RISING star in the basketball scene, Portland Coasters player Tyleah Barr continues to impress on the representative stage with selection to the Victorian team for the National Indigenous Basketball Tournament.

The tournament kicks off tomorrow with all states and territories from across Australia taking part.

Australian basketballer Patty Mills has led the program into its first year of an under-17 tournament, with Barr excited to celebrate basketball and culture together in Brisbane across the four-day experience.

“It’s the National Indigenous Basketball Program for all of Australia and it’s Patty Mills program,” she said.

“They haven’t had a 17s before so this will be the first time.”

It was a competitive try out process for Victoria with Barr and her teammates having three weeks together ahead of the tournament.

“We had six weeks of try outs in Melbourne which was a lot of scrimmage play – most of the other states, for example Western Australia, have had an academy together all year so they’re going to be really good,” she said.

“The tournament is held at the same time as the (VACSAL) netball and football carnival which prevents a few people from trying out.

“I’m the oldest in my team – a squad of 14 was picked from try outs and then we trained one week with the squad before 10 were picked and we’ve been training with that 10 for three weeks.

“We have an NBL1 coach Jess May who coaches Knox in Melbourne – she’s a really good coach.”

Along with developing their basketball skills and combining with new teammates the program has a strong focus on celebrating culture with Barr saying a big element of practice has also been dance.

“The trainings are really good; they go for about three hours and then we have a 50-minute period of dance,” she said.

“The team flies up on the Tuesday and then Wednesday is the opening ceremony, so all of the states have their own dance and performance.

“Us girls had practice for 50 minutes the weekend just gone so we’ll do our dance and then the boys will get up and do theirs and then we come together and do a big one.

“There are winners from that and last year Victoria came second to Torres Strait.

“We have a choreographer Alice, she’s one of the Aunties from Melbourne. Because we have so many girls from different cultures and clans her older sisters have made a song which has incorporated everyone’s different groups.

“For the dance start where our country would be in Victoria and on the weekend they (made) burnings on a totem with a big feather necklace so we’re all wearing something that represents us.

“The main focus of the program is to bring basketball and culture together.”

The 17-year-old has recently been a part of the Big V division one women’s Warrnambool Mermaids championships season and continues to build her basketball resume.

On the court, Barr says she will be one of the more experienced players in her side but will be coming up against some players who have recently represented Australia.

“We have some younger girls who haven’t played much structured basketball or played at a higher level so everyone’s showing a bit of leadership and our coaches have been great,” she said.

“We play Western Australia, Northern Territory and North Queensland. We play two games on the Thursday, one on Friday and then finals on the Saturday.

“Some of the girls have played for Australia who were coming up against and also the coaches that are there are high level coaches so it’s a really good opportunity.”