BASKETBALL
U20 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
By TOM HAYES
THREE Traralgon basketballers have returned from Ballarat after competing at the Under 20 National Basketball Championships.
Ben Waller, Emily Scholtes and Asha Nightingale all played on separate teams throughout the championships.
Waller lined up for Victoria Navy in the men’s, Scholtes also repped Victoria Navy in the women’s, while Nightingale was a part of the Victoria team, in a separate pool to Scholtes.
All played a part in their team’s successes, which is great from a local lens, showing the rest of the country what the Latrobe Valley can produce.
The championships present a huge opportunity for these youngsters, with scouts in attendance looking to give young basketballers an opportunity if they see fit.
WALLER had to play four pool games, meaning two in one day on the third day of the championships.
Unfortunately for him, his Victoria Navy side were only able to muster a 1-3 record from those four pool games.
Despite putting up 20 or more points in the opening two games, the 17-year-old recorded a double-double in the fourth pool game against South Australia (14 points, 12 rebounds), but that still wasn’t enough to give them a fighting chance.
Victoria Navy was then forced to play a quarter final, which they lost by 11 points to Tasmania, and during their consolation game loss to Western Australia, Waller recorded 36 points, making four three-pointers at 57 per cent.
His team finished the championships with a win in the seventh-place playoff, edging the Australian Capital Territory by six points, with Waller scoring 17 points and claiming five rebounds.
Waller averaged 17.8 points and four rebounds per game, collected 1.1 assists and 1.3 steals per outing.
“It was a really good experience, it’s always good to get matched up against other players from around the state and being in a team environment,” Waller said.
It was Waller’s first time in the U20s bracket, after representing Victoria previously on three occasions, once in U16s (cancelled due to COVID) and twice in U18s.
Waller was grateful for the opportunity to get to know the team more personally, building connections for the future, with a number of his teammates varying from the country and the metro system.
“I was really pleased with how I performed, I think in terms of my future going forward, I think I did some good stuff,” he said.
Waller has the opportunity to represent his country once again, with the upcoming tryouts for the Australian U18s side.
In the meantime, he will be playing Youth League Men’s and NBL1 basketball for the Casey Cavaliers.
SCHOLTES was impressive, but her Victoria Navy side struggled on the winning front too.
In Pool B, her side managed a 1-2 record, which led to the downward scale of the finals draw.
The 17-year-old was unable to drag her side over the line in Game 1 against New South Wales, after putting up 12 points, five rebounds and a steal.
Yet she provided a more all-rounded stat line in Victoria Navy’s first win, scoring six points, having four rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Victoria Navy lost their quarter final to Queensland, but bounced back, winning their consolation game against South Australia Blue, before winning the fifth/sixth playoff.
Scholtes provided 16 points and four rebounds in the playoff win over WA.
She finished the championships averaging eight points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists.
This was Scholtes’ fourth time representing Victoria, like Waller, doing so once at U16 level and twice at U18 level.
“I think because we were in the development team, it was a good chance to focus on ourselves, and also just improving,” Scholtes said.
“There was no expectations for us to win, it was just about getting better each game, and I think my team accomplished that.”
Scholtes recognised the final game as a highlight, finishing the championships strong.
“The start of the week was good, we got better and then we kind of had a dip, so I think the last game was just everything we had worked on came together, and it was probably our best game all tournament,” she said.
Scholtes was placed in a different role for the championships playing as a wing, but nonetheless believes she did her job to the best of her ability.
Scholtes will be looking forward to the NBL1 season with the Nunawading Spectres.
“It’s a new team and a new level that I haven’t played at yet,” she said.
NIGHTINGALE played in the undefeated side, which took out the whole championships.
It was the 17-year-old’s first time playing for Victoria in the Under 20s, after previously representing her state on two occasions at U18 level.
“This year my team did a lot better than the previous two years,” she said.
Nightingale’s Victoria cruised to victory in all three Pool A wins, defeating WA by 17 points, Queensland by 23 points and South Australia Blue by 40 points.
Playing as a power forward, Nightingale showed her prominence off the backboard, with three, seven and nine rebounds within the three pool games, but she only grew in confidence from there as Victoria entered the final stage.
Things looked easy for the Victorian team, who thrashed the ACT in the quarter finals by 43 points to progress to the semi-finals.
They seemingly faced their toughest challenge of the championships there, but scraped through after defeating NSW by five points.
Victoria easily cruised to the title, taking care of South Australia Red, winning by 16 points.
Nightingale added to her rebounding capabilities by putting more points on the board in the final three games, with 10 points, eight rebounds in the quarter final, 13 points eight rebounds in the semi, and six points four rebounds in the Grand Final.
Overall, she averaged 7.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, and one assist per game.
Nightingale said she enjoyed the challenge.
“I really enjoyed it, I just really love high-level basketball and getting to play (against) the best players in Australia and seeing what level I’m at against them,” she said.
“I just enjoy the hard work that you do … to get there, and then to finally reach that thing that you’ve been aiming for, for years.”
Nightingale was even proud of her own performance, especially considering the fact she was a ‘bottom-ager’ playing in an U20 championship.
She talked on how well the team gelled, and how she came out of her comfort zone during the week.
“I think it was just how well our team played together and how much fun we had on and off the court,” she said.
“For me, it was being (in the) starting five for every game, that was huge. I wasn’t sure how that would go with the new coach, but I had a good week.
“I’m very happy with how I went, as a bottom-ager it’s a big step up from 18s and being in a team of girls I’d never played (with) before, I was really happy with how I stepped up into my position.
“And I think my coaches were happy with that as well. I was definitely a leader in my group as well, so that was big for me being younger, coming out of my comfort zone.”
Nightingale currently plays Youth League Women and NBL1 for Casey Cavaliers, and is a Junior Development Player for WNBL side Bendigo Spirit,
“This season I’ll be playing for Casey (Cavaliers) in Youth League Women and NBL1 a little bit, and that’s the main thing going this year,” she said.
The future looks bright for the 17-year-old, with her sights set on potentially playing for Australia U19s and going to College down the line.
“Obviously there’s a goal of making an Australian team or something like that but we’ll have to wait and see for that opportunity to present itself,” Nightingale said.
“I suppose for me the next step I’ll be taking is going to College in America, so events like these are really great for exposure to that, and then there is also the Under 19 Australian team – so there is scouts for that, always watching.
“Even just NBL1 teams … it’s really good for preparing you for those things, as well as exposing you to different coaches and people.”
Her younger sister, Mica Nightingale is a part of the U18 Victorian side that will compete at the U18 National Championships from April 7 to 14.
