The Tauranga Whai have claimed the first trophy of the National Basketball League (NBL) season.
Despite a loss to the Wellington Saints in their final 'half-game', the Whai accumulated enough victories and quarter wins to claim the title at the Westside Blitz preseason tournament in Greymouth.
LATEST HEADLINES:
Due to the Indian Panthers' late withdrawal, the Whai, Saints and Nelson Giants played a game-of-three-halves on the tournament's final day.
The Whai were the only team that could overtake the unbeaten Hawke's Bay Hawks on Saturday for the title, needing four-and-a-half of the seven points on offer in the two half-games.
Winning both quarters in a 46-39 win over the Giants and taking the last quarter in a 46-32 loss to the Saints, the Whai did exactly that, drawing level with the Hawks on 16.5 points, earning the top spot on a tiebreaker.
Former Tall Blacks guard Kruz Perrott-Hunt had 16 points (5/9 FG, 3/5 3pt) against the Giants, with Carter Hopoi adding 10 points, while Perrott-Hunt finished with nine points and Australian Sean Bairstow eight points against the Saints.
Junior Tall Black Hayden Jones led the Giants with 12 points against the Whai, while Australian big Callum Dalton put up 11 points and American guard Jaylen Forbes 10 points in the 46-41 win over the Saints.
For Wellington, Rangimarie Dougall-Mita finished with 12 points and six rebounds against Nelson, with American centre Nick Muszynski and Kiwi guard Kazlo Evans Jr putting up double-digit points in the win over the Whai.
Hawks teen Jackson Ball collected the Phill Jones Medal as tournament MVP.
Ball, a recent Tall Blacks call-up who celebrated his 17th birthday on Monday, amassed 29 of a possible 30 points in the MVP voting system, to finish ahead of Taranaki Airs forward Carlin Davison and Perrott-Hunt.
Ball scored 25 points in a 98-86 win over the Franklin Bulls on Tuesday, had a 29-point outburst in a 98-89 victory over the Canterbury Rams on Thursday and hit the game-winning three as time expired amid 21 points in an 83-82 win over the Otago Nuggets on Friday.
In the tournament's final game at the Westland Recreation Centre, the Airs rode a strong first half to defeat the Rams 81-72.
Davison, an NZ Breakers development player, finished with an incredible stat-line of 26 points (9/14 FG, 5/8 3pt), 11 rebounds, four assists, three steals and five blocks, supported by 18 points and 11 boards from Jack Andrew and 14 points from Dom Kelman-Poto.
Another Breakers and Tall Blacks player, Max Darling, led the Rams with 19 points (7/14 FG, 3/6 3pt), nine rebounds and two blocks.