Sale Amateur Basketball Association (SABA) hosted their annual junior tournament over the weekend, with more than 100 teams participating from across the state; young basketballers inundated the local area, ready to show their skills off in the age groups ranging from under-10s up to under-19s.
The association utilised stadiums across Sale, and surrounding areas, including Heyfield, Gippsland Grammar, Sale College, Cameron Sporting Complex Maffra, and Catholic College Sale, with the Gippsland Regional Sports Complex acting as the main venue.
The junior tournament was organised and managed by the association’s committee – local volunteers who put in countless hours to ensure the event was a success.
The Sale under-10 Boys had a very impressive Sale Tournament; they started their season just a few months ago as a B Grade team, but have continually improved, advancing their skills, and now play as a competitive side in the A Grade competition.
The Sale Tournament saw the under-10 Boys draw 20-20 against Warragul, with Sale’s Leo Grant shooting foul shots after the final siren to level the game.
Sale had highly competitive games against Leongatha, Moe and Maffra, losing by small margins of just three, seven and six points.
“The under-10 Boys have progressed at an amazing pace, and we could not be prouder of what they have been able to achieve,” a Sale Amateur Basketball Association spokesperson said.
“With only one tournament left for the year, we cannot wait to see them hit their peak for the season.”
The under-12.1 Boys started the Sale Tournament playing against the strong Traralgon side, and found it hard to match their height and overall shooting skill. However, their defeat to Traralgon put fire in the Sale boys’ bellies when they met Lakes Entrance in their second game, winning quite comfortably.
The result of their third-round game against Maffra Black would determine their place on the ladder before heading into the quarter-finals.
Sale’s game against Maffra was fiercely competitive, resulting in a two-point win to the Maffra side, which meant Sale would have to crossover into the quarter-finals against Maffra Red for the right to play Traralgon again in the semi-final.
The quarter-final was fiercely competitive again, but this time against Maffra Red. Maffra led most of the game, but Sale remained close.
It was an incredibly exciting finish to this game, with scores level with 20 seconds remaining and Maffra having possession. With some remarkable defensive pressure applied by Sale, they managed to push the ball forward, gaining possession with six seconds remaining, and Tyler Harrison was fouled, attempting a layup with one second to go.
The siren sounded, and the scores remained level, but Harrison was awarded two shots from the foul line. Despite injuring his shooting hand in the clash, Harrison netted his second shot to win Sale the game by one point.
The boys were excited to play Traralgon again and played very well, with confidence and determination keeping in touch throughout the first half.
Traralgon broke away in the second half, winning a spot in the Grand Final.
The Sale boys had a very successful weekend showing significant improvement in their individual skills and playing structure.
Sale looks forward to playing in the Traralgon Tournament next week.
The Sale 12.2 Boys had a very tough Saturday, underperforming in their games compared to their performance at Warragul, returning Sunday morning and playing as they had previously, with great team defence that led to plenty of transition opportunities.
“They shared the ball amongst themselves and improved immensely in taking the right option, something we have been working on,” a SABA spokesperson said.
“Despite going down late by two points to a much bigger side, the way they played impressed all, so much so they were praised after the game by an Eltham under-14 coach who was coaching the following game.
“Great job boys; now for some consistency.”
The under-12.1 Girls played in their first tournament of the year and had a great weekend, showing the improvements they have made as individuals as well as a team; they were able to show this in short patches during each game. Unfortunately, the girls had no wins, but they never gave up trying.
Sonics 14.1 Boys went into the tournament undermanned, losing Hunter Wynd to a broken arm.
They performed extremely well with convincing wins over Lakes Entrance, 38-11, and Maffra (62-35) losing to Traralgon by two points and Eltham 14.2 by three points.
Eltham 14.2 challenged Warragul in the grand final, going down by three points at the siren.
Eltham 14.1 is the top-ranked metro team in the state, and Warragul is the top-ranked country team in Victoria.
“It was a great experience for our boys to compete at such a high level, and we’ll keep aiming high,” a SABA spokesperson said.
The under-14.2 boys started off strong in the local tournament, winning their first game against Morwell. They continued to develop and implement the skills acquired during training in the following games.
A close game against Traralgon ending in a draw and two losses to Poowong and Warragul meant the under-14.2 boys missed out on finals.
“Each game, the boys continued to grow and work together as a team, playing plenty of excellent patches of basketball, matching it with the best in their division,” a SABA spokesperson said.
“The boys should be proud of their growth throughout the season, and we look forward to our final tournament in Traralgon.”
The 14.1 girls continue to improve every tournament and make ground on the local teams.
Against Morwell, the Sonic girls kept it a goal-for-goal affair until Morwell broke the game open with four minutes remaining, eventually going down by 13 points.
Moe was up next, and in another tight game, it was Sale’s turnovers from bad passing that cost the girls the match, going down by four points.
The third was against the strong Traralgon side that had previously beaten the girls convincingly.
Early on, it was goal-for-goal until Sale began to look after the ball, and shots began to fall.
With Traralgon leading by a point with seconds to go, a steal, a missed layup and then a kick out on an offensive rebound found Ella Higgins, who calmly hit the wide-open three. Strong defence on the inbound pass prevented Traralgon from scoring, and the Sonic girls had the win.
Full of confidence, the Sale girls were too strong for the CBC Academy side, winning by 16 points.
“Really pleased weekend for the girls,” a SABA spokesperson said.
“Confidence and self-belief are certainly growing at the perfect time of the year.”
The under-16 girls were four players down at the weekend but, fortunately, were able to bring in a past Sonics player and two development players into the side.
The girls won two games and lost two games during the rounds, placing them third on the ladder and earning them a place in the B Grade Grand Final against Morwell 1.
In a tight start to the Grand Final, the sonics girls pulled away in the second half, winning 24-14.
Mia Ballinger was awarded the grand final MVP.
The Sale under-18 Boys had a great tournament, showing their true character and ending the tournament with three wins and two losses, losing in the semi-final by a small margin after a strong early lead.
The losses were to both Grand Final teams by small margins that could have gone either way. Further improvement was shown by the boys’ defensive intensity and transition.
The under-18 Girls finished off their squad season by taking out the under-19 Girls A Grade Championship.
The girls had their home tournament marked on the calendar as one they really wanted to finish their junior basketball journey on, together as a team and a group of great mates.
The girls went through undefeated in the four preliminary rounds, earning a Grand Final berth against Morwell.
The girls emerged strong in the Grand Final and established an early eight-point buffer. In what was a great team win, the Sonic under-18 Girls claimed the victory, with Ally Beale being named MVP for the game.
“What a great way to finish up the year and, for the top-age girls, a cracking way to finish their junior career,” the SABA said.
“Super proud of them, and what a great group of girls.”
Sale teams now look forward to the Traralgon tournament over Labour Day weekend in March.
Traralgon is the final local tournament of the representative season.
