Melanesia Basketball Cup

In the women’s: Solomon Islands 59 def. New Caledonia 53, and PNG 63 def. Fiji 54.

To the men’s: New Caledonia 74 def. Fiji 70, and PNG 79 def. Solomon Islands 35.

Meantime, today’s fixtures for women will see Fiji vs Solomon Islands (1pm) and New Caledonia vs PNG (3pm).

For the men, it will be Solomon Islands vs Fiji (5pm) and New Caledonia vs PNG (7pm).

The final team of twelve players and five shadow-reserves were named yesterday, following an intense three day training camp held at the Taurama Aquatic & Indoor Centre (TAIC) over the weekend.

Nine players from the side that finished fourth in the 2015 Pacific Games have retained their spots- Apia Muri, Aron Farmer, Dia Muri, Gabriel Elavo, Liam Wright, Moses Lune Apiko, Matineng Leahy, Purari Muri and Robert Kave.

Charles Parapa and Sibona Kala have earned successful recalls, while 20-year old James Banduru Jnr will make his senior international debut.

The FIBA Melanesia Cup will feature the best teams from Papua New Guinea, Fiji, New Caledonia, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands all vying for the chances to claim the converted Melanesian Cup.

Not only that, they will also battle it out to secure the top three positions to qualify them for the 2019 Pacific Games.

The FIBA Melanesian Basketball Cup is one of the three new Oceania sub-zone competitions comprising of the Melanesian, Micronesian and Polynesian regions