ayden Merrylees and Sam Scott both had 10 for the Gold Coast.

Braith Turner top scored for Townsville with 16 points and he was supported by Noah Andersen with 14 points.