Player’s sights set high
She is a towering 192cm tall but Maia Wilson says she hasn’t finished growing yet.
That’s a worry for her opposition on the basketball court.
‘‘I like to use my body to my advantage, I love the physical stuff,’’ she says.
‘‘I guess that’s why my teammates tell me they hate playing against me at training.’’
Maia has wasted no time establishing herself as a feared power forward/centre.
The 16-year-old basketball star attends Mt Albert Grammar and has played for Waitakere West Auckland right throughout the age groups, making numerous stories along the way.
In the under-17s national final last year she scored 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists to help lead her team to
success the title over North Harbour.
Her performance also earned her the MVP crown for the tournament.
‘‘That was the cherry on the top,’’ Maia says.
‘‘Usually the point guards get the glory so it was something special.’’
She has played for the Junior Tall Ferns but injury forced her out of the FIBA Oceania World qualifiers last year.
‘‘I’ve had some trouble with my left ankle and rolled it twice leading up to the tournament,’’ Maia says.
‘‘From that I injured my achilles tendon on my other foot and it was a run of bad luck at the wrong time.’’
Maia’s talents there.
She’s also a force on the netball court, making the New Zealand Secondary Schools team and winning the national title with the Mt Albert Grammar School side last year.
‘‘Basketball is more of an international sport but netball has more funding here. My goal is to be a dual international for New Zealand, which is a lot harder to do these days. But a decision will have to be made about which sport I favour eventually.’’
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