Nine-year-old scores 18 points in Gisborne women’s basketball club league

Mary Franklin, a 9-year-old Year 5 pupil at Awapuni School and the youngest player in GBA women’s club ball history, drops in two of her 18 points for Spark Plugs in their 72-38 win against Gisborne Girls’ High School at the YMCA on Monday night.

If you’re good enough, you’re old enough was likely coined for the GBA.

The Gisborne Basketball Association women’s club league – in which former representative captains Janelle Te Rauna-Lamont, Bronya McMenamin and Black Fern 233 Kaipo Olsen-Baker all turned out at age 11 – welcomed a new shooting star in week six.

Nine-year-old Mary Franklin, a Year 5 pupil at Awapuni School and the youngest player in the GBA’s 36-year history, scored 18 points in lay-ups, floaters and jump-shots for the Spark Plugs in their 72-38 win against Gisborne Girls’ High School.

Her equally versatile teammate Kohine Aupouri hit a long jumper from the top of the key for 7-0 before Te Makoha Porter, right side, scored Girls’ High’s first points off a put-back for Natalie Tarei.

Plugs’ O’Shae Rangihaeata, who the previous Monday brought an unprecedented three-point shoot-out to an end with a buzzer-beater, was again superb. Three times, she punished the opposition for their turnovers with breakaway baskets.

Ngarita Ehau-Taumaunu had a good game at both ends of the floor – she scored for 48-14 off a Rangihaeata assist, right-side, on the run and leapt up to block Bailey Garrett-Kora’s shot, left-side, for 48-18.

Kohine Aupouri skipped to the ring left-side to score off a lob-pass from Arihia Tuhaka-Haapu for 60-33 and Garrett-Kora – with the touch-shot of the night – produced the bucket of the night, on a seamless catch-and-shoot release on the left baseline at the four-minute mark for 36-62.

O’Shae’s mum, Mereono, of SE Systems (whom the Whangara Old Girls beat 46-43 in Game 1), is – like Ehau-Taumaunu – a veteran of countless tough battles at the YMCA. After 25 years in the competition, she continues to be impressed by the up-and-comers.

Whangara Old Girls’ Materoa Poi opened the scoring in Game 1 with a super drop-step to the right of the ring and, moments later, left-side, angled her shot and the ball in from well above the square for 4-0.

Lu Taitapanui got Systems on the scoreboard for 2-4, and in the third period, Paris Wilson made the assist of the night to that point – a great outlet to the hard-running Poi for 28-24. Poi’s dribble-drive and floater for 42-41 was a candidate for the most memorable individual play of the night.

Off Limitz are for real.

The new club lost the late game in Week 6 of the men’s premier grade at the YMCA on Tuesday, but they proved to be a handful for GBA defending champions, the Raiders OG.

The Raiders won Game 3 in Tuesday Hoops but were pushed hard, 67-61.

In Safin Tuwairua-Brown, Holden Wilson and Cody Tarei, the Raiders had three scorers in double-figures and hit 13 three-point shots, including three in a row to Tuwairua-Brown to open the second quarter.

Off Limitz tough competitor Exodus Te Kahu refused to take no for an answer until he succeeded in tapping the ball back up into the basket for Limitz 5, Raiders 20. He belongs to a club whose members are young but fierce and unafraid to challenge older, bigger teams. No Limitz are earning respect.

Top prospect Auric Pocock, with 11 points, led all scorers for a Massive Marauders outfit with only five players against Green Up in Game 1.

Green Up had a 73-37 victory over the Marauders, who were without Stefan and Mokena Pishief. That father-son pairing, in Britain at present, can be relied on for rebounds, points and good minutes.

In Game 2, the Wairoa City Hawks beat the Kiwi Lumber-Jacks 79-59. The Hawks’ Qaadr Smith again made heads spin with some amazing passes. He and teammate Sefton Solomon put up 17 points apiece, and Smith opened the scoring with a three-point play at the expense of KLJ big man James Walker.

Stung by this, Walker and another athlete who has been sensational in the past two years, Rewha Rameka, both scored two consecutive hoops.

Although injured, Hawks organiser Dean Burgess is a happy man: “Our boys did well. Andre Mitchell stepped up his all-round game and hit two three-pointers – a shot he’s wanted to make more often in the past few weeks. Also, our tall youngster Kauri Maxwell-Claire ran the floor, got open and got rewarded, and our defence is getting better too.”

Results

Friday, men’s open grade –

Raiders OG 57 (Willie Brown 21, Siaki Tui 10, Wayne Bartram 10) Waikohu 35 (Taylor Major 19, Jayrus Rutene 6, Jayduz Reeves 4) Q1 Raiders 14-6, HT 27-13, Q3 41-25.

Setting Suns 54 (Fabio Geranazzo 12, Luca Tong 12, Andy Squire 10, Panapa Ehau 8) Waengapu Stallions 27 (Hukanui Brown 8, Tumou Tuwarau 8, Mason Nepe 6) Q1 Stallions 10-8, HT Suns 20-19, Q3 34-21.

Campion Cougars 66 (Bjorn Raroa-Haraki 20, Hamish 12, Robert Fysh 12, Owen Buchanan 8, Felix Cowie 6) ETB Whanau 35 (Ezra Graham 20, Kian Dickson 6) Q1 Cougars 19-0, HT 31-8, Q3 48-23.

Hustlers 30 (Jovan Potter 8, Caleb Swann 8, Rusty Rewi 6, Kaea Swann 4) Astros 39 (Logan Mason 12, Taimanaaki Gear 12, Ben Greaves 6, Ainsley Waititi-Leach 4) Q1 Astros 16-8, HT 21-18, Q3 29-18.

Psalms 74 (Charles Hughes 18, Zorik Peneha 14, Josefo Avau Muliaga 12, James Price 8, Kobe Te Kani 6) Cold Hearts 35 ( Rylan Ingram 14, Manuera Ryland 13) Q1 Psalms 23-10, HT 40-21, Q3 60-33.

Monday, women’s club league –

Whangara Old Girls 46 (Tania Adamson 14, Materoa Poi 10, Maiangi Mackey 5, Paris Wilson 4) SE Systems 43 (Petra Sparks 10, Peyton Riri 9, Jasmine Sparks 6, Lu Taitapanui 6, Alicia Kepa 4) Q1 SES 11-10, HT 24-22, Q3 Whangara 34-33.

Gisborne Girls’ High School 38 (Bailey Garrett-Kora 12, Indie Nikora 8, Natalie Tarei 6, Te Huinga Karauria 6) Spark Plugs 72 (Mary Franklin 18, O’Shae Rangihaeata 14, Kohine Aupouri 13, Arihia Tuhaka-Haapu 11, Ngarita Ehau-Taumanu 6) Q1 Spark Plugs 16-9, HT 40-18, Q3 54-27.

Tuesday, men’s premier grade –

Massive Marauders 37 (Auric Pocock 11, Sean Molloy 9, Dom Wilson 8, Simon Wilson 4) Green Up 73 (Safin Tuwairua-Brown 22, Holden Wilson 19, Cody Tarei 13, Dominique Wilson 6, Khian Westrupp 4) Q1 Green Up 15-11, HT 34-32, Q3 53-39.

Wairoa River Hawks 79 (Qaadr Smith 17, Sefton Solomon 17, Kauri Maxwell-Claire 16, Andre Mitchell 8, Willie Mitchell 6) Kiwi Lumber-Jacks 59 (Rewha Rameka 20, Izaiah Kerisome 17, James Walker 15) Q1 Hawks 19-11, HT 43-30, Q3 61-46.

Raiders OG 67 (Allies Rangihuna 22, Daley Riri 14, Isileli Kamoto-Taliauli 10, Mana Nepia 10, Nelson Brown 6, Haeora Kerekere-Puke 4) Off Limitz 61 (Israel Kerisome 19, Brixton Calipes 14, Exodus Te Kahu 12, Rihai Harris 11, Turanga Mauheni 5) Q1 Raiders 20-15, HT 40-30, Q3 57-37.