Australian Basketball Schools Championship replays: Who starred on day one? (Basketball Australia School Championships)
Australia’s top hoops schools are battling it out in the Australian Basketball Schools Championship. Catch up on all the action here with scouts’ tips and our judges’ day one starting five.
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- Australia’s best male junior basketballers revealed
- Australia’s best female junior basketballers revealed
If you have missed any of the action from the Australian Basketball Schools Championship then catch up on all the action, results and who stood out in our re-cap below.
He introduces himself simply as ‘JD’ and it says it on his shirt, if you forget.
He’s had the likes of Boomer Dante Exum, current Sacramento King Chima Moneke and Sydney Kings’ flamethrower Dejan Vasiljevic - who scored 45 points in the 2015 Australian School Championships final - among a host of other local and international basketball stars under his tutelage.
Jason Denley has been a driving force in the remarkable basketball program at Lake Ginnindera College since 2006 - when the one and only Patty Mills urged him to come across.
He has a steely look on the sideline, but beams with pride when he speaks about the ACT school’s 30-year affiliation with the championships and the fact it owns seven tournament wins over the journey.
He knows the Lakers are fortunate to have a strong relationship with Basketball Australia’s Centre of Excellence, which is home to the finest young hoopers in the country.
The Lakers can have two CoE players on their roster at the championships, but this year, they only have one.
Boomer and next-big-thing Alex Toohey is out of the tournament due to load management after he recently played for Australia in a FIBA World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan.
He still has 213cm giant Bowyn Beatty, son of 202cm former-WNBL tower Tracey Peacock, at his disposal as the Lakers gun for an eighth title.
Their first test was a plucky Trinity College, who stuck with them - for half a game.
Tied at 21 at quarter-time and then up 38-36 at the half, the Lakers turned on the jets in the third, romping out to an 18-point lead at the last break on the back of a 25-9 run.
Game. Over.
Physical captain Cameron Pender did everything, using his strength and spring to produce an efficient man-of-the-match performance with 25 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals (but eight turnovers). The rest of the scoring load was spread across eight other Lakers
Makai Dornford was best for Trinity with 18, while Manyang Manyang grabbed 12 boards.
DAY ONE STARTING FIVE
Our best basketball judges, who have been sitting courtside on the Gold Coast, have crunched the numbers, measured the impact and split their own hairs to come up with a top five stars for both boys and girls over the opening day of the tournament.
Top Five Championship Boys:
Roman Siulepa (Brisbane State High School)
You can’t really compare Siulepa to any current Australian NBA star. He is unique. The most accurate comparison in an athletic sense is former Seattle Supersonics forward Shawn Kemp, who made a career out of dunking on people.
Siulepa is a 15-year-old playing against players five years older, but you wouldn’t know based on his performance.
Joel Foxwell (Rowville Secondary College)
Foxwell, who was ranked at No.16 in News Corp’s top 30 high school boys, put on a show to finish with a game-high 24 points in Rowville’s opening win over Trinity College.
The point guard, who has high hoops IQ, also six rebounds and three assists in a memorable performance.
Jake Weinstein (Newington College)
Poise under pressure. Led the Sydney school to victory over Willetton with 20 points, four assists and four steals. Defends 94 feet of the floor and gets under the skin of his opponents doing it. Has deceptive strength and a quick first step that helps him burrow into the teeth of the D and either finish, or find a teammate with a nifty pass. Has designs on a college career and the NBL beckons. Reminds me a little of Tasmania JackJumpers development player Sean MacDonald.
Cameron Pender (Lake Ginninderra College)
Lake Ginninderra captain and forward Cameron Pender excelled with a game-high 33 points and 12 rebounds in a win over the Southport School.
Pender has the size and athleticism to dominate the game. He is definitely a player of the future. He backed up with 25 points, 14 rebounds and six assists in a win over Trinity College.
Mason Amos (Brisbane State High School)
The towering Amos deserved high plaudits after a 20-point, four-rebound effort in a 71-point demolition of Concordia. The 205cm Filipino already knows his next step, he has committed to Filo powerhouse University Ateneo for 2023.
Top Five Championship Division Girls:
Isla Juffermans (Lake Ginninderra College)
Juffermans was brilliant for Lake Ginninderra in their opening win over Brisbane State High School, finishing with a game-high 26 points.
She also added an impressive 15 rebounds and two steals in a standout 21-minute stint.
The 17-year-old Australian representative is dominant in the paint and has similarities to former Opals star Liz Cambage with her physicality.
Jessica Petrie (Lake Ginninderra College)
Guard Jessica Petrie had 25 points and 14 rebounds in an outstanding display in a win over Brisbane State High School.
Petrie is the daughter of former NBL star Anthony Petrie and ex-championship WNBL player Sarah (Nee Berry).
Lily Carmody (Templestowe College)
Templestowe College guard Lily Carmody continues to show why she is a WNBL development player with standout performances in the Women’s Championship Division.
Carmody had 22 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in Templestowe’s dominant 92-68 win over Brisbane State High School.
The rising guard who plays for the Melbourne Boomers backed up her double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds) from an earlier win over Western Australia’s Willetton Senior High School.
Jade Peacock (Hillcrest Christian College)
The 17-year-old Gold Coast Roller was an absolute monster in her school’s menacing win over Immanuel College. Peacock was, quite simply, the most-dominant player on the court and the SA school had no answer, continually fouling her as they worked to curb her influence. It didn’t work, she showed a deft touch at the line, nailing 11 of her 13 free throws on her way to a gaudy 29-point, 12-rebound double-double.
Mailey Cunningham (Lake Ginninderra College)
Lake Ginninderra captain Mailey Cunningham had 22 points to ensure the girls from the ACT started their tournament campaign with a win over Brisbane State High School.
Cunningham also has the ability to protect the rim as one of the competition’s premier forwards.
Brisbane State High School (QLD) – 126
Concordia College (SA) – 55
Remember the name Roman Siulepa.
The 15-year-old wing put on a sctinerating show of brilliant basketball in Brisbane State High School’s dominant 126-55 Men’s Championship Division victory over Concordia College. Siulepa turned the Gold Coast into alley-oop city as he produced dunk after devastating dunk to have the small yet vocal crowd at the Indoor Sports Centre cheering in appreciation.
The NBA Global Academy product finished with a game-high 28 points and six rebounds.
Siulepa stands at 6’7, but he also possesses a silky touch, which was shown with his six assists.
The Brisbane State High talent has been gifted with God-given genetics and is capable of achieving anything in basketball if he puts his mind to it.
Siulepa had plenty of help from his teammates in a commanding team display.
Forward Elijah Kamu had 23 points and centre Mason Amos was magnificent with 20 points and four rebounds.
There is no doubt that Brisbane State High has the ability to win the Men’s Championship Division.
Concordia College kept fighting despite the lopsided score, with Tom Sutton and Henry Riley-Edwards both dropping 15 points.
You can’t really compare Siulepa to any current Australian NBA star. He is unique.
The most accurate comparison in an athletic sense is former Seattle Supersonics forward Shawn Kemp, who made a career out of dunking on people.
Siulepa needs to work on his jump shot, but he has developed since joining the NBA Global Academy in Canberra this year.
The rising wing/power forward looks destined for a long hoops career, as shown in his 28 points, including 11 or 11 from two point range, in just 22 minutes.
Templestowe College (VIC) - 92
Brisbane State High School (QLD) – 68
Templestowe College guard Lily Carmody continues to show why she is a WNBL development player with standout performances in the Women’s Championship Division.
Carmody had 22 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in Templestowe’s dominant 92-68 win over Brisbane State High School.
The rising guard who plays for the Melbourne Boomers backed up her double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds) from an earlier win over Western Australia’s Willetton Senior High School.
Templestowe captain Lilly Amor added 17 points to help the girls from Victoria push their claims as genuine Women’s Championship Division contenders.
Shami Reisinger led the way for Brisbane State High School with a game-high 25 points.
Lake Ginnindera College – 69
Willeton High School – 61
Lake Ginnindera College has flexed its muscle for a second time today, making it two wins from two contests with a 69-61 win over Willeton High School.
The basketball powerhouse was propelled by a combined 46 points and 24 rebounds from future stars Isla Juffermans and Jess Petrie.
Teenage Aussie rep Juffermans franked her 26-point, 15-rebound double-double in the Lakers’ earlier win over Brisbane State High School with 21 and 13, to go with four steals in another dominant performance.
She is the odds-on favourite to win player of the tournament.
Petrie, daughter of NBL royalty, had 25 points and 11 boards, but struggled with both her shot and taking care of the ball – her 25 came on 26 shots and she produced a dreaded triple-double with 10 turnovers.
That kept a very even Willeton in it as every player who took the floor scored at least two points, with Tayah Morgan the best with 12. Anjelique Raison flirted with a triple-double with 10 points, 10 rebounds and seven steals (but six turnovers) in a very Draymond Green-like line.
Newington College – 75
Willeton Senior High School – 69
A familiar face to NBL fans looked on from the coaching bench as Newington College held off a late charge from Willeton Senior High School.
Former Illawarra coach Matt Flinn is assisting long-time Newington coach Rex Nottage.
Flinn was once mentored by Nottage and, after things famously went pear-shaped in Illawarra during the LaMelo Ball era, the pair reunited at the WA school.
“There are plenty of coaches who I owe things to with my development, so it’s just natural to give back to him and the kids, it’s very rewarding,” Flinn, who also coaches the Darwin Salties in NBL1, said.
“Coach has devoted his life to these kids. It’s a pleasure to be around it and it helps my development, too.”
They survived a scare, making off with a 75-69 win, thanks to a point-guard masterclass from Jake Weinstein, the three-way scoring skills of Christian Akuso and raw 208cm giant Goc Malek.
“Jake’s a good kid, he gets up the floor and guards and he’s coming to Darwin, he’s going to train with us,” he said.
“He wants to go to college, so we’ll help him with that and when he comes back, we’ll see where he’s at.”
“He’s got some big goals mate, he can play, he’s a three-way scorer, he’s already had NBL1 looks, but he’s still got another year of high school, the level of talent is ridiculous.”
The composed Weinstein was the best player on the floor with 20 points, four assists and four steals, while Akuso impressed with his scoring ability, adding 18 points and eight rebounds.
Malek has only been playing basketball for 18 months and is still finding out what his remarkable vessel is capable of, his strength and rebounding a feature as he ripped down 11 boards to go with 13 points.
The NSW boys held a double-digit lead for much of the game, without delivering the knockout that would have blown it out.
And they had to survive a late charge from Willo, with Aiden Fitzgerald (14 points) catching the eye.
Captain Patrick Odingo had five turnovers, but he looked one to watch with his marshalling of the troops as a floor general.
Hillcrest Christian College (Qld) – 66
Immanuel College (SA) – 51
Big unit Pero Cameron’s job is a little different these days.
The legendary Kiwi bashed and crashed with the tall timber across 130 NBL games with the New Zealand Breakers and Gold Coast Blaze.
Now the FIBA hall of famer is busy working the refs and encouraging his Hillcrest Christian College team at the Australian School Championships on the Gold Coast.
Cameron coaches daughter Layla-Jade Cameron and potent scoring machine Jade Peacock, who poured in a gaudy 29-point, 12-rebound double-double in the Gold Coast school’s 66-51 girls championship division-opening win over Immanuel College.
Peacock was a menace inside, living at the charity stripe and making 11 of her 13 freebies as the Adelaide school’s bigs had no answers. Jessica Smith was the only other player in double digits as Hillcrest shared the load, with eight of nine to take the court getting on the scoresheet.
Aspen Crase had her own double-double for Immanuel with 10 points and 14 boards, while Chloe Harding paced the team with 11
Rowville Secondary College (VIC) – 66
St Luke’s Grammar School (NSW) – 44
A game-high 16 points from power forward Dakota Crichton paved the way for Victoria’s Rowville Secondary College to record a comfortable 66-44 win over St Luke’s Grammar School in their opening Women’s Championship clash.
Crichton, who was ranked No.11 in the girl’s top 30 high school basketballers, was in a confident mood as she also added 11 rebounds in a commanding performance.
Rowville shooting guard Georgia Taylor had 15 points and five rebounds while captain Hayley Letts added 10 points and eight rebounds.
The scoreboard suggests that St Luke’s Grammar weren’t in the contest, but this is far from the truth.
The school located on Sydney’s Northern Beaches enjoyed stretches in the game when they had Rowville on the back foot.
Guard Chole Dix had a team-high 12 points while point guard Felicity Henderson had eight points and a whopping 18 rebounds.
Henderson looked comfortable bringing the ball up the floor. She will be determined to avenge the first up loss after steering St Luke’s to a bronze medal in the Championship Division back in 2019.
Rowville Secondary College (VIC) – 110
Trinity College (SA) - 67
Victoria’s Rowville Secondary College made an opening day statement with a dominant 110-67 victory over South Australia’s Trinity College.
Rowville point guard Joel Foxwell, who was ranked at No.16 in News Corp’s top 30 high school boys, put on a show to finish with a game-high 24 points.
Foxwell, who has high hoops IQ, also six rebounds and three assists in a memorable performance.
He wasn’t alone in the standout stakes for Rowville, with five players scoring in double figures, including Kobe Wilson (15), Noah Suarjaya (15), Mojwok Mojwok (13) and shooting guard Corey Hastings (17).
Rowville led by 48 points at one stage, but Trinity displayed impressive fight under the difficult circumstances.
Louis Schell top scored for Trinity with 16 points while Makai Dornford had 14 points.
Lake Ginninderra College (ACT) – 92
The Southport School (QLD) – 82
A combined 46 points from potent Southport School backcourt duo Ben Tweedy and Jaylen Pitman sent an almighty scare through Men’s Championship favourites Lake Ginninderra in a thrilling opening-day contest.
Lake Ginninderra claimed a 92-82 win over Southport, but the boys from the ACT didn’t have it all their way in an entertaining match.
The Southport School, who are coached by former NBL star Anthony Petrie, briefly led in the fourth quarter before Lake Ginninderra pulled away late.
Southport’s gun guards Tweedy and Pitman had 25 and 21 points respectively while 16-year-old centre Jackson McCabe had an impressive 17 points and 12 rebounds.
In the end, though, it wasn’t enough to contain a strong Lake Ginninderra side featuring a host of athletes from the Institute of Sport in Canberra.
Lake Ginninderra captain and forward Cameron Pender excelled with a game-high 33 points and 12 rebounds.
Fellow forward Frank Afor produced an athletic masterclass running the floor to finish with 16 points while wing Mason Bruce had 10 points and seven rebounds.
Templestowe College (VIC) – 74
Willetton High School (WA) - 53
A double-double from WNBL guard Lily Carmody laid the foundations for
Victoria’s Templestowe College to record an impressive 74-53 win over Western Australia’s Willetton Senior High School in its opening Women’s Australian Schools Championships clash.
Carmody displayed her experience as a WNBL development player with the Melbourne Boomers to finish with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Templestowe guard Dyani Ananiev led the way with a game-high 19 points and 10 rebounds in a powerful 23-minute stint.
Ananiev, who was ranked at No.17 in News Corp’s top 30 high school female basketballers, looked classy as she took complete control of the game.
The gifted 16-year-old guard is a player of enormous potential and will be one to watch throughout the tournament.
Templestowe College captain Lilly Amor added 15 points to help the girls from Victoria open their campaign with a memorable win.
Jessica Mantle and Anjelique Raison had 10 points each for Willetton Senior High School while Tayah added 11 points.
Lake Ginninderra College (ACT)- 96
Brisbane State High School (QLD)- 33
The No.1 female high school basketballer as voted by News Corp has helped heavyweights Lake Ginninderra College open its Women’s Australian Schools Championship campaign in style with a dominant 96-33 win over Brisbane State High School.
Centre Isla Juffermans was brilliant for Lake Ginninderra, finishing with a game-high 26 points as the girls from the ACT cruised to a comfortable win.
Juffermans also added an impressive 15 rebounds and two steals in a standout 21-minute stint.
The 17-year-old Australian representative is dominant in the paint and has similarities to former Opals star Liz Cambage with her physicality.
Lake Ginninderra guard Jessica Petrie had 25 points and 14 rebounds in an outstanding display.
Petrie is the daughter of former NBL star Anthony Petrie and ex-championship WNBL player Sarah (Nee Berry).
Lake Ginninderra captain Mailey Cunningham added 22 points to ensure the girls from the ACT started their tournament campaign with a bang.
Brisbane State High found it difficult to contain a formidable rival, but they refused to give in.
Claire Fraser led the way with 12 points while Laila Kefu added eight points and five rebounds.
Lake Ginninderra opened up a dominant 17-3 advantage at quarter-time, which paved the way for a commanding win.
The side from the ACT had to settle for a silver the last time the Australian Schools Championships was played three years ago, so they are desperate to go one step further and claim gold on the Gold Coast.
UNDER 17s UPDATES
BOYS
U17 Division I
Roman Stathis led The Scots College to an opening win against Lowanna College with a smooth-shooting 15 points in their 41-34 victory.
Stathis finished with two trebles in his haul to lead all scorers for Scots. But the Sydney side didn’t have things all their own way, with Lowanna’s Riley Jankovic leading all scorers in the match with 18 points.
Jankovic drained six threes, proving a real menace from outside and keeping his side in the game as one of only five scorers for Lowanna and the only one to hit double figures.
Melbourne’s Berwick College started their campaign with a 66-50 victory over Westfields Sports High, the Victorian side’s depth proving the key to their success.
Luke Fennell (21) led three players in double figures for Berwick, with Heath McPherson (14) and Callun McDonald (10) helping their side across the line.
NSW junior rep Steven Hall kept Westfields in the game with a game-high 24 points, including three triples.
Pool B
Victorian guard Christian Moraes has hauled his Roweville Secondary College past Port Macquarie’s Mackillop College with a personal haul of 31 points.
Moraes, a Victorian state representative, made 11 field goals and came in for plenty of defensive attention, heading to the free throw on several occasions, sticking nine of his attempts.
While he was the only Roweville player to get into double figures, it was enough to get past Mackillop College, despite Toby Harper (18), Blake Collins (13) and Sam Blain (10) all reaching double figures.
U17 Division II
St Joseph’s College has made an outstanding start to its campaign, beating Chisholm Catholic College 76-33 in their opening match.
Five Joeys players finished with double-digit hauls, led by Harrison Heenan, whose 21 points included three triples.
Owen Stack (16), Lachlan Tailly (13), Hunter Chapman (11) and Jake McCartney (10) were also strong.
Luke Joblin led Chisholm’s scorers with 10.
Trinity Grammar were convincing winners over Bendigo South East College in their clash, with Jamison Urch (13) and Peter Tanevski (10) leading them to a 56-26 win.
Bendigo was restricted to a handful of scorers - the best of them Tyrone Hutton and Lachlan Borchard, who both finished with seven points.
Pool B
St Dominics College just edged Brisbane’s John Paul College in their encounter, winning by a single basket in their opening match of the tournament.
Both sides had three players in double figures but it was St Dominics’ depth that proved the key after Chase Jackson led their scorers with 18 points.
Oskar Olechnowicz was outstanding for John Paul with 23 points, including 11 field goals but his side fell just short, going down 58-56.
U17 Division III
Hauls of more than 20 points from Harrison Huber and Deng Garang has led Brisbane Adventist to a 63-46 victory over Blue Mountains Grammar School.
Huber (25) and Garang (21) dominated the clash, with no other Brisbane player scoring more than five points.
Charles Taubman was the best for Blue Mountains, with 10 points.
A 15-point contribution from Asher Shinkfield has led Lilydale High to a 60-25 drubbing of the Lindisfarne Lions Kings.
Despite 12 points from Marlow McDornan, the New Zealanders were outclassed, with just four other players able to get on the board.
UNDER 20s UPDATES
MEN
U20 Division I
The U20s opened with a thriller, with Brisbane Boys College scraping past The King’s School 78-77 in the first Pool A game on the back of a 36-point effort from Lee Van Der Westhuizen.
The long-limbed shooter posed plenty of problems for the opposition, troubling them inside and out, scoring from long range as well as sinking eight free throws.
Van Der Westhuizen’s haul included four triples and eight field goals from two-point range, allowing the Brisbane side to sneak past their rivals, despite the best efforts of Bailey Thom, who had 22 points for Kings.
In Pool B, Nevarda Higgins led Hillcrest College to a 61-37 win over Trinity Grammar School with three three-pointers among his haul of 19.
Higgins and Tyler O’Neill (16 points) led the scoring for the Gold Coast college, who faced little trouble from Trinity.
Jesse Edwards led the visitors with 11 points.
U20 Division III
Sydney’s St Andrew’s Cathedral School has made a strong start in Div 3, with Ben Mackie Pawson top-scoring with 22 points in the 72-35 demolition of Fairhills High School.
Mackie Pawson made 11 field goals in his haul, while teammate Ashton Munro finished with eight field goals for his 16 points.
Jamie Blanchard was best for Fairhills, finishing with 13 points and the only player to reach double digits.
The ACT’s Erindale College was a convincing winner over Queensland’s Northpine Christian College, opening the tournament with a 68-42 victory.
Abraham Riley (18), Tarik Ezzat (15) and Tom Griffiths (11) all finished with double-figure hauls in the win, while Isaac Deng was best for Northpine, with 15 points.
In Pool B games, Northern Beaches Secondary College scraped past The Scots College 54-51 in a thriller.
Sam Stoyles finished with a game-high 13 points for Scots, with Remy Davis Warrington adding 11.
But the depth of the Northern Beaches side helped them over the line, with three players notching double-figure scores – James Van Dyk (11), Finley Batchelar (11) and Oliver Meulman (10) – to push them across the line.
Renowned West Australian basketball school Willetton Senior High, which is also fielding men’s and women’s teams in the U20 championship division, was too strong for Somerset Spartans, winning their opening match 84-29.
Led by Kian Ng, who finished with 19 points, Lee Travis (18) and Luke Ogden (16), Willetton dominated their Gold Coast-based rivals who had just four scorers, although one of those – Tyler Longfield, finished with a joint game-high 19 points.
U20 Division IV
Bendig’s Girton Grammar School has opened its ASC account with a 50-43 win over Brisbane Adventist School.
Joshua Smith finished with a game-high 23 points on the back of six field goals, including a three, and 10 free throws after coming in for plenty of attention from the Brisbane Adventist defenders.
Nathaniel Zemljic top scored for Brisbane Adventist with 15 points.
Women
U20 Division I
Marsden State High School has showed it will be a key player in the Div 1 competition with a 70-36 victory over Henley High.
Georgia Batham top scored for the Logan school, with Keriana Hippolite adding 11 points and Marsden having nine individual scorers in the match.
Terran Wright was Henley’s best with 11 points including a three in her haul.
Redlands got the chocolates over Bendigo’s Loreto College, winning their opening-day clash 74-61 on the back of a dominant performance from Emilie Bessell, who had 32 points.
Bessell finished with 14 field goals, including a three-pointer and three free throws in her haul.
Her efforts only just topped Loreto’s Jemma Amoore, who finished with 25 points from nine field goals (two threes) and five free throws.
Westfields Sports High School opened their campaign with a comfortable win over Victoria’s Lowanna College, taking the victory by 20 points.
Kira-May Filemu led all scorers with 19 points in the 51-31 win, with Makayla Minshall adding 11.
Brooke Hunter top scored for Lowanna with 12 points.
U20 Division II
A 24-point haul from Sasha Oxland has led Ballina Coast High School to a convincing win over St Margarets in the opening Div 2 women’s clash.
Oxland finished with 10 field goals, including a three, in her haul, helping Ballina to a 49-21 win over Brisbane GPS side St Margarets, whose highest scorer was Jessica Van Es with eight points.
South Australia’s Cabra Dominican College had four players reach double figures as they strolled to a 67-29 victory over the Avondale School.
Chloe Capporella (15), Mia Walker-Roberts (14), Anneka Tziavas (11) and Dusty Millar (10) finished with 22 field goals among them to lead their school to victory.
Lily Sullivan was Avondale’s highest scorer, finishing with eight points.
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