Gold and Silver for the Vic's at the U20 Nationals
Under 20 National Junior Championships Grand Final Results
U/20 Victorian Men 79 defeated South Australia 76
U/20 Victorian Women 50 defeated by South Australia 77
The 2010 Under 20 Australian Junior Championships concluded on Saturday, 27 February after a week-long tournament in Gawler, South Australia.
The Victorian men’s team took out the gold medal (remaining undefeated throughout the entire Championship) and the Victorian women’s team won silver (winning against all other States and New Zealand, except for South Australia).
The men’s grand final was a fitting end to a wonderful week of U/20 men’s competition. In a thrilling finish, Victoria hit the front for the first time in the game with 1:16 left on the clock, and managed to keep the SA boys out. SA came out firing, hitting magnificent 3’s from all over the court and playing tight defence. The Vics gradually pegged SA’s lead back (having being down by 13 points at the end of the 3rd quarter and by 23 points earlier in the game). The Victorians were lead by captain Josh Wilcher who scored 33 points for the game and played the full 40 minutes without a sub.
Men’s Head Coach Scott Christiansen said: “Our win was a miracle on hardwood and will go down as one of the best comebacks in National Championship history. Despite the massive deficit during the match the boys kept to the game plan of an inside/outside offense and wore down the South Australian three point bombers with solid team defense over the entire game. It was a fantastic team effort. Our team had 10 contributors on and off the court each and every game – this team was the tightest group I have ever coached – the team chemistry was incredibly unique and the boys thoroughly deserved the Championship rings.”
In the women’s grand final, both teams got off to a nervous start. SA increased their intensity, serving up an impenetrable defence to the Victorians. The story continued in the second half. Although the Victorians could not bridge the gap, they were able to keep up the scoring level. It was only in the last few minutes of the game that SA broke away to win. Victorian Captain Alice Kunek top scored for her team with 10 points, closely followed by point guard Cortney Williamson on 9.
Women’s Head Coach Lori Chizik said: “It was a credit to the Victorian girls that they won the silver medal. They had to fend off some very strong opposition from NSW, Queensland and WA who were all in the mix for a medal. We had a tough draw initially playing the top 4 teams in the first 3 days and were pleased to come away with 3 wins at that stage. We had a very even team and all 10 players contributed to our success throughout the Championships. At the end of the day, it’s probably fair to say that SA was a cut above the rest of the field, but Victoria will certainly be back next year to take them on.”
