Basketball - Achievements
Australian Sports Commission
The long term objective of the basketball program is to develop athletes to represent Australia at World Championships and Olympic Games.
Since 1984, AIS scholarship holders and coaches have represented Australia at both events.
At the 2002 World Championships, all members of the Opals were former AIS scholarship holders.
The Gold Medal winning Opals at the 2006 World Championships boasted 11 former scholarship holders, with Penny Taylor receiving the Most Valuable Player award for the tournament.
Athletes who have come through the AIS basketball program include:
- Sandra Brondello
- Mark Bradtke
- Luc Longley
- Shane Heal
- Brett Maher
- Tony Ronaldson
- Andrew Vlahov
- Patrick Reidy
- Jenny Whittle
- Michelle Griffiths (Brogan)
- Carla Porter (Boyd)
- Trisha Fallon
- Kristi Harrower
- Lauren Jackson
- Penny Taylor
- Andrew Bogut
- Brad Newley
- Patrick Mills
The influence of the AIS Basketball Program in the development of Australian Basketball is reflected in the number of athletes progressing to national junior and senior team selection, and the improvement in Australia’s ranking at all levels of men’s and women’s basketball.
Program highlights include:
- 1981 - In the first year of the program, both the men’s and women’s teams won gold medals in the inaugural Oceania Tournament.
- 1983 - Seven AIS athletes were chosen in the Australian team to compete in the Junior Men’s World Championships. Two were selected in the Men’s National Team tour of the USA.
- 1984 – Current and former athletes were selected in the Australian Opals Team to compete at the Los Angeles Olympic Games. This was the first Australian women’s team to qualify for an Olympic Games.
- 1986 – The AIS Women’s team was the runner-up in the Women’s National League and won the Australian Club Championships.
- 1987 – Five current athletes were selected in the Australian Senior Women’s Team, whilst still juniors. Five women and four men were included in the Australian Olympic Teams which both finished fourth, in Seoul in 1988.
- 1989 – The men’s team finished second in the Eastern Conference of the CBA. Eight women were members of the team which won bronze at the Junior World Championships.
- 1992 – Scholarship holders Carla Boyd (Porter) and Kristi Harrower were selected in the 1993 national senior squad. Carla played against Ukraine, becoming the youngest player to represent Australia at a senior level.
- 1993 – All twelve members of the Australian Junior Women’s Team which won Australia’s first ever World Championship Gold Medal were current and former athletes. Australia defeated Russia in the final.
- 1994 – Australia hosted the Women’s World Championships in Sydney. Six of the Opals, who finished 4th, had come through the AIS program.
- 1995 – Australia coached by Gordie McLeod (AIS Men’s Senior Coach until early 1998) won the Silver Medal at the Junior Men’s World Championship in Greece. It was Australian Men’s first medal at a World Championship or Olympic Games. Australia defeated USA in the preliminary rounds before losing to the host country in the final. Ten of the team were current or former athletes.
- 1996 – The Australian Opals won our first Olympic Games basketball Medal, bronze in Atlanta. Nine members had come through the AIS program. The Australian Boomers placed fourth, and contained six former athletes.
- 1997 – At the Young Men’s World Championships in Melbourne, the Australian team won Gold. Eight of the team came through the AIS program.Australia also won the Silver Medal at the Junior Women’s World Championships in Brazil. Eleven of the team were current or former scholarship holders.Sixteen year old Lauren Jackson won the 1997 WNBL Rookie of the Year Award and also became the youngest ever player in an Australian Senior Women's Team.Rohanee Cox won the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander National Junior Sports Woman Award . Senior Men’s Coach, Gordon McLeod was named CBA East Conference Coach of the Year.
- 1998 – Women’s Coach Phil Brown voted WNBL Coach of the Year Award. Six former athletes were selected in Australia’s men’s team to compete in the World Championships in Greece.Eight former athletes selected in the Australian women’s team to compete in the World Championships in Germany, winning the Bronze Medal.
- 1999 – Women’s Coach Phil Brown wins back to back WNBL Coach of the Year Awards.
- Men’s Coach Frank Arsego was Head Coach of the National Junior Men;s Team which competed at the World Championships in Portugal. The team contained 11 former athletes.
- 2000 – At the Olympic Games in Sydney, the Australian Women’s Team won Silver, with the team containing nine former athletes.The Australian Men’s Team finished fourth, with five former players in the line up. All AIS basketball scholarship holders worked as volunteers at Sydney Olympic Games.
- 2002 – The Australian Opals won Silver at the Women’s World Championships. All twelve members were former scholarship holders.
- 2004 – At the Athens Olympics, the Silver medal wining Opals team contained ten former athletes.The Australian men’s Boomer Team competed with seven of the twelve players former scholarship holders.
- 2006 – The Men and Women’s teams competing in the Commonwealth Games contained a total of fourteen former athletes of the twenty four. The Opals had ten while the Boomers had four. At the Women’s World Championships, the Opals won the Gold Medal. Eleven of the team were former scholarship holders. All former athletes were coached by Phil Brown during his 20 year coaching career as the Women’s Assistant and Head Coach.
- 2007 – The Young Women’s Australian team competed in Russia, finishing with the Silver Medal, being defeated by USA in the final game. Eight members of the team were current or former athletes.
- 2008 - At the Beijing Olympics the Opals advanced to the finals not having lost a game during the pool games. Against a strong USA the Opals succumbed and claimed there third silver medal at Olympic games. Eleven of the team were former AIS scholarship holders. All former athletes were coached by Phil Brown during his 20 year coaching career as the Women’s Assistant and Head Coach.
Heath Francis