Latest news with #TaylorBritt
RNZ News
11-05-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Tall Blacks score rare home win over Australian Boomers
Taylor Britt running the ball for the Tall Blacks against the Australian Boomers, in the third international, at Globox Arena, Hamilton, on Sunday. Photo: PHOTOSPORT The Tall Blacks have had a rare home win over the Boomers, while the Tall Ferns have lost their third straight test to the Opals in the Trans Tasman Throwdown series. Australia won both men's and women's series, with victories in the first two tests in Adelaide and Sunshine Coast. But the Tall Blacks avoided a series sweep, winning the third test 106-97 in Hamilton, with a much more aggressive display on attack. It was Australia's first test in Aotearoa for nearly 10 years, but they could not find the dominance they had in their 80-68 and 92-67 victories from the first two games in their own country . The Tall Blacks rocked them in the first three quarters at Globox Arena and held a 24-point lead going into the final stanza. The Australians rallied, narrowing the gap to just seven points with a few minutes remaining, but the New Zealanders held their nerve in the dying stages, with match star Taylor Britt being the steady influence as he dropped in a three-pointer with 90 seconds remaining. Britt was the individual star, with 23 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, stepping up with aplomb given the absence of injured mainstay Shea Ili. Reuben Te Rangi added 18 points and three assists, Kaia Isaac 14 points and seven rebounds, Tohi Smith-Milner 13 points and four boards, Carlin Davison 12 points and four rebounds, and Walter Brown nine points, seven boards and four assists. The Tall Blacks pulled in 50 rebounds, to 28 from Australia. Elijah Pepper topscored for the Boomers, with 28 points. The Tall Ferns' Ella Tofaeono shooting for goal against the Australian Opals in the Trans-Tasman Throwdown, at Globox Arena, Hamilton, on Sunday. Photo: Photosport The Tall Ferns couldn't make it a home double, going down 86-71 to the Opals, but they had their rivals under the pump a number of times. Skipper Esra McGoldrick scored the most points in the game, with 19, one more than Australia's Courtney Woods, as the young New Zealand side put in an improved performance after the Opals won the first two tests, 88-70 and 98-57. Tall Ferns coach Natalie Hurst said she was very proud of her players, who had pushed Australia hard with a display that built on what they had learnt in the first two tests. "They are tired, physically and mentally, and to push through into lead changes seven times and to keep these guys to 86 we are very happy with," Hurst told Sky Sport. Sharne Robati and McKenna Dale both scored 11 points for the Tall Ferns.
RNZ News
09-05-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Basketball: Tall Blacks, Tall Ferns lose out to Australia in Trans-Tasman second round
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. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
News.com.au
09-05-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Basketball: Boomers v NZ, Trans-Tasman Challenge game 2 news and results
The Boomers flexed considerable muscle against the Tall Blacks to snare a Trans-Tasman Throwdown series win in stunning fashion on Friday night. Before a sell out crowd at UniSC Arena, the green and gold tamed the Kiwi's 92-67 in a wire-to-wire victory which saw Xavier Cooks (16pts) lead his Aussie's to ascendancy. Angus Glover (10pts), Cooks, Todd Blanchfeild (11pts) and Elijah Pepper (11pts) reached double figures in the 25-point trumping built on swarming defence. 'That (wide contributions) is the way Boomers culture is built,' captain Mitch Norton told Nine. 'It's not just one guy. We got a number of guys to step up, and our depth is endless.' The Kiwi's had returned from an 18-point deficit in the third quarter to be within six midway through the fourth, before taking their foot of the gas and giving in to a superb closing by the hosts. The Boomers went out with a bang scoring 32-17 in the fourth to add the finishing touches. Australia reeled in 47 rebounds to New Zealand's 34, dished out nine more assists, five more blocks and seven more steals. BRITT'S BRILLIANCE INSPIRES BLACKS' COMEBACK A startling third-quarter explosion by spark-plug guard Taylor Britt brought life back into the Tall Blacks after they trailed by as many as 18 and were staring down the barrel of a 20-point blowout loss. A mid-range magician from the Canterbury Rams, Britt brought his best when it mattered to pull the Kiwi's within 10 points, trailing 50-60 entering the fourth. He had 16 points with 2:30 left in the third and a timely three approaching the break put the exclamation mark on his wizardry. The two-year BNZ Breakers signing also drew a charge on Xavier Cooks to keep momentum in favour of the visitors. Entering the fourth, he had 19 points, three rebounds and three assists in less than 15 minutes of action. Nine of his points came from beyond the arc where he did not miss. It led to the Kiwi's coming within seven points when trailing 66-59 with 7:20 left but that was as close as they came. A stunning 5-0 scoring spurt by the Boomers quickly quelled the comeback attempt with a Norton three and Wessel's layup launching the hosts ahead 73-61 with six minutes left. BRICKIN' BLACKS Earlier, the bruising Boomers launched a staunch defensive shut down of their foes from across the ditch to lead 18-10 entering the second quarter and promptly assert their dominance. The Tall Blacks shot just 3-14 from the field in the first with the hosts' suffocating defence creating four blocked shots - two of which were produced by 19-year-old forward sensation Austin Rapp. Rapp's raucous four-minute stint off the bench saw him hold down the fort nicely after Blanchfeild, Wessels (4 pts, 4 rbs) and Cooks (5pts, 4rbs) had come out firing to set the tone. Buckets were few and far between for the Kiwis, and the Boomers' stifling defence turned into offence as they scored a quick seven points to open the second quarter and take a commanding 26-12 lead. It was never surrendered. STARK CONTRAST The Boomers trailed by five points at halftime of Wednesday's series opener and showed plenty of intent to lead comfortably, 42-28, entering the second half of Friday's Coast skirmish. That 19-point swing said plenty about the active hands, aggressiveness, rebounding urgency and unselfishness of the Aussies in a comprehensive, but not complete, opening half. The Boomers had 10 assists to the Kiwi's five, five blocks to nil and 13 made free shows compared to just four, emphasising the hosts' eagerness to attack the cup. The effectiveness of 33-year-old Blanchfeild (2-4 threes, 3rbs), who continues to age like fine wine, interior presence of centre Wessels (5pts, 5 rbs, 2 blocks) and peppering dribble-moves offered by Elijah Pepper were highlights in a first half performance which put a down payment on clinching the series. Boomers 92 (X. Cooks 16pts, 8 rbs, 3asts, 1blk) def Tall Blacks 67 (T. Britt 19pts, 5rbs, 3asts).
South China Morning Post
20-02-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Philippines' shock loss adds to Hong Kong woe as city's Fiba Asia Cup hopes end
Even the small-scale Tsuen Wan Sports Centre proved on the large side for Hong Kong's men's basketball team on Thursday as they suffered a 92-51 defeat by New Zealand. The 41-point pounding by the Tall Blacks in Group B left the Hongkongers still winless after their first five Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers, with a match against Chinese Taipei still to come on Sunday. Playing in front of some empty seats at the 700-capacity arena, the home team took up the challenge of the visitors' pre-game haka by making a spirited start, scoring on their first six possessions to take a brief 12-11 lead. The New Zealanders responded with a 15-9 run to set the tone. Shooting almost 65 per cent from behind the arc in the opening half, they led 52-33 by the break. Hong Kong's Tsang Cham-yuen tries to shoot despite the efforts of Taylor Britt. Photo: Elson Li Ranked No 3 in the region, the away team, who had already qualified, stayed in control even if the pace slowed. Hong Kong, ranked 23 places below them, were limited to four points in the final quarter.
