Basketball
Nudgee College Basketball started in 1984 with a ‘trial day’ to test the possible introduction of basketball as a GPS sport. In 1990 the McKennariey Centre was built and basketball continued to grow with the improved facilities.
Nudgee College won back to back Premierships in 1990 and 1991 and in recent years has been a dominant force amongst the other GPS schools ranking Premiers or runners up in 1998, 1999 and 2000. In 2001 and 2003 the 1st V won Undefeated GPS Premierships. The 2002 team was runner up to the Champion Basketball School of Queensland, coming fourth in the National Schools Basketball Tournament. In 2009, the College entered a team in the Junior Division of the National Schools Basketball Tournament held in Newcastle and came away with a Gold medal.
The program boasts high-profile players, including:
- Matt Moore, who played in the National Basketball League with the Brisbane Bullets and SE Melbourne Magic where he won an NBL Championship
- Brisbane Bullets and Australian Basketball Association player Shane Davis
- Michael Cresswell, Cairns Marlins NBL squad member 2002-2004, who also won QABL and ABA National Championships with Cairns
- Ryan Thompson, the College’s first candidate for the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), went on to play College Basketball in the USA, playing in the winning team, The University of Connecticut, at the NCAA Championship "Final Four".
- Chris Olsen, who is a key member of the Brisbane ABA side.
Basketball continues to enjoy a swelling of support and there are now more than 20 teams fielded each year in the GPS competition. They are supported by a wealth of talented coaches pooled from local staff and Old Boys coming back to help in the coaching arena.
Nudgee College offers a fantastic development program including weekly club basketball for those wishing to improve their skills and play all-year round, and
provide daily morning coaching for a range of age groups who make up our 1st V Development squad. Teams compete annually in the Champion Basketball School of Queensland Tournament and December each year sees teams participate in the National Schools Basketball Tournament. The College’s inaugural USA basketball tour took place during December 2007 with both a junior and senior team playing tournaments in San Diego and Los Angeles as well as visiting Las Vegas and Phoenix.