National basketball trials

Press, 16 April 1982, Page 28

National basketball trials

Twenty senior men basketbailers began four days of intensive trials last evening with the first session of the national men’s basketball trial at Cowles Stadium.

The 20. including five from Canterbury, will have three sessions today and tomorrow and a final session at Boys' High School on Sunday.

The national men’s coach, Peter Schmidt (Auckland), and his assistant. Bob Bishop (Christchurch), will put the players through some rigorous training and pit them against each other before announcing the team on Sunday evening.

A squad of 12 will be selected to tour to Taiwan for the William Jones International tournament and then on to Korea during June and July. The training sessions are at Cowles Stadium today, 9.30 a.m.-11.30 a.m., 2 p.m.-4 p.m.; at Boys’ High School gymnasium, 7 p.m.-9 p.m.; ‘ tomorrow, at Boys’ High, 10 a.m.-12 p.m., 2 pm.-4 p.m., 7 p.m.-9 p.m., and finally Sunday. 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Messrs Schmidt and Bishop face a difficult task in making their final selections as a number of top players including Stan Hill, Bert Knops. Jack Maere, John Van Uden, Tony Smith, and Dave Mason are unavailable.

There have been suggestions that two Americans resident in this country may be included in the final team that is announced.