Ready for tip-off in The Jenny Orchard Invitational
The fourth edition of the Jenny Orchard Invitational Tournament gets underway at Maritzburg College on Thursday. The 28-team tournament includes 16 teams in the A Division and 12 teams in the B Division teams.
Last year, the battle for the honours went to overtime, with the hosts, Maritzburg College, battling Northwood School for the title. The Knights had beaten the Red, Black, and White in a pool match-up, but College rose to the occasion to claim the title.
The same passion and excitement will be on show again, and the action is LIVE on SuperSport Schools.
The tournament features four teams in four groups in the A Division, while the B Division has six teams in two groups.
The action begins at noon, with the A Division’s matches taking place in the Alan Paton Memorial Hall at Maritzburg College. Pietermaritzburg Girls’ High‘s Community Centre hosts the B Division.
In Pool A, the home team, Maritzburg College, will be favoured to top the standings. They were dominant in KwaZulu-Natal until last weekend when they suffered a shock loss at Kearsney College.
However, in the Alan Paton Memorial Hall, they’ll be playing on a familiar court, cheered on by their enthusiastic supporters. Scoring points has not been an issue for College this season and captain Nkhanyiso Ngcobo sets a good example.
When College faced Michaelhouse, one of their pool opponents, earlier in the season, they romped to a 93-57 win, and while they wouldn’t be expected to win by 36 points again, they would be favoured over the Balgowan boys.
Wynberg Boys’ High, the winners of the B Division in 2024, has moved up to the A Division this year. How will they handle the adjustment? They’ll also be up against their fellow Cape Town school, Westerford.
It had been a season of moderate success for Kearsney College until last weekend when they scored a shocking 51-34 win over Maritzburg College, keeping their opponents scoreless in the final quarter while dropping 17 points. That makes Kearsney a dark horse contender.
They’ve beaten Michaelhouse and Glenwood this year but went down to Durban High School (DHS) and Northwood. However, with positive momentum on their side, they will pose a threat.
In Pool B, Northwood would be a clear favourite, if the Knights were not defending the St John’s Basketball Tournament title in Johannesburg this weekend, too. That throws open the competition and the team to beat might be the Soweto Basketball Academy.
They placed fifth in 2024, winning four and losing two games. One of those was to the eventual runner-up, Northwood, in the quarterfinals, and the other was to Kearsney College in pool play. They reversed that result in the playoffs, going from a seven-point loss in their first meeting with Kearsney to a five-point win the second time around.
Saheti School, from Johannesburg, and Rondebosch Boys’ High, from Cape Town, are, perhaps, the outsiders. Saheti wasn’t part of the event last year, while ‘Bosch was competitive in most of their games but ended only 15th after a comfortable win over Bishops.
Westville Boys’ High will face a stiff challenge from DHS in Pool D. Westville is a well-drilled team that usually shoots the ball well. DHS, meanwhile, brings size and physicality, along with skill to the court.
Last year, Westville placed a disappointing 11th, but they’ve been one of the best teams in the country since the latter part of 2024, so they’ll be out to prove a point.
Elite Sporting and Cultural Academy (ESCA) Wanderers could upset the apple cart. They beat DHS in the playoff for ninth place last year, recording a 73-63 win.
SACS is a bit of an unknown. The leading basketball teams appear to be in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, but might they and their fellow Capetonians surprise? Last year, they were the best of the Western Cape teams at the Jenny Orchard Invitational, finishing in 11th place.
FIXTURES
A Division
Thursday, 20 February
Alan Paton 1
12:00 – Kearsney College vs Clifton College (Pool C, Game 1)
13:30 – Maritzburg College vs Michaelhouse A (Pool A, Game 3)
16:30 – Kingswood College vs Pinelands High School (Pool C, Game 5)
18:00 – Westerford vs Wynberg Boys’ High (Pool A, game 7)
Alan Paton 2
12:00 – Northwood School vs Soweto Basketball Academy (Pool B, Game 2)
13:30 – Westville Boys’ High vs Durban High School (Pool D, Game 4)
16:30 – Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Saheti School (Pool B, Game 6)
18:00 – SACS vs ESCA (Pool D, Game 8)
Thursday, 20 February
Alan Paton 1
12:00 – Kearsney College vs Clifton College (Pool C, Game 1)
13:30 – Maritzburg College vs Michaelhouse A (Pool A, Game 3)
16:30 – Kingswood College vs Pinelands High School (Pool C, Game 5)
18:00 – Westerford vs Wynberg Boys’ High (Pool A, game 7)
Alan Paton 2
12:00 – Northwood School vs Soweto Basketball Academy (Pool B, Game 2)
13:30 – Westville Boys’ High vs Durban High School (Pool D, Game 4)
16:30 – Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Saheti School (Pool B, Game 6)
18:00 – SACS vs ESCA (Pool D, Game 8)
Friday, 21 February
Alan Paton 1
08:00 – Westerford vs Michaelhouse A (Pool A, Game 9)
09:30 – Maritzburg College vs Wynberg Boys’ High (Pool A, Game 11)
11:00 – Clifton College vs Kingswood College (Pool C, Game 13)
14:00 – Kearsney College vs Pinelands High School (Pool C, Game 15)
15:30 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs Michaelhouse A (Pool A, Game 17)
17:00 – Kearsney College vs Kingswood College (Pool C, Game 19)
18:30 – Westerford vs Maritzburg College (Pool A, Game 21)
20:00 – Clifton College vs Pinelands High School (Pool C, Game 23)
Alan Paton 2
08:00 – Soweto Basketball Academy – Rondebosch Boys’ High (Pool B, Game 10)
09:30 – Northwood School vs Saheti School (Pool B, Game 12)
11:00 – Durban High School vs SACS (Pool D, game 14)
14:00 – Westville Boys’ High vs ESCA (Pool D, game 16)
15:30 – Soweto Basketball Academy vs Saheti School (Pool B, Game 18)
17:00 – Durban High School vs ESCA (Pool D, Game 22)
18:30 – Northwood vs Rondebosch Boys’ High (Pool B, Game 22)
20:00 – Westville vs SACS (Pool D, Game 24)
Saturday, 22 February
Alan Paton 1
08:00 – A3 vs C4 (9-16, Game 25)
09:30 – A4 vs C3 (9-16, Game 27)
11:00 – A1 vs C2 (Quarterfinals, Game 29)
12:30 – C1 vs A2 (Quarterfinals, Game 31)
15:00 – Loser 25 vs Loser 27 (13-16, Game 33)
16:30 – Winner 25 vs Winner 27 (9-12, Game 35)
18:00 – Winner 29 vs Winner 31 (Semi-final 1, Game 37)
19:30 – Winner 30 vs winner 32 (Semi-final 2, Game 39)
Alan Paton 2
08:00 – B3 vs B4 (9-16, Game 26)
09:30 – B4 vs D3 (9-16, Game 28)
11:00 – B1 vs D2 (Quarterfinals, Game 30)
12:30 – D1 vs B2 (Quarterfinals, Game 32)
15:00 – Loser 26 vs Loser 28 (13-16, Game 34)
16:30 – Winner 26 vs Winner 28 ((9-12, Game 36)
18:00 – Loser 29 vs Loser 31 (5-8, Game 38)
19:30 – Loser 30 vs Loser 32 (5-8, Game 40)
Sunday, 23 February
Alan Paton 1
08:00 – Winner 35 vs Winner 36 (9/10, Game 41)
09:30 – Winner 38 vs Winner 40 (5/6, Game 43)
11:00 – Winner 39 vs Winner 40 (Div B Final, Game 45)
12:30 – Winner 37 vs Winner 39 (Div A Final, Game 47)
Alan Paton 2
08:00 – Loser 35 vs Loser 36 (11/12, Game 42)
09:30 – Loser 38 vs Loser 40 (7/8, Game 44)
11:00 – Loser 37 vs Loser 39 (3/4, game 46)
