Basketball Australia Under-20 & Ivor Burge National Championships 2023 live blog (U20's & Ivor Burge National Championships)
Mick Randall has been on the ground at the Basketball Australia National Championships, here are a few of his key takeaways at the end of day one. Follow our LIVE BLOG.
Basketball Live Stream
Don't miss out on the headlines from Basketball Live Stream. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Michael Randall has absorbed all the highs and lows that the opening day of the Basketball Australia National Championships had to offer.
Here are his five key takeaways from the opening day.
Kye Savage is a ready-made JackJumper
The Devonport kid is relentless. Leads the tournament in scoring at 31.5 per game after torching both NSW and the NBA GA.
Might be my favourite guy I’ve watched so far. Just tries his guts out and has a lovely offensive skillset with the ability to get to the rim and finish, along with nifty floaters and range that extends to the three-point line.
Two losses, but got everything he wanted. Follows fellow Tassie boy Taran Armstrong to Cal Baptist but the Ants should be doing everything they can to make sure he comes home when he’s finished school.
Gilbertson goes BEAST mode
The best statline of day one belonged to Savage’s fellow Tasmanian Jack Gilbertson - and boy, was it one for the ages. Gilbertson produced a rare quadruple-double against WA in the Ivor Burge competition. Gilbertson had 42 points, 10 assists, 11 steals and 19 rebounds and. incredibly, 16 of those were at the offensive end. That’s as dominant as it gets.
Talking about beasts on the court
Ella Gordon had my favourite two point, three rebound game ever. Seriously. The Queensland giant only played 13 minutes but she absolutely battered WA.
Whether it was a forearm in the chest, a bonecrunching screen or just asserting her physical superiority, Gordon was genuinely scary in her 13 minutes.
She’s listed at 195cm with an enormous wingspan. Can’t wait to see her match up with the premier player at the tournament and fellow giant Isla Juffermans.
From one tower to another
Rocco Zikarsky is an ENORMOUS human. It’s hard to fully grasp how big the 7’2” 16-year-old is until you see him in the flesh.
The NBA GA boys were doing a drill where they tapped the backboard as high as they could reach... Zikarsky, instead, decided he’d hit his head on the backboard. Insane stuff.
Leads the tournament in boards at 13 a game, can pass it and has come up with a number of huge blocks, mostly making good decisions leaving his man to help.
Spare a thought for poor Ruby
I am crossing my fingers and toes for Ruby Vlahov. She looks such a good player, but went down inside three minutes of WA’s tournament opener against Queensland and did not return.
Looked in a lot of pain and was hobbling around post-game.
WA officials were coy when asked about her but I did see her legendary dad Andrew floating around the Geelong courts, so I will try to speak with him Wednesday and hope there is good news.
Victorian’s show growth - on and off the court
They might have been dominant in their opening round one win but don’t expect Victoria’s Ivor Burge men to get ahead of themselves.
The tournament hosts powered to a big win over Queensland on Tuesday, but the next several days are about much more then about winning gold according to coach Ryan Holloway.
And there’s two key reasons he loves being involved with the program.
“One thing is the players’ progression – as basketballers and as people,” he said.
“We want them to come in here and have fun and enjoy playing the game they love. It’s about everyone having the opportunity to get on the court.
“Everyone had even minutes on Tuesday which was perfect for us because everyone contributed on both ends.
“The other thing I enjoy most about my role is giving players an opportunity to represent their state, play at a level they might not had otherwise.
“Everyone has really pulled together as a team. A fantastic start.”
The Ivor Burge tournament is for players with an intellectual disability, and involves teams from across the nation.
From Jack Innella’s brilliant 20-point and seven-steal display to Jake De La Motte’s stunning playmaking and Frazer Dawber’s leadership this team has it all.
Halloway said his captain Dawber was almost like having another coach on the floor.
“He’s a big presence on and off the court for us,” he said.
“He keeps everyone on task and will make sure everyone is working hard. He’ll see things on the court and then bring those to our attention.
“He doesn’t need to put up 50 points, he can have a massive impact defensively.”
Juffermans not resting at lofty heights
Imposing 193cm force Isla Juffermans might be the most dominant junior basketballer in the country right now, but NSW coach Tom Garlepp says that hasn’t gone to her head.
Juffermans, No.1 on News Corp’s list of the top-20 talents at the U20 National Championships, put an early stamp on her tournament MVP claims with a dominant 22-point, 17-rebound double-double in her side’s 95-48 thrashing of ACT.
The 17-year-old has had to deal with doubts about how her considerable abilities as a traditional throwback centre would translate to the modern game, but Garlepp says Juffermans exceeds any outside expectations by doing what it takes to get better every day.
“She’s highly coachable and I think it’s a credit to her,” Garlepp said.
“People have placed a bit of a ceiling on her to date and she keeps just going, ‘you know what, I want to go to the next level’. She’s showing she’s reasonably fleet-of-foot, she’s stretching the defence with her jumpshot now, so who’s to say she isn’t capable of even more?
“I feel quite lucky to be able to coach her.”
A Sydney Kings fan favourite, Garlepp has spent his post-NBL career nurturing some of the nation’s best junior talent in pathways and schools development programs. As part of the NSW junior staff for the past six years, he’s watched many of his charges blossom into bona fide stars.
“This is one of the proudest things because you get to U20s and a lot of their peers have dropped out,” Garlepp said.
“There’s this fallout with female athletes after U16s but these are the girls who really love it and are really committed to going on with it.”
Complementing Juffermans in the win over ACT, Carla Pitman (16-8-5) Felicity Henderson (8-10-7) and Emily Foy (15-4) each showed their wares.
“They’ve actually played together for years, Pitman and Henderson,” he said.
“They’ve made all six of a possible six state teams and the best part about them is they’re both very interested in defence. They’re physical and like pushing and being aggressive on the defensive end.
“I was on the state team staff when they were in bottom-age 16s, so I’ve known them for that whole period.
“They play quite well together and they fit the theme of a selfless group.”
Garlepp leads a settled group – many have already taken up college offers before the tournament began, taking that concern away as they hunt for the 2023 title.
“Isla’s in a bit of a different boat, I don’t think she’s made up her mind how she’d like to approach it, but for many of our players, they know where they’re headed,” Garlepp said.
“It’s a good thing because they’re comfortable in their own skin. Some of them are really academic and are achieving great things at university, some of them have their college spots sewn up. Felicity (Henderson) is going to Columbia, Mila’s (Wawszkowicz) going to San Diego, Jada Crawshaw’s and Emily Foy are going to Long Beach.
“It’s really cool for them, especially to be able to get it done early. Some are doing it domestically through the club system, some doing it overseas.
“It’s good to be able to help them on the way.”
His side keyed in on dangerous ACT sharpshooter Ilijana Matijevic, forcing her to foul out in just eight minutes, after she produced six turnovers.
“We talked about potentially doing something with her,” he said.
“She’s got a lovely shot on her and she deserves a bit of that respect.”
The early pool games at the champs can produce some blowouts, but Garlepp says there are a number of teams who could take home the Arthur McRobbie Trophy at the conclusion of the tournament.
“Honestly it’s a really even tournament, I think you could throw a blanket over about six teams, with the Vics obviously always a standard,” he said.
“Some teams have one training session together and they come here, or one camp, so you’re actually using the pool stage to figure out and consolidate. ‘Who is my finishing lineup? Who is switchable on defence?’ There’s so much you use the pool stage for to learn about your group, we’re all in the same boat with that.
“When we get to that quarter-final stage, however it shakes out, it’s going to be incredibly tough.”
NEW BULLETS COACH EYEING U20 CHAMPS TALENT
His next stop is Brisbane, but new Bullets’ coach Justin Schueller has some business at the U20 National Championships to attend to first.
The long-time coach of Australia’s U17 team, Schueller has close ties to several players competing in Geelong, southwest of Melbourne.
The Bullets, last week, unveiled the former Melbourne United assistant as the club’s new coach, a popular call among his junior charges.
“It’s the beauty of the national team, you get to coach the best, so, for the last 10 years, I’ve been able to be around all these great kids,” Schueller said.
“It was nice. On the appointment, all those guys hit me up and were excited about it.
“I told them they’d all look good in blue and gold.
“But really, they’re at a point in their lives where it’s the start of their journey and you’re a part of it, in the beginning.
“Now the cool thing for me as an NBL coach, I have a chance to be part of it again.”
The likes of ACT’s teenage Boomer Alex Toohey, Tasmanian scoring machines Kye Savage and Lachie Brewer, New South Wales’ Josh Dent, NBA Global Academy giant Rocco Zikarsky and Victorians Tristan Devers and Carlin Briggs have all passed through Schueller’s national junior program.
He wants the Bullets, who have just two contracted players in key Olympians Nathan Sobey and Aron Baynes, to become a destination club for young Australian talent.
“Having Sobes and Baynesy as two guys who have been there and done it, that’s going to be a good starting point,” Schueller said.
“I’ve been through exits with Melbourne and am just letting the dust settle in Brisbane.
“I’ve had conversations with everyone there, trying to get my head around what will work and where I want to go with the club and who is going to be a key piece and who is not.
“I’m taking my time with it – we’ve just got to make sure we get it right.
“I keep using the word best practice but we need to be a best-practice program.”
YOUNG GUN SPARKS VICTORIA TO UPSET NBA ACADEMY STARS
The boilover of the National Championships has come in the very first game of the tournament, the Joel Foxwell-led Victoria Navy team dismantling the NBA Global Academy, 96-66.
The NBA GA is stacked with gun kids from all over the world but Foxwell – the younger brother of South East Melbourne Phoenix development player Owen Foxwell – went nuclear for the Vic team, which is seen as the state’s seconds.
Even the 17-year-old was surprised by the result but he says it proves opposing teams will have to be at their best to hang with his side in the tournament.
“We didn’t really expect it to be that much of a blow out, we thought it was going to be a really tough game but us boys pushed through and came together,” Foxwell said.
“It gives us heaps of confidence going into the next game against WA and for the whole tournament.
“That just proves that we’re up there with the best teams – everyone has to watch out for us now.”
They’ll definitely be watching out for Foxwell, who poured in 25 points to go with 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals in an all-round tour de force the GA had no answer to.
Joel looks up to his brother and is leaning toward following a similar path into a development player role in the NBL.
“I look up to him, what he does day by day, from where he started to where he is now, I just love seeing all his accomplishments and can’t wait to watch him grow more as a basketballer,” he said.
“Hopefully I can get to that same level soon as an 18-19-year-old.
“Now I’ve seen what my brother’s been able to do, the NBL DP route is my priority option, but if college is there, I’ll consider that too and it will just depend on the circumstances.”
Foxwell knows the eyes of the basketball world are on the tournament - it’s where breakout performances can lead to huge opportunities.
“Hopefully I can get a couple of things out of this tournament, that’d be good,” he said.
“If not, I will have to think about doing something else, but for now, it’s just trying to get a DP chance or a good college offer.”
“I was talking to my parents about it (after the game this morning) just being a good start to the tournament and if I keep it going, hopefully something comes out of it.”
20+ stars of the future: The kids you need to watch at BA Schools Championships
There is a newly-minted Boomer, a host of junior Aussie representatives and the daughter of a New Zealand basketball legend. These are the stars of the future you need to watch at the Basketball Australia Schools Championships.
Live stream: South Australia’s rising stars battle for court crowns
The best young players from across regional South Australia will take over the courts in December with state glory going on the line. Find out how you can watch the action LIVE and see the schedule.