Westlake Seniors Rebecca Moors and Amy Pateman have been selected for the New Zealand Under 17 Basketball Team to represent the country at the FIBA Under 17 Oceania Championship in Papua New Guinea. Identified as two of New Zealand’s top junior basketballers, the students spent King’s Birthday in Abu Dhabi at the NBA Basketball camp for Asia’s top 40 female juniors. They then spent the July School holidays in Atlanta, Georgia, at the NBA Academy Games, where American college scouts viewed the best juniors from outside the United States.

Moors and Pateman will spend their September school holidays in Papua New Guinea at the week-long Asia Cup qualifier from 2 – 7 October. Westlake Girls Premier Basketball Coach, Bronwen Davidson, will also travel with the pair to Papua New Guinea as the Assistant Coach for the Under 17 side.

The trip immediately follows the New Zealand Secondary School Basketball Championships in Palmerston North, where they will defend their national title. The Under 17 Oceania Cup is typically a battle between New Zealand and Australia for top honours, with the top two teams qualifying for the 2024 Under 18 Asia Cup. After that, the top four teams will qualify for the 2025 Under 19 Women’s World Cup. If New Zealand were to qualify for this, it would be a history-making achievement.