Tonga Win Thriller in Honiara

HONIARA (Solomon Islands) - Tonga have announced themselves at the Pacific Games with a gutsy win over New Caledonia at the Pacific Games.

It was the match of the day, with New Caledonia controlling the match until late in the fourth quarter, when the Tongans had one final push to clench victory, 82-80.

Jean Chevrin, Beniela Adjouhgniope, and Rodrigue Tetainanuari all shot well for New Caledonia, but the men from Tonga were on a mission.

Veterans, Marcus Alipate, Siale Bain-Vete, and Viliami Foketi played inspired Tongan basketball to come away with the two-point win.

“It was a thriller, and we were lucky to come out with the win, New Caledonia are such a great team, I’m just so happy that we won,” Foketi said.  “Honestly I struggled today, but the guys kept me up and fed me with energy.”

In the first game of the day, Fiji jumped out of the blocks early, and while Tahiti tried to muscle their way back into the contest, the Fijians were too strong.

Tyrone Mclennan and Jordan Lum Kon were impressive for Fiji, with veterans, Marques Whippy and Josh Fox leading from the front.

“It was a good hit-out, I’m proud of the boys, it’s the first game for a lot of us together, everyone stepped up and played really hard,” Fox said.  “Our defence, and communication was great and we are just growing, I’m just really proud of how we played and the progress we have made.

Papua New Guinea swept past host nation, Solomon Islands to start their Pacific Games campaign with a win, 81-34.

Guam also started the competition with a win as they look to defend their Pacific Games Gold Medal, accounting for Samoa 88-49.

The Pacific Games will be hosted by Solomon Islands from November 19 – December 2, 2023.  The Pacific Games Basketball Tournament is the official qualifiers of the Oceania region to the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup Pre-Qualifiers.