It would be wrong to call it a fluke. While some people up north may have seen Otago Boys' High School's AA National Basketball Championship win as an upset, it came as little surprise to those in the Basketball Otago community.
Yet that has become status-quo in New Zealand basketball - actually in New Zealand sport, particularly in the age-grades.
It is nothing new for young Otago athletes to be overlooked in many codes. Auckland athletes tend to dominate national teams, but perhaps that says more about the selection of those teams than the players themselves.
This Otago Boys' team was no different. Even after beating the third, fifth, sixth and seventh placed teams, there were those that still considered it an upset when they claimed the scalp of Westlake Boys' in the final.
The commentators put it down to teamwork. It is true they work well as a team, but it is a team full of talent too.
Sam Timmins, a big man who was simply too big and too strong in the final, was the tournament MVP. Having missed the majority of the season with injury, his return was timely for Otago Boys' run home at the end of the season. He played 40 minutes in the final, grabbing 23 rebounds and showing off elegant footwork that dazzled the Westlake defence in the low-post.
Timmins was the only true big man who played major minutes for this team, making the effort of Liam Aston and Hamish Fitchett even more outstanding. In the final two games they came up against big names in Tai Wynyard, Matt Freeman and Yuat Alok. These players all tower over Aston and Fitchett, but they were held to less the fifty percent shooting, which was the result of phenomenal defence.
Aston was outstanding at the other end too, showing his ability to shoot from the outside, while also throwing himself on the ground and handling the ball where necessary. His place in the tournament team was well-justified.
There is no shortage of talent in the backcourt either. They are a bunch of terriers, all extremely fit players who will run the whole game on offence and do not lack intensity on defence.
Joe Cook-Green is a strong guard who will finish in contact and get to the hoop with ease. Josh Petermann - probably the most overlooked of the lot - is as fast a player as they come, a lockdown defender and skilful ball handler with a nice touch to finish.
Benoit Hayman turned the game when Otago Boys' trailed 21-7 against Rangitoto in the semifinal. He came on and scored ten quick points to pull his team back. He's another player who has not received the attention he deserves, but that is what he can do to you, having learnt to play against much bigger opponents.
Along with this group you have the experience of Scott Adler as the fifth starter, a good defender and a player who will do his job and do it well.
That quality Year 12s Matt Dukes and Aaron Roydhouse only played minor minutes shows just how deep this Otago Boys' roster went. Both will step up play major roles in next year's team. They will be joined by Cook-Green and Timmins, as well as two knockdown shooters Payden Kennedy and Jamie MacDonald, as well as big man Benny Cook.
They were a quality team and they represent everything that is good about the sport. Their dedication to training is phenomenal. Some of these boys will train every morning at the Basketball Otago Academy, until recently run by Mark Dickel, then have another training session that night. Six of these boys were members of the Nuggets squad this year too, which enabled them to train with Otago's best players.
Dickel's influence should not be underestimated on these boys, and indeed on basketball development in the region. The passion he showed and the work he did to help these players improve was well beyond that a regular person would do. He was not directly associated with this team, but his influence can be seen when looking through the names on that team list.
For all of their commitment at practice, they showed just as much commitment in games. Aston throwing himself after a loose ball with no self-preservation summed this up pretty well. It was not just a one-off though. They were relentless in their intensity. The guards did not let up running in transition, playing at 100 miles a hour.
Defensively they made bigger opponents work to beat them. On the glass they crashed the boards ferociously, in the final grabbing more offensive rebounds than Westlake Boys' got defensive rebounds. That is saying something, and that is where the game was won.
There were no ‘imports' or ‘Year 14's' on this team either. The team is made up of local talent, players who have been at Otago Boys' since Year 9. Indeed, many of this team were playing men's grade basketball for the school as Year 9s and 10s.
They have come through the grades together and really are a true team. That they are all good mates is something not to overlook either. So many good sports teams have been destroyed through bad-blood, cliques and egos getting in the way.
When you are playing with your mates you normally enjoy yourself and when you enjoy yourself you generally play better. It definitely showed.
They are not your stereotypical ‘sports jocks' either. As assistant coach Brent Matehare mentioned on a Facebook comment, four of the six Year 13 players on this team will take Scholarship exams later in the year and are aiming to achieve their NCEA Level Three with Excellence. That would put them amongst the academic elite for their year group.
Clearly some boys with big futures.
