Youthful stars in key Asia Cup clash

BASKETBALL Australia is confident that key NBL stars will return for future Asia Cup qualifiers after naming a team of next-generation players — including Tasmanian Tre Armstrong — to face the New Zealand Tall Blacks in an Asia Cup Group C qualifier in Cairns on February 20.

The Boomers, the reigning Asia Cup champions, need to finish in the top two of their group to secure their spot to the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup scheduled for August.

Qualification for the Asia Cup will also book Australia a place in the qualifying stage of the 2023 FIBA Men’s Basketball World Cup.

With Australian-based stars unavailable because players will be inside a biosecurity bubble for the

NBL Cup, the Australian team will comprise current or recent graduates from Basketball Australia’s globally renowned

Centre of Excellence program and the NBA Global Academy, both programs based at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra.

Four members of the roster have recently been playing in the NBA G League or US college basketball — Armstrong (California Baptist University), Hunter Clarke (University of Montana), Hunter Goodrick (University of South Dakota) and Matt Kenyon (South Bay Lakers, NBA G League).

At this stage, the emerging players have only been locked in for the February 20 qualifier against Cairns.

Basketball Australia will hope its emerging side can beat New Zealand before potentially having NBL players available for the remaining qualifiers to ensure a top-two finish in their group.