Young Northland basketballers score first win against Auckland

Point guard Tuhikaiariki Smith about to pass to his team-mate as the Northland Under 13 rep team beat their Auckland counterparts for the first time at the weekend.

Northland basketball is on a high after the region's Under 13 rep team beat their Auckland counterparts for the first time.

Last week the Under 13 representatives for Northland Basketball went to the first weekend of the SuperCity competition, which has teams from every region within Auckland - North, Counties, Auckland, Waitakere, Hibiscus Coast, Northland and North Harbour.

Northland Basketball general manager Josh Port said traditionally Northland has not done very well at the tournament which sees teams play a game every week for six weeks.

However, last Saturday the Under 13 boys team beat Auckland Premiers 55-39 at North Shore Events Centre, the first win for the age group against the big city rivals.

''Traditionally Auckland have destroyed everybody bar North Harbour. This is possibly the first time a team from Northland has beaten Auckland,'' Port said.

He said the young players were delighted with their win, which sets them in good stead for the rest of the competition.

Port said basketball is the second highest participation level of any sports in Northland.
''Our girls Under 13 team unfortunately lost in the last couple of minutes (on Saturday) to Waitakere by 3 points, but were in it right up until the final buzzer,'' Port said.

''This is just the start of what Northland Basketball are hoping the new development pathways through to representative level competition will be for the young people of Northland. Basketball in Northland and New Zealand is on the rise, it is the fastest-growing sport in New Zealand, the third most participated in sport in New Zealand currently.

''With Northland Basketball striving to accommodate the talent and provide development opportunities for the young people of Northland, we are aiming to be one of the big players in the national conversation when it comes to basketball.''

Northland's most famous basketballer is former Tall Black and NZ Breaker Pero Cameron.