Undefeated Tasmanian basketball team stands tall

TASMANIA’S under-18 boys will fight for a spot in the gold medal game at the Australian basketball championships in Geelong today.

They progressed through the quarter-finals with a convincing 89-67 win over the ACT and remain undefeated in the tournament with a 6-0 record after upsetting all the larger states to become the surprise packet of the championships.

“This is years of work that culminates in a committed team where everyone understands their roles and defends well as a team,” said head coach Mark Radford. “I could not be more proud of their efforts so far and we are looking forward to trying to make some history for Tasmania.”

The boys have a balanced attack with high level performances from Taran Armstrong (averaging 24.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists), Jacob Richards (17 points, 9 rebounds and 4.2 assists), Hunter Clarke (11.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists) and Reyne Smith (15 points).

A semi-final win against either Queensland South or Queensland North will get Tasmania into the gold medal game.

The Tasmanian girls team has performed admirably, with a 2-3 record, and has narrowly missed the quarter-finals after upsetting NSW Country in the pool games.