Northwood falls as Michael Mount crowned St John’s Basketball champs
Unpredictability was a key feature of the St John’s College Basketball Tournament.
When the dust finally settled on Sunday, Michael Mount Waldorf School had claimed the u19 Category A title, while Maritzburg College B won the u19 Category B tournament, and Saheti School was crowned the champion in the u15 category.
Michael Mount faced a challenging final against the defending champion, Northwood, who had also won the title in 2024.
After falling behind early in the title decider, Michael Mount lifted their game, gathered steam, and, with some outstanding three-point shooting, charged past the Knights, on their way to a 65-55 victory.
Michael Mount had demonstrated their capabilities in the earlier rounds of the competition, which included beating previously undefeated St Charles College in the quarterfinals on Saturday before also ending King Edward VII‘s (KES) unbeaten run.
KES had won the Inanda Hoops Classic Challenge in October 2025 and had established themselves as a strong title threat at St John’s, but Michael Mount ended that dream with a heart-stopping 47-45 win.
Northwood’s path to the final was meandering, yet intense. In a stunning turn of events, the two-time defending champion lost twice on Thursday. That left them with no margin of error. They had to win every game they played from then on, and they rose to that challenge.
After winning a tight play-in game against Pretoria Boys High, they eliminated St Stithians in the quarterfinals before ousting St John’s in the semi-finals in a rematch of the 2025 title game.
In the bronze playoff, KES romped to a convincing 42-24 win over St John’s College.
In the u19 Category B competition, Maritzburg College B claimed the title after a highly successful weekend for the Red, Black, and White, which included their first team winning the Jenny Orchard Invitational Basketball Tournament.
College met St Peter’s College in the final and scored an emphatic 61-36 win. In the playoff for bronze, St John’s College B beat Sacred Heart College 38-29.
Saheti faced Hilton College in the u15 final, and scored a comfortable 65-51 win. It was a nail-biter in the third-place playoff, with KES holding off St Benedict’s College 30-29 to win bronze.
RESULTS
u19 Category A
Final
Michael Mount 68-55 Northwood
Bronze Playoff
KES 42-24 St John’s College
u19 Classification Games
Position 9-12
St David’s 24-22 St Alban’s College
Pretoria Boys High 45-29 Hilton College
Position 13-16 Play-in
Falcon College 48-45 Michaelhouse
u19 Final Ranking Games
5-6: King’s Linbro 35-20 St Benedict’s College
7-8: St Charles College 43-34 St Stithians College
9-10: PHBS 26-24 St David’s
11-12: St Alban’s College 34-32 Hilton College
13-14: St George’s College 34-24 Falcon College
15-16: Jeppe 34-28 Michaelhouse
17-18: St Andrew’s College 40-28 Crawford College (Sandton)
19-20: Parkown Boys’ High 20-0 Curro Helderwyk
u19 Category B
Bronze Playoff
St John’s College B 38-29 Sacred Heart College
Final
Maritzburg College B 61-36 St Peter’s College
u15 Boys’ Competition
Final
Saheti 65-51 Hilton College
Bronze Playoff
KES 30-29 St Benedict’s College
Quarterfinals Losers
St John’s College 22-17 Kearnsey College
St Charles College 47-41 Pretoria Boys High
Final Ranking Games
5-6: St John’s College 35-30 St Charles College
7-8: Kearsney College 32-19 PHBS
9-10: Maritzburg College 43-18 St Alban’s College
11-12: Northwood 22-19 St David’s
13-14: Michaelhouse 45-21 King’s Linbro
15-16: Soweto Basketball Academy 49-46 St Andrew’s College
17-18: Jeppe 37-36 St Stithians College
19-20: Michael Mount 25-20 St Peter’s College
