Basketball: Tall Blacks, Tall Ferns lose out to Australia in Trans-Tasman second round

RNZ News

09-05-2025

Shea Ili of the Tall Blacks and Elijah Pepper of the Boomers, 2025.
Photo:
PHOTOSPORT
The Australian Boomers and Opals have
proved too classy
for their Kiwi opponents in the second of three fixtures each in the Trans-Tasman Throwdown series.
The Tall Blacks and the Boomers were first on court on the Sunshine Coast, and while New Zealand was boosted by the return of forward Finn Delany for the game, they couldn't break Australia's defensive intensity.
Australian Harry Wessells and teen sensation Austin Rapp dominated down low, to help the home side to a 18-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
That lead grew in the second quarter as the Tall Blacks' attack continued to struggle, with two Todd Blanchfield three-pointers helping Australia to a 42-28 lead at halftime.
Guard Taylor Britt led the charge for New Zealand in the third quarter, and while they cut the lead back to ten, they couldn't sustain their momentum in the final quarter, as the Boomers held firm to comfortably win 92-67.
Britt ended up scoring a game-high 19 points, while Shea Ili scored 18 and Delany eight.
Wessels excelled defensively for Australia, recording seven rebounds and three blocks.
Ashlee Strawbridge of the Tall Ferns takes a shot against Australia Opals, 2025.
Photo:
PHOTOSPORT
It was a similar story for the Tall Ferns, who couldn't find a way past the Australian Opals, who moved up a notch from their victory in the first match of the series.
Fouls and turnovers from New Zealand hampered them in the first quarter, and helped the Opals build a sizeable 29-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Tall Ferns continued to struggle to score against the Opals' strong defence.
However, a motivational timeout led by coach Nat Hurst saw Bailey Flavell attacking the basket effectively, sparking a small offensive run for the Tall Ferns.
Despite that though, the Opals still managed to build their lead to a healthy 32 points at halftime.
And while New Zealand managed to cut that lead to 29 at the end of the third quarter, thanks to the scoring efforts of Esra McGoldrick, Flavell and McKenna Dale, Australia reset their focus for the final quarter, and pulled away again to win 98-57.
Standout performances for the Opals included a great all-round performance from Maddi Rocci, while Robati with 14 and McGoldrick with 11 were the only Tall Ferns players to post double figures.
The final matches in the series are on Sunday in Hamilton.
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