Victoria National Junior Classic (Australia) – Renee Johnson-Allen Website

NATIONAL JUNIOR CLASSIC

VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA

Part I

Another welcome trip back down under started on Friday night with a quick commute to Changi Airport (Singapore) for a direct 7hr flight to Melbourne, Australia for the National Junior Classic #NJC19. This was my second trip of the year to Australia (5th overall) with the first of 2019 being in April for the U18 State National Championships (held in Townsville).

What is this event: the best qualifying club teams compete over 3 days over the Queen’s birthday weekend (Saturday – Monday)

What teams participated: State of Victoria (strongest state for basketball), New South Wales, South Australia, ACT and New Zealand and one team at the U14 age group

Why did I attend this event: great opportunity to see a larger pool of players especially those from Victoria. At the State Championships you only see the selected top players. Also teams are fairly balanced with talent distributed amongst club teams (especially in Victoria) making it a good event to evaluate talent matchups.

After a turbulent red eye flight I landed in Melbourne at 5.30 am and made my way to State Basketball Arena for the first 6 games all played at the same time, 8.30 am. Yes 6 games all under one roof!

Day 1 opened up with 3 official full games – 8 minute quarters, scheduled with a 2 game break in-between; the first game tipping at 8.30 am and the last for the day at 8.30 pm. The format worked well giving you enough time to really watch and evaluate players over the 3 games. By the end of Day 1 you had a good idea of who was who as individuals and as a team.

There were many familiar names in attendance. Some which you may already be aware of or currently recruiting from the Australian National Team or State teams. However; there were also names I’m certain will be new that are not being promoted heavily that came to play and made an impression on Day 1. Many are 2020 – 2022 prospects who have received little interest thus far from schools for the reason mentioned above.

Much of the play was heavily guard orientated with a steady balance of attacking the paint, finishing at basket or kicking to the open shooter. South Australia travelled with height and had the most size upfront leading the way with a 6’4 post. Without a doubt the IQ level of the players is a very good standard. Teams came out ready to play from game 1 holding nothing back knowing there are no warm up games in this tournament. A loss may set you back and have you not make the quarter final. This is one other reason why this is an event to really evaluate talent, every game counts early. State Nationals we have seen teams start of slow and work their way back into a podium finish. Here not the case as you may end up playing for a 8-16 spot finish if not ready…

Part II

Day 2 – Games that would pretty much would cement teams final standings out of the 16 teams competing in each age group. Each team played 2 games before their last game on Day 3. As the tournament progressed it was easy to spot who were the consistent performers for their respective teams when needed.

Here are my takeaways on a few of those players in the U18 age group (class of 2020) that finished Day 2 and 3 strong.

For more information on players above and prospects from the National Junior Classic, AUS Championships U18 and U16 check out report here.

MORE INFORMATION

NATIONAL JUNIOR CLASSIC

VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA

Part I

Part II

Alisha Knight (5’5) – 2020 (PG)

Kelsey Rees (6’4) – 2020 (C)

Chloe Hodges (6’0) – 2020 (G/F)