Top-of-the-table City Lights are 6-7 (22), Massive Marauders 4-8 (16), Off Limitz 3-7 (16), Green Up 3-7 (15), Wairoa River Hawks 3-7 (15) and Kiwi Lumber-Jacks 1-7 (12).
Lights dropped 11 three-point shots in an 80-39 cruise against the Hawks.
An SE crew minus match-winner Auric Pocock, Rikki Noble, Tomas Fernandez, Keenan Ruru-Poharama and Samuel Chademana beat the Lumber-Jacks 79-51.
Only one individual effort topped Israel Kerisome’s 30-point showing for Off Limitz … Safin Tuwairua-Brown’s 34 for Green Up v Raiders in his outfit’s 70-63 win.
Off Limitz emerging forward Exodus Te Kahu said: “We’re coming together as a team and we’re stoked to now have Brixton Calipes, who’s come to New Zealand from the Philippines, in the mix.”
Te Kahu is a strong player at the rim and he opened the scoring with a left-handed lay-up straight off the jump ball.
The athletic Bright got Boys’ High on the scoreboard at 2-2 and then Off Limitz player Turanga Mauheni – inbounding the ball, right side of the basket – found the cutting Kerisome for 4-2. Game 1 was off and running.
Ollie Tong, who played surely his most productive game of the season to date with 17 points, made a superb hustle play to save the ball in-court and find GBHS sharpshooter Izaiah Craft-Chemis at the perimeter. Craft-Chemis hit the shot for 20-20 on the quarter-time buzzer.
GBHS skipper Felix Sparks gave the second period a classy moment to savour in switching hands and then making a jump hook for 26-22.
Teammate Kingston Samuels later tore down the left baseline and swung through under the ring for 46-43.
Off Limitz’ towering Carta Paea, right side of the hoop, showed tremendous poise and touch to score over Aidan Henderson.
Veteran referee Donna Brown-Nepia played good advantage on plays in which contact had occurred, but as both lead official and trail official, her vigilance extended to nabbing Bright and Kelly Rangihuna for progress in the third period.
Bright was trying to step by defenders right side to the ring and Rangihuna took steps without dribbling the ball.
The last big play saw Paea leap a tall building to block Bright’s shot off a spin move.
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Wairoa River Hawks v City Lights was one for the jump shooters.
Carl Riini and captain Scott Muncaster each struck gold four times from the three-point line while Ryan Walters made three treys.
Sefton Solomon and left-hander Andre Mitchell hit a pair of three-pointers for the Hawks, but the visitors were caught short at the perimeter.
Riini hit from the left wing for 13-2 and in response, unpredictable Wairoa guard Qaadr Smith made a magnificent scoop shot.
Walters hit a trey from the left corner in response. Riini got open and dropped a 30-foot bomb to pip the quarter-time buzzer for 23-7.
Wairoa’s finest never gave up. Sefton Solomon drove at Walters, pulled up and hit a sweet floater in the third period of a game during which City Lights were given good open looks regularly and simply cashed in their chips.
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Maybe they knew something in advance.
Whether they’d been given a nudge pre-game or not, an SE Systems mob missing five of their best played game 3 hard against the Kiwi Lumber-Jacks.
The Adrian Sparks-led crew led a potentially dangerous Jacks unit 23-12, 39-25, 59-40 through the breaks.
Adrian Peachey, always a committed and persistent player at both ends of the court, gave Luke Smith great scoring support.
Kereama Huriwai put up 18 points and newbie Houston Stainton 10. To have four players score in double figures gave Systems a real boost.
Despite the loss, Lumber-Jacks skipper David Rameka is excited about his boys’ future in the game.
“We’re a new team with new players, young players, especially Justin Hill, who’s 14 and scored our first basket,” said Rameka, who, like diminutive guard Izaiah Kerisome, scored 11.
“We gave him the green light to shoot the ball, and we’re all loving this league.”
Rewha Rameka led the Jacks scorers with 16 points.
Systems cut neither he nor Hill any slack.
Big forward Will Collier blocked the guard’s shot on the right baseline, Smith and Sparks both made hay left side of the floor early on, after which Rameka, from a jab step, hit a fallaway jump shot.
Later, Peachey’s angelic footwork in the lane made space to score for 27-12 to Systems to which Rameka responded by hitting a three-pointer from the top of the key.
Rameka produced a classic, comic windmill foul against Peachey at 35-20 and Sparks – in possibly his finest hour defensively in a 29-year career – blocked three shots in a row from behind.
* * *
Raiders v Green Up was a timely reminder of the emergence of good young talent in the league.
The winning of the late game, 70-63, was down to Green Up’s Safin Tuwairua-Brown, who remarkably hit only one three-point shot in his 34-point haul.
He took the ball to the basket with disarming intensity and made two three-point plays.
Allies Rangihuna was sensational for 20 points for the Raiders in a game that was even throughout – 15-12, 35-29, 49-46.
Green Up’s class guards Dominique Wilson and Holden Wilson made it abundantly clear they would drop bombs from the first and the referees – namely Exodus Te Kahu as lead official, when Raiders’ Allies Rangihuna took the ball hard into Holden Wilson – also made it clear that they would allow players to body up.
In the second quarter, Tuwairua-Brown found Dominique Wilson low-left on the baseline for Green Up 19 Raiders 26.
Te Kahu again showed good judgement with the whistle in the fourth quarter when he called illegal use of the hands by Haeora Kerekere-Puke in fouling Tuwairua-Brown on a drive move.
Tuwairua-Brown scored for 66-59, not completing a three-point play, yet the pace held.
Rangihuna found whippet Kiki Wilson on the run with an incredible outlet pass for Raiders 61 Green Up 66.
Tuwairua-Brown, with a quick release from 10 feet and only 23 seconds to play, scored for 70-61, effectively ending the game as a contest.
* * *
Petra Sparks is a happy camper.
Her SE Systems team beat Gisborne Girls’ High School 63-37 in week 9 of the GBA Ladies’ Club Basketball League on Monday at the YMCA.
Ad her younger sister Jasmine led all scorers with 16.
Teammate Mereono Rangihaeata put up 12, while stand-out Indie Nikora, with 11, was the students’ only scorer in double figures.
Whangara Old Girls beat Spark Plugs 71-38.
GBA Men’s Premier Grade, week 9
Gisborne Boys’ High School Senior A 84 (Ryland Bright 23, Ollie Tong 17, Felix Sparks 16, Izaiah Craft-Chemis 10, Aidan Henderson 9) Off Limitz 72 (Israel Kerisome 30, Brixton Calipes 16, Rihai Harris 7, Exodus Te Kahu 6). Quarter 1 – 20-20; HT – GBHS 43-21; Q3 – 61-55.
Wairoa River Hawks 39 (Qaadr Smith 15, Sefton Solomon 14, Andre Mitchell 10) City Lights 80 (Paora Dewes 17, Kahn Grayson 16, Scott Muncaster 15, Ryan Walters 13, Carl Riini 12). Q1 – City Lights 23-7; HT – 41-17; Q3 – 59-26.
SE Systems 79 (Adrian Peachey 20, Kereama Huriwai 18, Luke Smith 15, Houston Stainton 10, Adrian Sparks 6) Kiwi Lumber-Jacks 51 (Rewha Rameka 16, David Rameka 11, Izaiah Kerisome 11, Justin Hill 6). Q1 – SES 23-12; HT – 39-25; Q3 – 59-40.
Raiders OG 63 (Allies Rangihuna 20, Isileli Kamoto-Taliauli 13, Kiki Wilson 12) Green Up 70 (Safin Tuwairua-Brown 34, Dominique Wilson 19, Holden Wilson 10, Cody Tarei 6). Q1 – Green Up 15-12; HT – 35-29; Q3 – 49-46.