Celebrating their win in the Canterbury men’s division one basketball competition on Saturday were (from back second left) Pip Johnston, Jason Grieg, Tomo O’Brien, Fotu Hala, Tony Gilbert, Nick Fechney, Brian Kerr (coach), (front from left) Marc Juntilla and Gareth Hunt. Canterbury Rams head coach Mick Downer is on the far left. Photo supplied.Mid Canterbury’s men’s basketball side has capped off a stunning return to the Canterbury Basketball scene by taking out the division one title.

Playing Atami Casa de Banos at Cowles Stadium on Canterbury Basketball’s big finals day, the Mid Canterbury boys came to play, and didn’t let the occasion overawe them, running away with the win 82-62.

This year was the first time Mid Canterbury had entered a team in a Christchurch competition since 1999, and the fact that they won it was terrific, coach Brian Kerr said, particularly for such a young side that gave away a fair bit on size at times.

“This was a massive effort and a terrific result for the boys.

“A great way to end the season,” he said.

The final was the third time the two sides had met this season, with both having a win each to their names, and in the big one they got off to a pretty even start.

Mid Canterbury were dealt an early blow when Fotu Hala rolled an ankle, but fortunately he was able to rejoin the struggle and Mid Canterbury led 21-16 at the end of the first quarter before hitting a couple of early baskets to push it out to a 10-goal margin early in the second.

Atami came back and took the lead with a drive to the basket, as Mid Canterbury found themselves having to work hard to break a full court defence, at a time when they also went quiet offensively.

A rolled ankle to Nick Fechney provided another headache, but he too was able to return to the game as Mid Canterbury increased their defensive intensity and regained the lead.

Mid Canterbury led 41-35 heading into the all-important third quarter, where things got a bit frantic and Atami drew even again.

With three minutes to go in the quarter, three of Mid Canterbury’s big men were on the bench in foul trouble, giving them a small line-up on the court, but they just scrambled and fought harder, Kerr said.

Hala showed his attacking skills with a couple of strong drives, before a steal by Marc Juntilla and a timely three-pointer by captain Pip Johnston put Mid Canterbury out to a 63–52 lead.

At three-quarter time it was 66-55 in Mid Canterbury’s favour and they stuck with the smaller line-up because Atami were struggling to adapt to the speed of the defence and were turning the ball over.

A timely reintroduction of Greig and Thomas O’Brien into the mix created more headaches for Atami, and by the end of the game Mid Canterbury were still full of running as they took out it out 82-62.

Kerr said that Atami tried to put Johnston off his game early, and while it did have some effect, Johnston’s superior fitness meant he was still pushing hard at the end.

“What was clear to see was that all of the team stepped up when they needed to, hitting the shot when required and being able to minimise any momentum swings,” Kerr said.

He said Mid Canterbury’s defence was outstanding.

“They fought and scrambled for everything and created a lot of Atami turnovers.

“In fact it was our smaller line-up that proved really effective because they were able to mitigate the Atami bigs and in turn sped up the game,” Kerr said.

“When we matched them with timber, they also struggled because on a whole Mid Canterbury did pretty well securing their own boards, reducing second shots.

“It was a terrific results for a generally such a young team.

“However when you have a general in the likes of Pip Johnston, the team will follow.”

Johnston finished with 22 points and was named MVP for the final, and the season.

Hala came back from his early scare to score 15 points, while Greig was a constant thorn in Atami’s side, and Juntilla was busy all game.

“To not mention the other boys of Gareth Hunt, Nick Fechney, Tony Gilbert and Tomo O’Brien would be a travesty as they played a massive part in the win.

“High work rates and the ability to keep up intensity was crucial,” Kerr said.

© The Ashburton Guardian - 16 September 2019