Rare are the teams who win three titles in a row.
The Matt Tong-led Setting Suns achieved that status in Gisborne Basketball Association Men’s Open Grade final — 62-56 over the Astros at the YMCA on Monday night.
“That was a great final, scrappy because Astros really brought the game to us,” Tong said. “With our shots not dropping early, we decided to try to just stay within five points of them, and made a couple of runs while playing to our strengths — size and stubbornness — and dominating the boards.
“In the end, older, cooler heads won through.”
Astros coach Carl Riini put the Astros’ evolution in context.
“Our young guys played really well in their first final. They showed confidence, never backed down to the experienced Setting Suns.
“Ryland Bright (eight points on the night) was outstanding and Kelly Rangihuna (10) was a menace on the boards.”
Astros captain Riley Cox-Peratiaki said had they been “a little bit sharper” in the fourth quarter, it could have ended in an upset win.
Astros’ Isileli Taliauli opened the scoring with a three-point shot from the left corner and athletic teammate Kelly Rangihuna’s lay-up made it 5-0.
Local legend Reg Namana (22pts) drew a foul and completed a three-point play to square it 5-all before Taliauli dropped his second three-pointer for 8-5, followed soon after by Piripi Reid sinking the Astros’ third trey for 12-6.
The action continued thick and fast.
Bright stole the ball from Namana in the Suns’ backcourt and he gave a great assist to Reid for 14-8.
Namana and Mike King (25pts) intensified their attacks on the rim, the latter making a three-point play at Bright’s expense shortly before Astro Mikaere Bell made a stunning scoop shot from depth for an 18-15 lead.
King’s finger-roll to close the deficit was similarly impressive.
With 3 minutes 10 seconds left in the second quarter, 13-year-old Sun Luca Tong hit a three-pointer from the right wing to make it a one-point game — 23-22 to Astros.
That shot galvanised the Suns, who ramped things up against an Astros team who had clearly arrived to play.
Astros vice-captain Ben Greaves made two great plays on the night — stealing an inbounds pass with the score at 32-32 and striking gold with a trey to move them 53-48 ahead.
At the other end of the court, Matt Tong pinched the ball from Greaves and his subsequent hoop closed the gap to Astros 53, Setting Suns 50.
To the end, referees Donna Brown-Nepia and Felix Sparks were sharp.
Former National Basketball League ref Brown-Nepia, as lead official, got the Suns’ Fabio Geranazzo for progress with the champions 60-56 up.
Fittingly, it was the vision of Namana — a length-of-the-court baseball pass to King for a lay-up and 62-56 — that sealed the title.
Horouta beat Hustlers 56-54 in the play-off for third, thanks to an incredible match effort from their tearaway duo of Owen Buchanan and Bjorn Raroa-Haraki.
Raroa-Haraki was good for 12 points and Buchanan 30.
Jovan Potter scored 21 for Hustlers.
Hustlers court-general Kaea Swann, who missed the game with injury, served as coach on the night.
“Our game plan was to stop the ball at the top and shut Owen and Bjorn down. A tough shot from Owen to put them up with 10 seconds to go was huge for them.
“We tried to run an all-or-nothing out-of-bounds play, but a smart foul from Horouta prevented our man Jovan from making an open lay-up to win the game.”
Hawaiiki Hou’s Rongomai Smith and Te Haeora Kerekere-Puke led the charge in that club’s 66-54 win against Bruvs in the battle for fifth.
Minus player-coach Quentin Solomon and his talented son Xavier Pivac-Solomon, Smith was a powerhouse around the hoop and shot beautifully for an eye-watering 42 points.
Kerekere-Puke contributed 19.
Bruvs left-hander Qkylau Leach piled on 21 points, including five treys, while teammate Devin Waititi-Leach was good for 16.
In the play-off for seventh, the veteran Raiders B team prevailed 47-42 over the Kiwi Lumber-Jacks including the hoop of the night by Raider Daniel Beets.
With the scores tied at 39-39 and his team trying desperately to keep David Rameka’s Jacks at bay, Beets’ trey attempt was blocked by Leigh Watene. In one motion, Beets got the rebound, took a step and sank a high-arcing bank shot for 41-39.
BASKETBALL WRAP
Men’s Open Grade Club Finals
Play-off for seventh: Kiwi Lumber-Jacks 42 (David Rameka 13, Rewha Rameka 12, James Walker 8) Raiders B 47 (Jackson Leach 11, Chad Rose 9, Siaki Tui 9, Daniel Beets 7). Q1 Raiders B 14-13, HT Kiwi Lumber-Jacks 28-27, Q3 Raiders B 39-35.
Play-off for fifth: Hawaiiki Hou 66 (Rongomai Smith 42, Te Haeora Kerekere-Puke 19) Bruvs 54 (Qkylau Leach 21, Devin Waititi-Leach 16, Kingston Samuels 7). Q1 17-17, HT Bruvs 39-37, Q3 54-54.
Play-off for third: Horouta 56 (Owen Buchanan 30, Bjorn Raroa-Haraki 12, Taylor Haenga 7) Hustlers 54 (Jovan Potter 21, Elijah Swann 11, Rylan Tuwairua-Brown 8, Caleb Swann 7). Q1 Horouta 15-11, HT Hustlers 29-28, Q3 Horouta 40-38.
Championship final: Setting Suns 62 (Mike King 25, Reggie Namana 22, Panapa Ehau 6) Astros 56 (Isileli Taliauli 15, Kelly Rangihuna 10, Ryland Bright 8, Ben Greaves 7, Piripi Reid 6). Q1 Astros 14-10, HT Setting Suns 31-28, Q3 Astros 47-42.