2025 Basketball Australia School Championships live stream: Star-studded Rowville ‘firing on all cylinders’
Australia's most successful school basketball program believes it has cracked the code to success ahead of next week’s School Championships. Read the men’s team-by-team preview.
Bringing together a team of highly talented young men to play a team-first game is never an easy task.
But that’s exactly what Rowville Secondary College Director of Basketball Dean Kinsman believes his side have been able to master this season.
In what could be an early warning sign to the rest of the competition at the Basketball Australia School Championships, Kinsman said the Victorian champions were “firing on all cylinders heading in.”
Australia’s most successful school basketball program will send both girls and boys outfits to the Gold Coast with select matches live and exclusive on KommunityTV from December 1-5.
Coming off what Kinsman described as “the most complete game I’ve seen” against reigning national champions Berwick in the Victorian state final in September, the Rowville boys outfit – headlined by names like Austin Foxwell and Denver Warry – will start as one of the tournament’s early favourites.
“They’ve really developed well over the last 12 months and I expect them to compete and play really well when they’re away,” Kinsman, a former NBL player and Australian U19 head coach, said.
“There is a lot of talent in this group and in the past they’ve probably played a little bit more for themselves whereas they’ve really gelled now and come together as a group and understand their roles, so they are firing on all cylinders heading in.”
While he admits a number of factors have led to a more team-first focus that’s been driven by the players this season, Kinsman puts most of the credit down to one simple factor.
“Last year we didn’t compete in as many tournaments (due to a number of factors), but this year the guys have probably played another 20 or 30 games across the course of the year,” he said.
“So I think when you combine that with the maturity of the group, it’s a big factor for the success. They’ve all grown up a little bit and aged a bit more in terms of their basketball IQ.
“They’ve come together and are playing a really good team game. They’ve got strengths in all positions on the floor from one to five and our depth on the bench is really strong. We can make subs and rotate and we’re able to maintain pressure and intensity in the game.”
Foxwell, a development player with NBL club South East Melbourne Phoenix, will attract plenty of attention given his highly impressive junior career to date.
And while external expectations may be high on the 18 year-old, Kinsman said culture remained the focus over any outside noise.
“Austin is just a sponge,” he said.
“He takes on all the information but is a pretty quiet character. He’s obviously got a couple of really good role models ahead of him with his brothers and I think he’s been able to see their pathway in the way that both those guys have done things a little differently. He’s obviously taken on that role as a development player with the (South East Melbourne) Phoenix, which is a huge thing for him.
“We don’t really talk about expectations, for individuals or the team. We talk about the school culture and playing for the school, and they love playing for the school. They love wearing the jersey and that shines through on and off the court.”
MEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM PREVIEWS
Rowville Secondary College (VIC)
Head Coach: Alex Palazzolo
Squad: Alier Tong (1), Denver Warry (5), Ivan Muric (10), Nate Langmaid (12), Austin Kirikiri (15), Achilles Gulic (20), Farren Langmaid (21), Lachlan Kanngiesser (41), Austin Foxwell (42), Matthew Shacklock (43)
The Victorian state champions will head to the Sunshine State brimming with confidence after knocking off defending 2024 Schools Champs Berwick College to qualify. A stacked line-up of state representatives including highly-touted young gun Austin Foxwell, along with Denver Warry and twins Nate and Farren Langmaid, puts them among the early favourites for the men’s title.
Trinity College (SA)
Head Coach: Chris Clausen
Squad: Josh Louis (2), Shabani Kuyomba (6), Ezra Wormald (7), Talon Bomford (8), Akec Jur (10), Deng Manyang (13), Nic Bell (14), Dexter Connolly (15), David Jaja (16), Biar Deng (17), Mack Shaftenaar (18), Guet Deng (20)
After finishing as runner’s up in 2024, Trinity will be out to go one better this year. They’ll be led by Deng Manyang, the excitement machine who scored 26 points in last year’s gold medal match and will be out to repeat those efforts and help his side claim a measure of redemption on the Gold Coast.
The Southport School (QLD)
Head Coach: Andrew Petrie
Squad: Sam Loughridge, Max Board, Ty Lockwood, Ty Khomenko, Billy Brazenall, Sam Scott, James Burdett, Alex Walker, Jayden Bibby, Ash McGrath, Jack Tweedy, Riley Oberman
Will the home court advantage play into the hands of Southport? That’s the big question heading in for the Queensland school set to test itself against some of the country’s best. Southport last won a Schools Championship in 2023 but, after fielding a young group last year, bring much more experience in a bid to return to the podium in front of a home crowd.
Berwick College (VIC)
Head Coach: Luke Kendall
Squad: Zach Morell (1), Marcus Krasnadamskis (2), Brandon Pele (3), Seth Horne (5), Mitchell Zeurnert (7), Zane Windsor (8), Sebastien Rault (13), Elijah Kata (17), William Seskis (33), Brayden Kotsch (37), Tyler De Jong (57)
Granted a wildcard entry after losing the state final, defending champions Berwick will be out to retain their crown. With just three players – Brandon Pele, Sebastien Rault and Marcus Krasnadamskis – returning from 2024, Berwick will be out to prove any doubters they may have wrong and gain a measure of revenge on Rowville with a second straight national school title.
Templestowe College (VIC)
Head Coach: Ian Stacker
Squad: Brody Lange (1), Xavier Toohey (4), Bodhi Stratford (7), Cassius Musiatowicz (12), LeBron Gencarelli (18), Eros Addamo (14), Cooper Gill (21), Noah Singh (24), Kayden Gordon (27), Gus Kossatz (32), Charlie Ndongo (66)
Led by two-time NBL coach of the year Ian Stacker, Templestowe enters as the lowest-ranked of the three Victorian boys schools but will be out to cause some upsets in a competitive Pool B field. Guard LeBron Gencarelli will be key, while the squad also includes Brody Lange, the son of former Opal and champion coach Sandy Brondello.
Lake Ginninderra (ACT)
Head Coach: Jason Denley
Squad: Max Manning (4), Alex Dickeson (5), Austin Fage (6), Oliver Dyason (7), Biar Wal (8), Aleer Chol (9), Stirling Musgrove (10), Ryan Gooch (12), Ben Godwin (13), Samuel Rice (15), Rio Bruton (23), Ajak Nyuon (25)
Any squad that includes Alex Dickeson, Rio Bruton and Ajak Nyuon is always a chance to walk away with a championship. The three highly-touted Centre of Excellence members headline a deep Lake Ginninderra line-up that also includes ACT nationals representatives Austin Fage and Aleer Chol. The perennial contenders will enter as early Pool B favourites who won’t take a step back against any of the Pool A sides come Wednesday’s playoff games.
Trinity Grammar School (NSW)
Head Coach: Ben Morrissey
Squad: Myles Buvac (4), Ezekiel Kho (6), Bailey Macarthur (7), Kobby Dankwa (8), Joshua Mcewan (9), Zack Rice (10), Brooklyn Virgo (11), Ethan Marten-Coney (12), Max Venardos (13), Will Kokotovich (14)
Trinity are always a competitive outfit and that should be no different this time around despite stepping up to the Championship division in 2025. They’ll be led by young scoring star Bailey Macarthur, a NSW state representative, who top-scored in the U20 Division 1 competition at last years championships, guiding the school to the title.
Willetton Senior High School (WA)
Head Coach: Blair Kearsley
Squad: Channing Olowoyo (4), Faitala Patu (5), Ethan Carroll (6), Luca Brown (7), Bari Bedhadha (8), Daniel Christou (9), Will Harrison (10), Leon Maguire (11), Kailen Harrison (12), Ryder Pokoina (13)
A new look Willetton outfit will make the long trip from the west hoping they can turn around their fortunes and head home with some success. While a number of fresh faces will be looking to make that happen, there will also be one player no stranger to the rigours of a schools championships. That’s explosive guard Channing Olowoyo. Produced a number of strong showings from decent minutes last year and is capable of hitting the three ball and changing the game.
Originally published as 2025 Basketball Australia School Championships live stream: Star-studded Rowville ‘firing on all cylinders’
