Brayden Inger named to Tall Blacks Squad

CQUniversity Cairns Taipans development player Brayden Inger has been named to the Tall Blacks roster for the FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers in Manila, the Philippines from 24-28 February 2022.

The 14-man squad also includes Rob Loe, Jayden Bezzant, Taylor Britt, Joe Cook-Green, Taki Fahrensohn, Benjamin Gold, Hyrum Harris, Dion Prewster, Richie Rodger, Ethan Rusbatch, Taane Samuel, Tom Vodanovich and Tai Wynyard.

The FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers will see the 27^th-ranked Tall Blacks facing off against the Philippines (33^rd), Korea (30^th) and India (80^th) over four games. All games will be played at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in the Cubao area of Quezon City.

Head Coach, Pero Cameron says that he is excited to get back on the court with the Tall Blacks after a long hiatus.

“It’s been quite a while since we’ve been in action, our last time being against the Boomers in Cairns last February,” commented Cameron.

“Looking back on that, I really take my hat off to the people who stepped up and made themselves available for playing under those circumstances; it was a good experience despite the loss.

“And now a year later, we’re able to put this team together for Manila and prepare for some tough teams in Korea and the Philippines; obviously there’s a lot of prep required and a lot

Cameron says that the squad are an intriguing mix of veterans and young talent, with several athletes set to make their Tall Blacks debut.

“It’s a good squad and I’m excited by it, we’ve got a solid mix of vets with good leadership and they’re get an opportunity to go out there and get some minutes, and we’ve got some great young guys too who I’m looking forward to see play.

“The likes of Taane Samuel, who gets an opportunity after having a great year with Wellington last season in the NBL; he’s one of several good players coming through who performed well last year and earned this opportunity for himself.

“It’ll be interesting to see how they go in the black singlet, players like Brayden Inger and Taki Fahrensohn, young Joe Cook-Green who’s been over in Perth the last couple of years. We’ve also got a couple of guys returning to the Tall Blacks after being in the Aussie NBL, solid players like Tom Vodanovich, Dion Prewster who’s been with Melbourne, Rob Loe who’s been at the Breakers. The Tall Blacks will travel to Manila, Philippines on 21 February for the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers, taking on Philippines, Korea and India over four games from 24 – 28 February.

The Tall Blacks travelling squad of 14 players for the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers are:

• Jayden Bezzant, Point Guard
• Taylor Britt, Point Guard
• Joe Cook-Green, Point Guard
• Richie Rodger, Point Guard
• Dion Prewster, Shooting Guard
• Ethan Rusbatch, Shooting Guard
• Taki Fahrensohn, Small Forward
• Hyrum Harris, Small Forward
• Brayden Inger, Small Forward
• Ben Gold, Power Forward
• Taane Samuel, Power Forward
• Tom Vodanovich, Power Forward
• Rob Loe, Centre
• Tai Wynyard, Centre