Grand final rematch to decide Basketball Qld u16 State Championship (Under 16 Boys State Titles )

A grand final rematch decided who would take home the gold medal at the Basketball Queensland Under-16 Boys State Championships. WATCH THE REPLAYS

Last month they faced-off in a regular season grand final but now the Gold Coast Rollers and RedCity Roar have met again for the gold medal game of the Basketball Queensland Under-16 Boys State Championships.

WATCH ALL THE DAY’S REPLAYS BELOW

In the final day of the tournament, hosted by the North Gold Coast Seahawks at the Coomera Indoor Sports Centre, the two teams will headline the final day of action in the championship game after two hardfought victories in the semi-finals on Saturday.

Gold Coast fought off one of their toughest challenges yet against the Brisbane Capitals to reach the grand final, only winning 88-80, while RedCity came back from 14 points down in the fourth-quarter to beat Southern Districts in the semi-final.

It was the Rollers who got the better of the Roar in last month’s SQJBC grand final and during the pool stages, but will the championship game be different?

Gold Coast coach Gianni Rotunno said his team have prided themselves on their defence and the championship game would be no different.

Gold Coast Rollers star guard Indy Cotton. Picture: Basketball Queensland

“Led by our captain Indy Cotton but this team doesn’t rely on one player like other teams in the competition, we have four players with averages 11 points per game and higher, and two of them coming off our bench,” he said.

“I believe we have a lot of depth in this team.

“RedCity have two huge players, very different players as well, which makes them tough to guard, followed by there speed and crafty guards who can knock down the three ball.

“Our key to victory is our defence and effort on the one per cent areas.”

Roar coach Darry White said he was incredibly proud of his team’s efforts after making it to the grand final and he believed they had learned from their previous clashes with Gold Coast ahead of the grand final.

RedCity Roar star guard Zachary McDowell-White. Picture: Basketball Queensland

“I think if we can get them in the fight, we have a good chance,” he said.

“We are playing good basketball right now but haven’t played too well against Gold Coast.

“We need to make it a bit of a scrap, if it’s a really high scoring game that suits them and they’re too talented to do that.

“I think our boys have learned a lot from our previous games against Gold Coast and despite losing, I think some things we’ve seen has actually given our boys some confidence.

“Our boys fight hard and we’re a good fourth quarter team so I think if we’re in it at that stage, we’ve got a great chance.”

All games from court two at Coomera will be livestreamed in this story, including the Division 2 gold medal game and Division 1 bronze medal match.

GAME WRAPS

Div 1 – Logan Thunder def NGC Seahawks 88-82

Four players have scored in double figures to lead the Logan Thunder to a hardfought six-point win over the North Gold Coast Seahawks and end their tournament with a victory.

With ninth place up for grabs, both teams came out with energy and intensity but it was the Thunder who managed to grab an early lead in the first half.

However, every time Logan looked like running away with the game, the Seahawks answered and stayed within reach.

North Gold Coast closed to within just two points in the fourth quarter but the Thunder steadied to record their third win of the tournament.

Ash McGrath led the scoring for Logan with 28 points while Joseph Baker had 22 but the pair were also supported by Lucas Rosiak, who hit five three-pointers to contribute 15 points, and Breeze Mafile’O who also scored 13 points.

Mahir Mali Hodzic had 24 for the Seahawks.

Div 3 Grand Final - SC Phoenix Orange def by SWM Pirates Red 64-60

The South West Metro Pirates have recorded a four-point victory in a down-to-the-wire Division 3 grand final to capture the state championship.

Sunshine Coast had all the momentum for most of the first half before an 18-0 run from the Pirates helped them take the lead and even go into halftime with a double-digit advantage.

But the Phoenix showed the toughness and grit which helped them reach the grand final and fought their way back, giving themselves an opportunity to catch up to South West late in the game.

But the Pirates held strong to hold on for the win and to take home the gold medal.

Div 2 Bronze Medal Game – GC Waves vs SD Titans 71-41

The Gold Coast Waves have finished their tournament on a high, beating the Southern Districts Titans by 30 points to claim the Division 2 bronze medal.

Gold Coast were dominant from the opening tip, running out to an early lead and never looking back as Vitas Weng (14 points) and Michael Christiansen (11 points) proved too good for the Titans defence.

The Waves continued to extend their advantage in the second half to end their tournament with a dominant victory.

Div 2 GF – SC Phoenix Teal vs Ipswich Force 95-50

Tristan Afamasaga has led the Ipswich Force to the Division 2 gold medal after his team recorded a convincing 45-point victory over the Sunshine Coast Phoenix in the championship game.

Both teams came into the game on the back of impressive form throughout the tournament but the Force produced their best performance when it mattered most.

Ipswich could not be stopped at both ends of the floor as the Phoenix struggled to grab the momentum at any stage in the game with the Force capturing the state title with a dominant performance.

Afamasaga was impressive once again with 28 points to lead the Force.

Cooper Wilson led the scoring for the Phoenix with 21.

Div 1 Bronze Medal Game - SD Spartans def Brisbane Capitals 89-79

Oskar Olechnowicz and CJ Amos have combined for 45 points to lead a spirited Southern Districts Spartans comeback and claim the Division 1 bronze medal following a 10-point victory over the Brisbane Capitals.

Both teams came into the playoff looking to bounce back from their semi-finals losses and they produced arguably the game of the tournament.

The Capitals came out of the blocks firing despite the absence of key player Matthew AmoAmo as Emerson Juhasz and Daniel Graham caught fire on the offensive end.

But while big man Kurt Siwek faced significant foul trouble, the play of Olechnowicz and Amos kept the Spartans in the game as both players stepped up at crucial times.

While Brisbane had the momentum for most of the first half, the Spartans went into the halftime break with a four-point lead.

From there, it was the Spartans who were the better side as they slowed down the Capitals offence and Logan Siolo also provided an extra punch for the Spartans with Samuel Colley also giving Southern Districts a spark.

Despite several attempts from Juhasz and Graham, the Spartans executed better down the stretch to finisht he tournament with a win and a bronze medal.

Div 1 GF - GC Rollers def RedCity Roar 88-60

A dominant second half has helped the Gold Coast Rollers end the fairytale run for the RedCity Roar and capture the state championship following a convincing 28-point win at the Coomera Indoor Sports Centre.

In a rematch of the southeast Queensland regular season grand final, which the Rollers also won, RedCity looked as though they had adjusted their game plan to lock in on minimising the impact of star Gold Coast guard Indy Cotton after his recent 52 point performance against the Roar.

RedCity’s defence locked down the high-powered offence of the Rollers in the opening quarter, finishing the first period with a 15-8 lead with Lachlan Maier leading the way on the offensive end after connecting on several three-point shots.

But Gold Coast answered back right away in the second quarter, forcing turnovers and getting out in transition, where they are so damaging, and the pressure was back on the Roar as the Rollers went into the main break with a two-point advantage.

RedCity needed to respond early in the second half but the Rollers took it up another gear, simply dominating the whole last 20 minutes and the Roar couldn’t find their way back, especially with big man Tyrell Mason in foul trouble.

Samuel LeGassick and Donovan Peisley were impressive for the Rollers as well as Samuel Scott to provide much-needed support to Cotton as Gold Coast tore apart the RedCity defence.

Zach McDowell-White, John Cooper and Geoffrey Peterson continued to battle for the Roar but it was too late as Gold Coast took home the gold medal with a 28-point win.

Cotton led the way with 32 points, while Peisley had 21, Scott with 15 and LeGassick had 13.

McDowell-White top-scored for RedCity with 19 points.