Otago has fought its way through to feature at the business end of the junior national basketball competitions.
The province made the top four in both the men’s and women’s sections of the national under-19 championships in Rangiora.
On the men’s side, the team beat Auckland 89-83 in the quarterfinals yesterday, spurred on by 24 points from Oamaru product Danyon Ashcroft.
However, it ran into a quality Canterbury team later in the day and was blown off the court early in a 121-69 loss.
Swingman Patrick Freeman has starred for the team.
The first-year student, who moved south from Wellington, has led the tournament in scoring with 29.0 points per game and dropped 46 points in a win over Waikato.
The women’s team also beat Auckland to qualify for the semifinals.
The team shot out to a 19-0 lead, getting stops and doing the damage in transition offensively.
Maddie Tinnock led the team with 18 points.
The women lost to Canterbury 79-68 in their semifinal last night, and will play Wellington in today’s playoff for third and fourth, while Canterbury will face Waikato in the final at 3.20pm today.
The men will play Taranaki in their third-placed playoff, while North Harbour faces Canterbury in the final.
