The Otago under-19 team won its zone, beating Canterbury in the final and finishing ahead of South Island powerhouse Nelson.
The girls under-19 team finished third behind Canterbury (1st) and Nelson (2nd) and will compete at the national tournament in Tauranga from May 30 to June 2.
The under-17 nationals will be held at the Edgar Centre in Dunedin during the same period. The Otago under-17 girls qualified courtesy of finishing first in their zone following a good win over Nelson in the final.
The Otago under-17 boys team finished fifth but, because Otago is hosting the tournament, will get to compete.
Basketball Otago chief executive Mark Rogers said the results were ‘‘a huge shift from where we were four years ago''.
‘‘Otago is now a power at age group level in the South Island and is definitely improving in terms of national positioning.''
Three associations, Harbour, Waitakere and Canterbury, qualified five teams, while Waikato and Nelson qualified a team in all four championships.
- Stung by its heavy loss to the host team two days ago, New Zealand regrouped with a 60-78 loss to the United States at the Good Luck Beijing women's tournament in China yesterday, NZPA reports.
Down by 26 points against the world's top-ranked team at halftime, the Tall Ferns outscored their much bigger and more athletic rivals in the second half.
‘‘To get within 20 against the Olympic champions with a team of this level of experience was a very, very satisfying performance,'' coach Mike McHugh said.
United States 78 (Sylvia Fowles 14, Katie Smith 10),
New Zealand 60 (Aneka Kerr 17, Angela Marino 14). Halftime: 48-22.
