WEST Nowra basketball rising star Gavin Costain will wear green and gold with pride for the first time this month as he tours New Zealand with the under 15s Australian Country squad.
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The 13-year-old has always been known at a basketball “big man” in the three years he has played the game, but expects the Kiwis will take his game to new heights.
“At just under six foot I think I will only fit in with most of the New Zealand boys as an average sized kid,” he said.
Costain was selected in the national squad following a blistering performance in January at the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup in Albury.
Costain played centre for the NSW Waratahs and although his side was eliminated in the quarter-finals by NSW Kookaburras, his athletic ability impressed selectors enough to earn him a spot on the 10-man Australian Country under 15s squad.
The squad will tour New Zealand to contest the Pacific Rim Championships over the Easter Holidays.
The St John the Evangelist High School student had an outstanding eight-game ACJBC tournament for NSW Waratahs with game highs against Albury/Wodonga in which he posted 31 points, and against one of the touring New Zealand sides where he posted 25.
A highlight for Costain was when he nailed a clutch two point jumper from just inside the arc with 1.2 seconds remaining on the clock to send the game into over-time against the New Zealand side.
He eventually finished the cup averaging just on 20 points per game.
