The Solomon Kids Basketball Academy (SKBA) is yet to finalize their final 12 man squad for their U-17 squad who will be touring Gold Coast Australia in December.

SKBA Co-Founder Howard Tang said the final squad will consists of 10 travelling and two non-travelling players.

The final squad list was expected to be released yesterday but is still yet to be finalized according to Mr Tang.

“Haven't finalized the final 10 traveling players yet. Spots are still up for grabs,” Tang said.

“We will base our selection on participation during training's and most importantly on their execution, teamwork and effort during the training's and during the game,” he adds.

The SKBA U-17 training squad yesterday took on the Chinese All Stars basketball team in a friendly match at the Multipurpose Hall.

Despite losing 46-42 to the All Stars, Mr Tang says the squad is showing a lot of improvement compared to their previous friendly matches.

“The players are now showing confidence in playing which is very positive. This team is not about picking out who the best players are.

“It is more than that. As I said before we do our selections based on the each player’s attitude and commitment towards training, their execution and effort playing together as a team.

“We want to create and establish a different mindset in this team because this is a weakness in most of our teams here and which needs to change,” he said.

The SKBA U-17 team will travel for Gold Coast Australia later in December this year.

Meanwhile, the Solomon Kids Basketball Academy will be hosting a fundraising drive at the Honiara Hotel on August 19.

The fundraising is to help the U-17 SKBA basketball squad raise funds for their upcoming Australian Tour in Gold Coast on December 5.

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By Taromane Martin, Sports Reporter, ISLAND SUN NEWSPAPER