IN THE final match of the 2025 Trans Tasman Throwdown, the New Zealand Tall Blacks held off a fast-finishing Australian Boomers to claim a nine-point win in game three of the series in Hamilton on Sunday.

The Boomers had won the first two games of the series in Australia, and had won the best-of-three series by the time the second match concluded on the Sunshine Coast on Friday. However, game three was set to take place across the Tasman, so it was set to be much more of an even contest.

The Tall Blacks looked a different side playing on their home turf, looking much more productive on the offensive end and stunning the Boomers, who had been the much more potent team on that side of the ball all series.

NBL forward Reuben Te Rangi was the catalyst for the Tall Blacks, scoring five quick points in the opening minutes of the match to get New Zealand out to a hefty lead, before his teammates picked up the slack. The home side were finding plenty of success driving inside, forcing the Boomers into some quick fouls and converting at the charity stripe.

At the end of the first quarter, it was the Tall Blacks who held a 12-point lead, flipping the script from the remainder of the series and giving the crowd at Globox Arena plenty to cheer about after the opening 10 minutes of play.

It was a much closer affair in the second and third quarters, and although the Boomers managed to improve their offensive output, the Tall Blacks were standing firm, matching Australia down the other end and holding onto a 24-point buffer at the final change, completely in control of the match.

However, the Aussies were not going to give up without a fight, storming home in the final term on the back of some excellent long-range shooting. When Dejan Vasiljevic nailed the Boomers’ sixth triple of the term, the lead was cut down to just four points with less than a minute to play as the visitors looked to pull off the miracle. However, Finn Delany was clutch at the free throw line, sealing a memorable win for the Tall Blacks.

Taylor Britt was New Zealand’s best in the nine-point win, proving a consistent performer across all three quarters and finishing with 23 points (8/16 FG, 3/5 3PT), nine rebounds and eight assists in a tremendous all-around performance from the 28-year-old.

Exciting young prospect Jackson Ball only got the three minutes of court time, but he made them count with three points from a nice long range shot in the first quarter. At just 17 years of age, he will be a crucial part of New Zealand basketball moving forward.

In form guard Elijah Pepper was Australia’s best, keeping his form rolling with 28 points and seven rebounds on 9/16 shooting from the field, while Mitch Norton was also impressive despite the loss with 19 points of his own.