Basketball

Every Tuesday and Thursday evening, enthusiasts have flocked to witness thrilling matchups as teams gear up for the main event in both the me

Grateful for the unwavering support from the Australian High Commission Papua New Guinea, facilitated through Team Up and PNGAus Partnership, BFPNG has successfully championed the Basketball for Good message.

The collaborative efforts have proven instrumental in reaching a substantial participation milestone of 112,435, a notable surge from the previous year's 84,792.

Notably, BFPNG redirected its focus to promote gender equality and education, achieving a commendable 45% female participation rate in the overall yearly engagement.

Australia leapt out in an early surge that opponent New Zealand could not match at Sir John Guise Arena, beating the NZ side 96-49. NZ settled for the Silver.

In the earlier match on Saturday, Samoa defeated Guam to claim bronze, 132-63.

Guam came out firing in the first quarter, but a much-needed time out settled Samoa and they didn’t look back.

Samoa Captain, Semika Nee said the team’s performance was reflective of the work they have put in during the week and sticking to a solid game plan.

At the end of the championships, the final standings;

Papua New Guinea’s Jennifer Maroroa being one of the notable attendees.

Aligned with the FIBA Global Strategy, the Marty Handson Scholarship Program aims to strengthen national federations by bolstering grassroots initiatives and facilitating coaching development across the region.

Jennifer Maroroa, the coach for the Papua New Guinea U17 Women's team, emphasized the significance of effective communication and understanding cultural dynamics in leadership roles.

Key points:

• LeBron James scored the record-breaking shot in the third quarter of the match against the Oklahoma City Thunder
• Previous record holder Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was courtside to witness his record being broken
• The record had stood for over 38 years

Needing just 36 points to eclipse former Laker Abdul-Jabbar's tally of 38,387, James completed the record in the third quarter of the contest against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Warriors sharpshooter needed two triples against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday (all times AEDT) to go past Ray Allen’s record of 2,973 career three-pointers made in the regular season.

And he got it done early, burying a shot from deep in the opening minute to tie Allen’s record, before hitting another one at the 7:33 mark to surpass him.

A timeout was called immediately after as Curry received a standing ovation at Madison Square Garden in a special moment where he celebrated with his parents, fans, teammates, coaches and officials.

After a host of fourth-place finishes, Australia finally got their hands on an Olympic medal, beating Slovenia 107-93 to win bronze in the Tokyo 2020 men’s basketball tournament.

The Australia Boomers finished in the dreaded fourth place in Seoul 1988, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and, more recently, Rio 2016 before finally getting their breakthrough in Tokyo.

Olympic veteran Patty Mills led from the front injecting passion and skill into the game while contributing a mammoth 42 points to the Boomers’ scoreline.

Kevin Durant's  bid to join Carmelo Anthony  as the only other basketball  player to win three straight Olympic gold medals is still alive after another stunning display against Australia.

Durant had a game-high 23 points and nine rebounds as the U.S. defeated Australia 97-78.

The USA's all-time top-scorer was everywhere, stopping dunks, hitting threes, single-handedly putting down an early Australian uprising and now the States play for their 16th gold medal in Tokyo.

Hungry for more, though, Patty Mills made clear the Boomers hadn’t “done s…”, despite booking a semi-final showdown with the United States after a 97-59 thrashing of perennial contenders Argentina late on Tuesday night.

“For us to be able to be the best, we have to beat the best,” Mills said of a Boomers outfit which’ll have two bites at the cherry as they look to break their Olympic medal drought.

“There’s only one thing that we’re focused on, and we have to get it done,” Mills added. “Tonight’s performance was a result of the belief in each individual on this team.”

Three-time Olympic medallist James and nine of the players from the successful 2016 campaign in Rio were included on the list announced by USA Basketball on Monday.

Should the Los Angeles Lakers star make the final 12-man roster, he will join Carmelo Anthony as the second player to represent Team USA at four separate Games.

Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson won gold in Brazil four years ago and have made the cut despite being yet to play a minute in the NBA this season due to respective Achilles and knee injuries.