Category: Internationals

England Commonwealth Games 2018

Mystics Jones and Allen are off to the Gold Coast with England Commonwealth Games squad

Team England have named their men’s and women’s basketball squads who will compete for Team and Country on the Gold Coast in Australia.

Manchester Mystics’ Dominique Allen and Georgia Jones have been selected in the women’s squad. The squads also include a number of former Magic and Mystics players, Hannah Shaw, Mollie Champbell and Nicolette Fong Lyew Quee join Dom and Georgia in the women’s squad, while Andrew Thomson, Callum Jones (Georgia’s brother) and Orlan Jackman have been selected in the men’s squad. Congratulations to all.

The Games begin on 4 April and basketball will be making its first appearance at the Commonwealth Games since 2006, where Team England’s men and women both came away with a bronze medal.

Both basketball teams will compete in preliminary matches in Townsville before the semi-finals and medal matches take place on the Gold Coast. Team England women are in the seeded group up against Australia, Canada and Mozambique. The men’s team are in the unseeded pool against Cameroon, India and Scotland. The top two teams in each seeded group (Pool A) progress to the semi-finals whilst the bottom two play-off against the top two teams from the unseeded group (Pool B) for the two remaining semi-final spots.

Full Squad lists

Schedule:

Thursday 5th April Men 17:30 (AEST) 08:30 (UK) Group B England vs Scotland

Friday 6th April Women 18:30 (AEST) 09:30 (UK) Group A Canada vs England

Saturday 7th April Men 17:30 (AEST) 08:30 (UK) Group B England vs India

Sunday 8th April Women 11:30 (AEST) 02:30 (UK) Group A Mozambique vs England

Sunday 8th April Men 14:00 (AEST) 05:00 (UK) Group B Cameroon vs England

Monday 9th April Women 17:30 (AEST) 08:30 (UK) Group A England vs Australia

Tuesday 10th April Qualifing Finals

Friday 13th April Women Semi Final

Saturday 14th April Men Semi Final

Saturday 14th April Women Medal Games

Sunday 15th April Men Medal Games

Sam Dom and Georgia in GB squad

Mystics trio selected in Great Britain squad for upcoming FIBA EuroBasket Qualifiers

Manchester Mystics trio Dominique Allen, Georgia Jones and Samantha Roscoe have been selected in the 16-strong Great Britain Women’s Squad for the upcoming FIBA EuroBasket Qualifiers.

The team will congregate for a short preparation camp on 4 February and then will depart for Faro on 8 February, ahead of their clash against Portugal on Saturday 10 February at 9pm in Pavilhao.

They will then move on to Israel, who they will go up against on Wednesday 14 February at 6.30pm in Tel Aviv.

For more information on FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2019 click HERE and follow #EuroBasketWomen and #BritishBasketball

Basketball England

Three Mystics and two Magic juniors selected in England squads

After two successful December camps at the National Basketball Performance Centre in Manchester, Basketball England has announced the list of players selected for further consideration for the Great Britain Under 18 and Under 16 teams.

Selected for the Under 18 squads are Manchester Magic’s Arinze Emeka-Anyakwo and Mystics’ Chloe Andrew, while Magic’s Saul May and Mystics’ Jade Mbam and Rebecca Harwood-Bellis have been selected in the Under 16 squads.

The December camps took place on 21 and 22 December for all Men’s squads, and 27 and 28 December for all Women’s squads. 131 players attended across the two camps and 77 players have now been chosen to move forward with the preparations for the FIBA European Championships in the summer of 2018.

England Commonwealth Games 2018

Mystics’ Jones and Allen in England squad for Commonwealth Games squad

England Head Coach Jose Buceta has named his 23 strong long list of potential players as the 2018 Commonwealth Games edge ever closer. Mystics’ Georgia Jones and Dominique Allen have both made the list; the pair are also in the Great Britain Squad that play at the Mystics’ base (at the National Basketball Performance Centre) on Saturday 11th Novermber against Israel.

The basketball tournament at the Commonwealth Games gets underway on 5th April 2018 with 16 teams competing across the Men’s and Women’s competitions. In total 192 players will be selected from 11 different nations and Team England’s Women begin their Commonwealth Games campaign on 6 April 2018 against Canada before further games against Mozambique and Australia.

Full Squad can be found here

Becky Harwood-Bellis

Rising Mystics star says self-belief is the key

Becky Harwood-Bellis is in her first season with the Manchester Mystics, but the 15-year-old, whose twin brother, Taylor, plays football for Manchester City and England, is already making her mark.

Here, she tells us why she likes basketball and reflects on her Great Britain debut in the summer.

How did you get into basketball?

Becky: My brother. Someone came into my school. St Philip’s in Stockport, to run some basketball lessons. My brother said he wanted to start and I said I didn’t. I’ve always been scared to try new things. He really wanted to do it but said he would only do it if I did it. I decided to give it a go.

And you liked it?

Becky: I couldn’t even catch a ball when I started, but I stuck at it. I’d tried other things, like ballet, but nothing really appealed. I had two left feet when it came to football. With basketball, I enjoyed the amount of stuff there was to learn. And I liked the physicality, the toughness.

Becky Harwood-Bellis

Now you’re a GB international!

What was it like to get selected for the European Championships?

Becky: I cried a lot. I was in pure shock. Everyone else believes in me, but I don’t believe in myself.

Who was your debut against?

Becky: Denmark. I was so scared. I didn’t tell anyone I was scared. My brain was doing overtime. My first touch of the ball, I shot a three. I was so happy.

What difference has playing for GB made to you?

Becky: My confidence levels have gone from zero to a hundred. But I’ve still got more to give. I’ve also learned that if I want something I can achieve it.

So what now?

Becky: My weakness is still my confidence. I need to believe in myself.

And another Euros in 2018?

Becky: I’ve got more of a chance having played in one already, but I’m not taking anything for granted. I’ve got to keep on working.

Magic and Mystics Great Britain

Mystics Allen and Jones earn GB call up

Congratulations to Manchester Mystics’ Dominique Allen and Georgia Jones, who have been called up to the Great Britain Senior Women’s Squad for the EuroBasket 2019 qualifiers in November.

The squad announced today, will meet at the Mystics home base in Manchester in the first full week of November ahead of the visit of Israel to the National Basketball Performance Centre on Saturday November 11th. Tickets are available for the first women’s international there since their epic comeback 71-67 win over Montenegro in February 2016.

Britain then travel to Northern Greece where they will face their first away game at the 4,000 capacity Kozani Arena on Wednesday November 15th.

Basketball England

Magic and Mystics selected in England squads after U15 regionals

Congratulations to Manchester Magic’s Greg Wild, Jason Ani, Saul May, Ty Jordan and CeeJay Hanson as well as the Manchester Mystics trio of Rebecca Harwood-Bellis, Dalitso Okeke and Jade Mbam.

All eight have been selected for the initial England Under 15/16 squads following the Regional Development Tournaments last weekend.

They have been invited to attend a camp in December as part of the selection process for England’s U16 national programme.

Many of the players who are selected will then be considered for the Great Britain squads for the 2018 European Championships.

List of full squads can be found here

Basketball England

Magic and Mystics selected in England squads after U17 Regionals

Congratulations to Magic’s Joshua Grant, Arinze Emeka-Anyakw, Mo Abushego and Daniel Gargan and Mystics’ Ashana Hinds, Chloe Andrew, Khia Lee  have been selected in the initial England Under 17/18 Boys and Girls Squads following the Under 17 Regional Development Tournaments.

This summer all GB youth national team performed well in the European Championships over the summer with two teams gaining promotion into Division A next season. Over 90% of the players and staff were from England talent pathway and we are looking for players who can continue this trend and compete with the best in Europe.

The camp due to take place in December will help the coaches to select players for U18 England National programme who will then be in consideration for the Great Britain U18 programmes and European Championships in 2018.

The National Development Programmes for U17 and U15 players will continue to operate in the English programme and will support the player’s development for international level.

List of full squads can be found here

Magic and Mystics Great Britain

Summer of International Basketball Schedule and Results

Great Britain Summer Schedule:

GB Senior Men – EuroBasket – 31st August – 17th September – Group D in Istanbul, Turkey

Fri 1st at 12:15pm GB 90 – 103 Belgium

Sat 2nd at 7:00pm GB 70 – 84 Turkey

Mon 4th at 12:15pm GB 92 – 97 Latvia

Tue 5th at 3:00pm GB 68 – 82 Serbia

Thu 7th at 12:30pm GB 70 – 82 Russia

GB finish bottom of Group D, missing out on a place in the Round of 16.

All of GB Senior Men’s games available to watch LIVE over at https://www.facebook.com/FIBA/

All GB games for U20, U18 and U16 Men and Women will be Live Streamed on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/fiba

GB Under 20 Men – Division B – 14th – 23rd July – Group B in Oradea, Romania

Fri 14th at 6:45pm GB 65 – 74 Netherlands

Sat 15th at 6:45pm GB 64 – 57 Russia

Sun 16th at 2:15pm GB 67 – 53 Slovak Republic

Tue 18th at 2:15pm GB 111 – 68 Azerbaijan

Fri 21st at 12:00noon GB 71 – 69 Poland Quarter Finals

Sat 22nd at 6:45pm GB 69 – 79 Croatia Semi-Finals

Sun 23rd at 4:15pm GB 81 – 65 Russia 3rd/4th Classification Games

GB Under 20 Men finished 3rd and gained promotion to Division A for next year

GB Under 20 Women – Division B – 8th – 16th July – Group B in Eilat, Israel (Mystics’ Alumni Gina Brierley)

Sat 8th at 6:30pm GB 69 – 46 Ireland Gina played 9 minutes, 1 rebound, 1 steal

Sun 9th at 4:15pm GB 74 – 48 Romania Gina played 7 minutes, 2 points, 1 steal

Mon 10th at 4:15pm GB 50 – 88 Israel Gina played 18 minutes, 5 points, 1 rebound

Wed 12th at 2:00pm GB 58 – 70 Belarus Gina did not play

Thu 13th at 6:30pm GB 38 – 72 Croatia Gina played 21 minutes, 1 point, 1 rebound, 2 assists 

Sat 15th at 2:00pm GB 71 – 77 Czech Republic 5-8 Classification Games, Gina played 3 minutes 

Sun 16th at 1:30pm GB 49 – 77 Israel 7th/8th Classification Games, Gina played 18 minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound 

GB Under 20 Women finished 8th

GB Under 18 Men – Division B – 28th July – 6th August – Group A in Tallinn, Estonia (Magic’s Kaiyem Cleary)

Fri 28th at 11:45am GB 84 – 55 Czech Republic Kaiyem played 16 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists

Sat 29th at 6:30pm GB 87 – 76 Netherlands Kaiyem played 23 minutes, 7 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists and 2 steals

Sun 30th at 4:15pm GB 67 – 69 Sweden Kaiyem played 22 minutes, 8 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocks

Tue 1st at 2:00pm GB 91 – 82 Luxembourg Kaiyem played 16 minutes, 2 points, 7 rebounds and 1 steal

Wed 2nd at 11:45am GB 100 – 43 Albania, Kaiyem played 20 minutes, 9 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals

Fri 4th at 11:45am GB 76 – 73 Bulgaria Quarter Finals, Kaiyem played 7 minutes, 3 points and 1 assist

Sat 5th at 4:15pm GB 75 – 61 Estonia Semi Final, Kaiyem played 7 minutes, 3 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist

Sun 6th at 6:30pm GB 84 – 90* Croatia Final *Overtime, Kaiyem played 8 minutes, 7 points, 1 rebound and 1 steal

GB Under 18 Men finished 2nd and gained promotion to Division A

GB Under 18 Women – Division B – 4th – 13th August – Group D in Dublin, Ireland

Fri 4th at 6:15pm GB 80 – 63 Ukraine

Sat 5th at 4:00pm GB 148 – 28 Moldova

Sun 6th at 6:15pm GB 81 – 46 MKD

Tue 8th at 6:15pm GB 49 – 63 Ireland

Wed 9th at 1:45pm GB 86 – 64 Slovak Republic

Fri 11th at 8:30pm GB 55 – 46 Romania Quarter Finals

Sat 12th at 8:30pm GB 55 – 64 Germany Semi Finals

Sun 13th at 6:15pm GB 50 – 64 Poland 3-4 Classification Games

GB Under 18 Women finished 4th

GB Under 16 Boys – Division B – 10th – 19th August – Group D in Sofia, Bulgaria

Thu 10th at 6:30pm GB 77 – 43 Luxembourg

Fri 11th at 6:30pm GB 85 – 58 Georgia

Sat 12th at 2:00pm GB 94 – 52 MKD

Mon 14th at 6:30pm GB 57 – 35 Kosovo

Tue 15th at 4:15pm GB 64 -54 Portugal

Thu 17th at 2:00pm GB 85 – 54 Hungary Quarter Finals

Fri 18th at 4:15pm GB 52 – 75 Greece Semi Final

Sat 19th at 4:15pm GB 63 – 64 Georgia 3-4 Classification Games

GB Under 16 Boys finished 4th

GB Under 16 Girls – Division B – 17th – 26th August – Group D in Skopje, Republic of Macedonia (Mystics’ Ashana Hinds, Khia Lee and Rebecca Harwood-Bellis)

Thu 17th at 3:30pm GB 53 – 67 Denmark Ashana played 26 minutes, 4 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, Khia played 22 minutes, 8 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, Rebecca played 7 minutes, 3 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal

Fri 18th at 11:00am GB 68 – 35 Albania Ashana played 22 minutes, 6 points 3 rebounds, 1 assist, Khia played 11 minutes, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 steal, Rebecca played 13 minutes, 5 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block

Sat 19th at 11:00am GB 39 – 79 Switzerland Ashana played 18 minutes, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, Khia played 15 minutes, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, Rebecca played 13 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal

Mon 21st at 1:15pm GB 36 – 47 Slovak Republic Ashana played 28 minutes, 1 point, 4 rebounds, Khia played 18 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 steals and Rebecca played 5 minutes

Tue 22nd at 1:15pm GB 43 – 56 Bosnia and Herzegovina Ashana played 19 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, Khia played 22 minutes, 6 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, Rebecca played 3 minutes, 1 rebound

Fri 25th at 11:00am GB 43 – 42 Iceland 17-22 Classification Games, Ashana played 23 minutes, 3 points, 1 rebound 1 steal, Khia played 18 minutes, 3 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and Rebecca played 2 minutes, 3 points

Sat 26th at 11:00am GB 50 – 53  MKD 17-18 Classification Games, Ashana played 26 minutes, 9 points, 3 rebounds, Khia played 16 minutes, 2 rebounds and Rebecca played 4 minutes, 1 steal

GB Under 16 Girls finished 18th

Wales Summer Schedule:

Wales Under 16 Boys – Division C – 23rd – 30th July – Group A in Andorra La Vella, Andorra (Magic’s Sion Gordon, Ben Gordos, Luke Gordos and Fredric Rouse, plus Head Coach Aurimas Verbukas aka Coach Ollie)

Sun 23rd at 1:15pm Wales 55 – 64 Moldova Ben played 19 minutes, 10 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 5 steals, Luke played 23 minutes, 7 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, Fredric played 9 minutes, 3 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists and 2 steals and Sion played 16 minutes, 2 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal

Mon 24th at 11:00am Wales 47 – 43 Malta Ben played 19 minutes, 9 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal, Sion played 20 minutes, 2 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 1 block, Luke played 9 minutes, 5 rebounds and 1 steal and Fredric did not play

Wed 26th at 3:45pm Wales 66 – 81 Gibraltar Ben played 36 minutes, 31 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal, Sion played 31 minutes, 6 points, 13 rebounds, 4 steals and 4 blocks, Luke played 12 minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists and Fredric played 8 minutes, 2 rebounds

Thu 27th at 1:15pm Wales 53 – 85 Armenia Sion played 24 minutes, 6 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals, Fredric played 16 minutes, 7 points and 3 rebounds, Luke played 13 minutes, 2 points, 1 assist and 1 steal and Ben played 11 minutes, 1 assist

Sat 29th at 1:15pm Wales 47 – 58 Albania 5-8 Classification Games, Sion played 32 minutes, 6 points, 15 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals, Luke played 30 minutes, 15 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals and 1 block, Ben played 13 minutes, 2 points, 5 rebounds 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block and Fredric played 6 minutes

Sun 30th at 11:15am Wales 65 – 60 Moldova 7th/8th Classification Games, Sion played 21 minutes, 16 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals and 4 blocks, Luke played 32 minutes, 11 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals, Ben played 22 minutes, 8 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal and Fredric played 14 minutes, 6 points, 1 rebound and 2 steal

Wales Under 16 Boys finished 7th

Wales Under 16 Girls – Division C – 25th – 30th July – Group B in Gibraltar (Mystics’ Beth McLoughlin)

Tue 25th at 5:30pm Wales 48 – 46 Gibraltar Beth played 26 minutes, 7 points, 10 rebounds and 2 steals

Wed 26th at 3:15pm Wales 31 – 63 Armenia, Beth played 29 minutes, 5 points, 8 rebounds and 1 steal

Thu 27th at 3:15pm Wales 47 – 45* Principality of Monaco *Overtime Beth played 36 minutes, 5 points, 6 rebounds and 1 steal

Sat 29th at 3:15pm Wales 33 – 61 Malta Semi-Final, Beth played 30 minutes, 7 points, 10 rebounds and 1 assist

Sun 30th at 3:15pm Wales 45 – 66 Georgia 3rd/4th Classification Games, Beth played 29 minutes, 8 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists

Wales Under Girls finished 4th

(All times are UK times, follow links for LiveStats)

North West at the Regional Development Tournaments at the National Basketball Performance Centre

U13 Boys 1st- 2nd July Results here

U13 Girls 8th – 9th July Results here

U15 Boys 16th – 17 September

U15 Girls 16th – 17th September

U17 Boys 9th – 10th September

U17 Girls 9th – 10th September

Hinds and Lee

Mystics’ Hinds, Lee and Harwood-Bellis and the GB U16 Girls finish 18th at the European Championships

Manchester Mystics juniors Ashana Hinds, Khia Lee and Rebecca Harwood-Bellis were selected in the final 12 of the GB Under 16 Girls for the FIBA European Championships in Skopje, Republic of Macedonia.

GB U16 Girls Schedule:

Division B – 17th – 26th August – Group D in Skopje, Republic of Macedonia

Thu 17th at 3:30pm GB 53 – 67 Denmark Ashana played 26 minutes, 4 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, Khia played 22 minutes, 8 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, Rebecca played 7 minutes, 3 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal

Fri 18th at 11:00am GB 68 – 35 Albania Ashana played 22 minutes, 6 points 3 rebounds, 1 assist, Khia played 11 minutes, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 steal, Rebecca played 13 minutes, 5 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block

Sat 19th at 11:00am GB 39 – 79 Switzerland Ashana played 18 minutes, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal, Khia played 15 minutes, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, Rebecca played 13 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal

Mon 21st at 1:15pm GB 36 – 47 Slovak Republic Ashana played 28 minutes, 1 point, 4 rebounds, Khia played 18 minutes, 5 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 steals and Rebecca played 5 minutes

Tue 22nd at 1:15pm GB 43 – 56 Bosnia and Herzegovina Ashana played 19 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, Khia played 22 minutes, 6 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, Rebecca played 3 minutes, 1 rebound

Fri 25th at 11:00am GB 43 – 42 Iceland 17-22 Classification Games, Ashana played 23 minutes, 3 points, 1 rebound 1 steal, Khia played 18 minutes, 3 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, Rebecca played 2 minutes, 3 points

Sat 26th at 11:00am GB 50 – 53  MKD 17-18 Classification Games, Ashana played 26 minutes, 9 points, 3 rebounds, Khia played 16 minutes, 2 rebounds and Rebecca played 4 minutes, 1 steal

GB Under 16 Girls finished 18th

(UK times, follow links for LiveStats)

All GB games for U20, U18 and U16 Men and Women will be Live Streamed on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/fiba