East Recap | Round 9 Saturday

Image credit: Immy Leeon (@immyleeonsports)

The Newcastle Falcons gave Norths Bears a first loss of NBL1 East season with Juliunn Redmond starring for Bankstown Bruins, Kristina Moore leading Inner West Bulls to overtime win and Akil Douglas hit the winner for Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders over Maitland Mustangs.

EAST RECAP | ROUND 9 FRIDAY

WOMEN

Manly Warringah Sea Eagles (74) defeated Hills Hornets (50)

The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles got off to the flying start to set the stage for the eventual 74-50 win at home over the Hills Hornets for their seventh consecutive victory.

The Sea Eagles were back home at Northern Beaches Indoor Sports Centre putting their six-game winning streak on the line up against a Hornets outfit trying to snap a run of eight consecutive defeats.

On the back of that, Manly Warringah made a scintillating start with 27 points to 10 in the opening quarter on the back of shooting 9/11 at the foul line while also holding the Hornets to going 3/17 from the floor.

It was another 18 points to 12 in the second frame and that saw the Sea Eagles in control leading 45-22 by the half-time break.

Manly Warringah maintained that advantage throughout the second half too on the way to the 24-point victory even while not shooting that great with 38 per cent from the field and 4/31 from three-point range.

However, Hills went at just 26 per cent with 3/21 from deep while the Sea Eagles had seven extra free-throw attempts and won the rebound count by 11, had three more offensive rebounds and three fewer turnovers.

Manly Warringah have now won seven straight for the season to sit at 9-2 ahead of a Sunday match up with the Illawarra Hawks with Sari Mowbray top-scoring with 13 points and four rebounds despite going 3/14 from deep.

Kim Dickinson added 12 points, seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals, Antonia Henderson 11 points, 11 boards and three assists, Taylor Wurtz 11 points, three rebounds and two steals, and Alex Delaney 11 points, seven assists, five boards and two steals.

The Hornets have now lost their last nine matches to be 1-9 on the season with a clash at home to the Sydney Comets to come on Sunday after Elizabeth Smith finished with nine points, six rebounds and two assists.

Jade Kirisome also had eight points, five boards, two assists and two steals, Kennedy Johnson seven points on 2/3 shooting, and Hannah Griffin seven points.

MANLY WARRINGAH SEA EAGLES 74 (Mowbray 13, Dickinson 12, Delaney 11, Wurtz 11, Henderson 11)

HILLS HORNETS 50 (Smith 9, Kirisome 8, Johnson 7, Griffin 7)

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders (78) defeated Maitland Mustangs (71)

Jessie-May Hall and Keira Hudson combined for 57 points and eight three-pointers as the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders snapped a six-game losing run with the 78-71 home win over the Maitland Mustangs.

The Spiders were back home at The Brickpit trying to win a first game since April 13 when they were playing host to a Mustangs team also having lost their last couple to the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles and Penrith Panthers.

By the end of the first quarter it was Hornsby leading 16-13 but then scoring picked up from both teams in the second term as they combined for 50 points with 26-24 in favour of the Spiders.

That saw the home team go into the half-time break leading 42-37and things remained tight through the second half.

Despite that, the Spiders did hold a narrow lead most of the rest of the way to end up securing the seven-point victory on the back of shooting 41 per cent from the field to 33, and knocking down 9/20 from three to 8/37, and 17/20 at the foul line to 7/11.

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai improve to a 4-6 record on the season having snapped a six-game losing streak with 17-year-old sensation Jessie-May Hall playing all 40 minutes on her way to 31 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals with 4/9 three-point shooting.

Keira Hudson also had 26 points and five rebounds on going 4/6 from three-point land while Ay'Anna Bey added eight points and 10 boards, and Nicole Hutchins six points, nine rebounds and four assists.

Maitland are now 6-5 having lost three straight ahead of hosting the Norths Bears on Sunday with Shakera Reilly leading their charge with 21 points and eight rebounds.

Mila Wawszkowicz also had 19 points, four rebounds, three blocks and two assists, Sydney Hunter 12 points, 12 boards and five assists, Alexis Plater 10 points and three steals, and Kasey Neubert nine points and nine rebounds.

HORNSBY KU-RING-GAI SPIDERS 78 (Hall 31, Hudson 26, Bey 8)

MAITLAND MUSTANGS 71 (Reilly 21, Wawszkowicz 19, Hunter 12)

Newcastle Falcons (84) defeated Norths Bears (82)

The defending champion Newcastle Falcons came back from five points down late with Jiselle Havas hitting the go-ahead shot as they handed the Norths Bears a first loss of 2025 with the 84-82 win.

Newcastle suffered a first loss of their championship defence last Saturday at home to Shyla Heal and the Bankstown Bruins but they were always going to hit back hard from that.

The Falcons did that last Sunday beating the Inner West Bulls by 22 points ahead of hosting the Bears at Newcastle Basketball Stadium on Saturday in a tantalising top-of-the-table match up.

The Bears arrived on a perfect 10-0 record so far this season too but it was the Falcons who had managed to take a 22-16 advantage into quarter-time.

The Falcons then flew out to the 20-point lead during the second period to blow the top-of-the-table match up wide open before the defending champs went into the main break still leading 50-39.

Newcastle might have dominated the first half, but Norths weren’t deterred and went on an 11-0 scoring run in the third term and then found themselves in front and up by four thanks to a three-pointer from Maddie O'Hehir with three minutes to play.

That lead was soon out to five for the Bears when Carla Pitman knocked down a couple of free throws and their undefeated record for 2025 looking on track to remain.

But Newcastle responded with a bucket to Hannah Chicken before they forced a turnover and Sophie Brennan scored to cut that to a one-point game with two minutes to play.

Chicken then returned Newcastle to the lead only for Pitman to respond for a couple at the foul line but that would be the last score of the night for the Bears.

Jiselle Havas put Newcastle back in front with a jump shot and that was the bucket that ended up securing the two-point win as they handed the Bears a first defeat of 2025.

The Falcons improve to 10-1 on the season with the thrilling win with Nicole Munger finishing with 19 points, 16 rebounds, five assists and three steals with 3/6 three-point shooting.

Hannah Chicken added 19 points, six rebounds and three assists, Kate Kingham 14 points, four boards and two assists, Meg Jefferson eight points and eight rebounds, and Claudea Waihape-Andrews eight points, four assists and three boards.

The Bears are now 10-1 on the season following the loss and they will have a chance to back up on Sunday on the road to the Maitland Mustangs.

Carla Pitman finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds and two assists, Ruby Perkins 16 points and 11 boards, Maddie O'Hehir 15 points and three rebounds, and Emma Donnelly 12 points and five boards.

NEWCASTLE FALCONS 84 (Munger 19, Chicken 19, Kingham 14)

NORTHS BEARS 82 (Pitman 22, Perkins 16, O'Hehir 15)

Central Coast Crusaders (58) lost to Penrith Panthers (73)

The Penrith Panthers made up for a Friday loss at home to the Bankstown Bruins by hitting the road on Saturday and coming away with the 73-58 victory over the Central Coast Crusaders.

The Crusaders were back on their home floor at Breakers Indoor Sports Stadium still hunting a second win of 2025 as they hosted a Panthers team trying to stay in touch for a playoff spot and to bounce back from a loss to Shyla Heal and the Bruins.

Penrith did make the better of the start hitting all 10 of their free-throws in the first quarter to be leading 21-16 at quarter-time and then producing another 16 points to 11 in the second frame to go into half-time on top 37-27.

The Panthers remained in control throughout the second half as well with the lead getting out to 14 points in the third quarter, and 19 in the fourth before they secured the 15-point victory.

Penrith ended up shooting 41 per cent from field opposed to 27 from Central Coast while the two teams combined to go just 7/48 from three-point territory.

The Panthers also went 23/26 from the foul line to 11/14 along with having 12 extra rebounds and winning despite giving up 18 offensive boards and having 21 turnovers.

Penrith now finish their weekend double with a 5-8 record with Jordan Vasquez producing 20 points, 17 rebounds, three steals and two assists with 10/12 shooting at the foul line.

Mia Heide added 19 points, 20 rebounds, four blocks and two assists, Teagan Edwards 10 points, six boards and four assists, and Tatiana Beaumont eight points, three steals and two blocked shots.

Central Coast remain in bottom spot at 1-10 ahead of hosting the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders on Sunday with Leilani Mitchell delivering 26 points and six steals.

Jasmine Forcadilla added 12 points and six rebounds, Elizajane Loader eight points, seven boards and five assists, and Tai Wakelin-Gray six points, 11 rebounds and five steals.

CENTRAL COAST CRUSADERS 58 (Mitchell 26, Forcadilla 12, Loader 8)

PENRITH PANTHERS 73 (Vasquez 20, Heide 19, Edwards 10)

Canberra Nationals (69) defeated Sutherland Sharks (82)

The Sutherland Sharks are starting to build some momentum this NBL1 East season with Maddie Norris and Aliza Fabbro combining for 54 points in the 82-69 road win over the Canberra Nationals.

Coming off playing in last year's grand final this season hasn’t gone to script so far for Sutherland, but they did score a win over Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders last week ahead of a double this weekend in Canberra.

That started on Saturday against the Nationals at Southern Cross Basketball Stadium in Tuggeranong with Canberra also attempting to confirm their place inside the top eight.

Sutherland went into quarter-time already leading 19-13 before they added another 28 points to 15 in the second term on the back of shooting 9/15 from the field and 9/10 at the foul line to be leading 47-28 by the half-time break.

The lead for Sutherland got out to as much as 27 points in the second half too before Canberra did respond by going on an 18-0 scoring run, but the Sharks still ended up cruising to the 13-point road victory.

Sutherland has now won back-to-back games for the first time this season to improve to a 3-8 record ahead of taking on the Centre of Excellence on Sunday with Maddie Norris producing 29 points, 10 rebounds and three assists on 4/8 shooting from downtown.

Aliza Fabbro also had 25 points, five rebounds and three assists, Vanessa Panousis 10 points, four assists, three boards and two steals, Laci Hawthorne eight points and six rebounds, and Emily Garland eight points and four boards.

The Nationals are now sitting at 4-6 having lost their past two games with Mikala Williams finishing with 21 points on 5/9 three-point shooting.

Carlie McAlister added 18 points, 20 rebounds and three assists, Abby Solway 10 points, six assists, five boards and two steals, Elise Finney 10 points and five rebounds, and Callie Bourne eight points, 10 boards, five assists and two steals.

CANBERRA NATIONALS 69 (Williams 21, McAlister 18, Finney 10, Solway 10)

SUTHERLAND SHARKS 82 (Norris 29, Fabbro 25, Panousis 10)

Sydney Comets (77) lost to Bankstown Bruins (96)

The Bankstown Bruins revival since the arrival of Shyla Heal continued with Juliunn Redmond scoring 33 points in the 96-77 win over the Sydney Comets.

Since Heal has come on board, the Bruins had handed the Newcastle Falcons tehri first loss of the season and then beat the Penrith Panthers on Friday night to open Round 9 ahead of taking on Sydney at Comets Stadium on Saturday.

Sydney were looking for a win to break back into the top eight at the same time, but by quarter-time it was the Bruins who had opened up a 16-point lead even though that advantage was back to just 25-20 by quarter-time.

The lead for Bankstown was back out to 18 points in the second term and they would end up outscoring the Comets 26 points to 16 for the quarter on the way to the 51-36 lead by the half-time break.

That Bruins lead then got out to 22 points in the third frame and 27 in the fourth before the Comets finished well to cut the final winning margin for Bankstown back to 19 points.

The win improves the Bruins to a 5-8 record having won three straight with Shyla Heal in the line-up who delivered another 13 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists and six steals on 5/8 shooting.

Juliunn Redmond then came up huge with 33 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals while shooting 12/21 from the floor and 8/8 at the foul line.

Jada Rice added 18 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two blocks, Sienna Tutani 13 points, four boards and two assists, and Jane Dunlop eight points, two assists and two steals.

SYDNEY COMETS 77 (Curtin 29, Takamoto 13, Pirini 12)

BANKSTOWN BRUINS 96 (Redmond 33, Rice 18, Heal 13, Tutani 13)

Albury-Wodonga Bandits (91) lost to Inner West Bulls (97)

The Albury-Wodonga Bandits stormed home to force the game to overtime but the Inner West Bulls took back control with Kristina Moore and Tahlia Tupaea combining for 54 points in the 97-91 road win.

The Bandits were back home at Lauren Jackson Sports Centre looking to bounce back from a loss to the Centre of Excellence but they were without Caitie Jones ahead of taking on a Bulls team also trying to avoid a third successive defeat.

Albury-Wodonga were leading by four points at quarter-time and then turned that into an eight-point lead in the second term before Inner West responded and put up 32 points in the second term on the way to leading 54-45 at half-time.

The Bulls remained in control for a lot of the second half including leading by 13 points in the fourth quarter before the Bandits responded with a big finish including Brynn Masikewich putting them in front inside the final minute with a pair of free throws.

Masikewich then extended the lead to three before Inner West forced the game into overtime thanks to a clutch three-point bomb from Tahlia Tupaea.

Albury-Wodonga started perfectly in extra time with a triple from Riley Lupfer but Inner West soon responded with a three ball from Mizuki Wakamatsu before Kristina Moore put them in front, and from there the Bulls completed the job for the six-point victory.

The Bulls improve to a 6-5 record with the win with Kristina Moore producing another huge performance made up of 34 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

Tahlia Tupaea added 20 points, eight assists, six rebounds and two blocks, Chieh Ou 14 points, four assists, three boards and three steals, and Mizuki Wakamatsu 13 points on 4/6 three-point shooting.

Albury-Wodonga are now 8-4 on the season with the consecutive losses with Riley Lupfer ending up with 24 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and two blocks with 5/17 three-point shooting.

Brynn Masikewich also had 24 points and nine rebounds on 9/10 shooting, Emma Mahady 15 points, nine boards and four assists, and Melanie Kirby 12 points, five rebounds and three assists.

ALBURY-WODONGA BANDITS 91 (Masikewich 24, Lupfer 24, Mahady 15)

INNER WEST BULLS 97 (Moore 34, Tupaea 20, Ou 14)

MEN

Manly Warringah Sea Eagles (80) lost to Hills Hornets (82)

The Hills Hornets led by as much as 16 points in the fourth quarter and then withstood a blistering finish from the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles to hold on for the 82-80 victory.

The Sea Eagles were back on their home floor at Northern Beaches Indoor Sports Centre on a three-game winning streak as they hosted a Hornets team trying to avoid a third consecutive defeat.

The home team then finished the first quarter by scoring 11 straight points on the way to leading 22-15 by quarter-time.

That lead was out to nine points in the second term but the Hornets were able to turn the tide and ended up with the narrow 41-39 lead themselves going into the locker room for half-time.

Hills then further built on that advantage with another 20 points to 12 in the third term and then were leading by 16 early in the fourth, but Manly Warringah weren’t done with yet.

By the time Preston Purifoy knocked down a three-pointer with 45 seconds to go, suddenly the Sea Eagles were back within three and had all the momentum, but they missed their next couple of shot attempts.

Eventually Pafe Momoisea knocked down a couple of free throws to put the Hornets back up by five before the Sea Eagles got a three on the buzzer from Matthew Eldridge but it was all too late.

The two-point win for the Hornets improves them to a 5-6 record on the season with Meekness Payne top-scoring with 16 points to go with five rebounds on 5/11 shooting from the field.

Deng Gak added 13 points, four rebounds and two blocks, Jacob Foy 13 points, four assists and two boards, Zach Hudson 12 points, five rebounds, four steals and two assists, and Liam Moss seven points, three boards and three assists on 2/4 three-point shooting.

The Sea Eagles are now 6-5 following the loss ahead of them hosting the Illawarra Hawks on Sunday with Matthew Eldridge finishing with 19 points and 12 rebounds on 8/10 shooting from the floor and 3/5 from downtown.

Stefan Valkovic also had 16 points and six rebounds, Jamie Munro 11 points and seven boards, Preston Purifoy 11 points and six rebounds, and Mason Bragg 11 points, 10 assists, four steals and two rebounds.

MANLY WARRINGAH SEA EAGLES 80 (Eldridge 19, Valkovic 16, Bragg 11, Purifoy 11, Munro 11)

HILLS HORNETS 82 (Payne 16, Foy 13, Gak 13)

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders (104) defeated Maitland Mustangs (103)

There were big shots galore in a fascinating match up but the biggest was on a perfectly executed out of bounds play for Akil Douglas to score inside to deliver the 104-103 win to the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders over the Maitland Mustangs.

The Spiders were back home at The Brickpit still looking for that third win of the season while the defending champion Maitland arrived trying to build some momentum once more on the back of beating the Penrith Panthers last week.

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai were leading 23-19 by quarter-time but then the Mustangs put up 35 points to 25 in the second term on the way to leading 54-48 at the half-time break.

The Spiders fired back in the third quarter with 29 points to 20, and then that all set up a fascinating finish with both teams going on to combine for 56 points in the final quarter.

Mandrell Worthy did put Maitland in front by four points with 1:45 to play when he competed a three-point play before Akil Douglas responded with two free throws for Hornsby, and then Steven Hall knocked down the three-pointer to put them in front.

That's where things got real interesting and on the next possession after a missed shot from Mandrell Worthy, Luka Vea grabbed a one-handed rebound and shotput it back in the hole to return the Mustangs to the one-point lead with 4.1 seconds left.

The Spiders called for time out and came out to perfectly execute the play with lob pass from Mohamed Kone to Douglas who was able to score until the bucket with 2.7 seconds left.

There was time still for the Mustangs but the full court pass didn’t find a teammate from Billy Parsons meaning Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai held on for the one-point win.

The result improves the Spiders to a 3-7 record on the season with Mohamed Krone brilliant with 28 points, 12 assists, seven rebounds and seven steals.

Not only did Akil Douglas made the winning basket, but he also had 25 points and four rebounds on 9/13 shooting with Steven Hall making 4/6 from downtown for 14 points, three rebounds and three assists, and Daniel Titus 11 points, four boards, two assists, two steals and two blocks.

The defending champion Mustangs are now 6-5 on the season having lost three of their past four despite 23 points, eight assists, six rebounds and five steals from Christian Little.

Mandrell Worthy also had 25 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals, Billy Parsons 15 points, 12 boards and two steals, Luka Vea nine points, four rebounds and two assists, and Jay Cole nine points, four assists and three boards.

HORNSBY KU-RING-GAI SPIDERS 104 (Kone 28, Douglas 25, Hall 14)

MAITLAND MUSTANGS 103 (Worthy 25, Little 23, Parsons 15)

Newcastle Falcons (78) defeated Norths Bears (68)

The Newcastle Falcons made it three straight wins as they continue to build momentum this season with the 78-68 home win over the Norths Bears.

The Falcons were back home at Newcastle Basketball Stadium having won their last couple of games to move into the top eight while the Bears arrived having lost their past two and needing a win to stay touch of a playoff spot.

The Bears did start well enough to be leading by 22-19 but they had been in front by as much as 10 points in that opening term.

Both teams managed 19 points apiece in the second quarter and that meant Norths were still leading 41-38 by the half-time interval.

Newcastle were able to take charge throughout the second half with a 17-10 third quarter and the with 23 points to 17 in the fourth to end up leading by as much as 17 points and the securing the 10-point victory.

The win improves Newcastle to a 6-6 record on the season on the back of now having won three straight with Ryan Beisty producing 20 points, 10 rebounds, there assists and two steals with 5/8 three-point shooting.

Myles Cherry added 15 points, 11 rebounds and five assists, Kobe Shannon 15 points and two assists, and Eylijah Stephens 11 points and two steals on 3/4 three-point shooting.

Norths have now lost their past three to sit at 4-7 on the season ahead of a road clash with the Maitland Mustangs on Sunday.

Austin Patterson top-scored for the Bears with 15 points, two rebounds and two steals, Hunter Goodrick 11 points, 13 boards and four assists, and Iggy Mitchell 10 points and two steals.

NEWCASTLE FALCONS 78 (Beisty 20, Shannon 15, Cherry 15)

NORTHS BEARS 68 (Patterson 15, Goodrick 11, Mitchell 10)

Central Coast Crusaders (98) defeated Penrith Panthers (77)

The Central Coast Crusaders closed in on a return to the top eight win an impressive home performance beating the Penrith Panthers 98-77.

The Crusaders were back on their home floor at Breakers Indoor Sports Stadium trying to snap a two-game losing run as they took on a Panthers team fresh off a narrow Friday night defeat at home to the Bankstown Bruins.

It was a flying start from the Crusaders with 27 points to 14 in the first quarter including going on a 10-0 scoring run and ending up shooting 11/16 from the field opposed to the 6/23 from the Panthers who also went 1/10 from the land of plenty.

Central Coast saw that lead grow to 18 points in the second term and then went into the half-time break in control 50-35.

The advantage continued to grow for the Crusaders throughout the second half too with it getting out to as much as 27 points in the third quarter, and it was still 25 in the fourth before they settled on the 21-point victory.

Central Coast finished up shooting 51 per cent from the field to the 33 from Penrith which saw them win by 21 points despite attempting 11 fewer field goals, and giving up 18 offensive rebounds.

The Crusaders improve to 5-6 on the season with the victory with Klairus Amir leading the charge with 24 points and two rebounds on 6/14 shooting from behind the three-point line.

Garric Young also delivered 22 points, nine rebounds, three steals and two assists on 10/15 shooting with Luke Cassidy contributing 15 points, four assists and three boards, Ilisia Washington 14 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, and Lino Manhom 12 points and 10 boards.

Penrith are now 3-10 for the season following the pair of defeats in the space of 24 hours with Makur Jongkuch top-scoring with 14 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Jack McWilliams added 12 points with 8/8 shooting at the foul line, Oliver Amajoyi 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocks, and Jonah Pares seven points, nine boards, five assists and four steals.

CENTRAL COAST CRUSADERS 98 (Amir 24, Young 22, Cassidy 15)

PENRITH PANTHERS 77 (Jongkuch 14, McWilliams 12, Amajoyi 10)

Canberra Gunners (104) defeated Sutherland Sharks (96)

Two recent champions in the NBL1 East locked horns with the Canberra Gunners ending up prevailing at home in overtime 104-96 over the Sutherland Sharks to move clear in second place as a result.

Canberra won the 2022 championship before Sutherland took out the 2023 crown, and both teams have started 2025 strongly entering Saturday's clash in Tuggeranong sitting on identical 7-3 records.

Canberra made a scorching start with a 30-18 first quarter on the back of an 11-0 scoring run with that lead for the Gunners getting out to 18 points in the second frame.

Canberra were still leading 57-45 by half-time and the lead was back out to 15 in the third period but Sutherland were working back into the contest and were able to go on a 16-0 scoring run to grab the lead into the fourth term.

The Sharks would then end up leading by as much as 10 points with only four minutes to play but the Gunners fired back starting with a pair of three balls from Lachlan Smith.

Glenn Morison then delivered five quick points in the final minute to tie scores up before a pair of free throws to Will Mayfield, and then a bucket to Lochlan Hutchison saw the game head to overtime with scores 93-93.

Luke Jamieson opened up the extra period with a three-pointer for Sutherland but Morison and Mayfield would soon combine for seven straight points for the Gunners to give them a six-point lead with the final margin out to eight thanks to Derek Emelifeonwu.

The Gunners improve to 8-3 with the win with Mayfield delivering 22 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals on 13/17 shooting at the foul line.

Emelifeonwu added 19 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals, Morison 16 points and 15 rebounds, Lachlan Smith nine points on 3/3 shooting, and James Toohey nine points on 3/6 three-point shooting.

The Sharks are now 7-4 following the loss ahead of a road clash with the Centre of Excellence on Sunday with Lochlan Hutchison finishing with 23 points and eight assists.

Kouat Noi also had 19 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals, Luke Jamieson 13 points and 10 boards, Adrian Cabrera 12 points, two boards and two steals, and Jason Spurgin eight points, eight rebounds and two assists.

CANBERRA GUNNERS 104 (Mayfield 22, Emelifeonwu 19, Morison 16)

SUTHERLAND SHARKS 96 (Hutchison 23, Noi 19, Jamieson 13)

Sydney Comets (87) defeated Bankstown Bruins (74)

They might not have had Biwali Bayles, but Davo Hickey and Anthony Mundine III combined for 53 points as the Sydney Comets made it five straight wins beating the Bankstown Bruins 87-74.

Bankstown arrived at Comets Stadium fresh off a win over the Penrith Panthers the previous night while the Comets were looking to make it a fifth straight victory.

Coming off their win the previous night the Bruins made a fast start to be leading by 11 points already by quarter-time.

That lead got out to as much as 14 points in the second term but by half-time the Comets had worked back into the contest to cut the Bankstown advantage back to 42-33.

Sydney then dominated the third quarter with 26 points to eight on the back of shooting 10/21 from the field opposed to 3/21 to turn that nine-point deficit into a nine-point lead by three quarter-time.

It was another 28 points to 24 in the final term and the Comets completed the deal on the 13-point victory on shooting 40 per cent from the field opposed to 34, and 10/37 from deep against 7/35.

The Comets improve to an 8-3 record as a result of the fifth straight win ahead of taking on the Hills Hornets on Sunday with Illawarra Hawks NBL championship star Davo Hickey delivering 32 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals.

Anthony Mundine III added 21 points, six steals, five assists and four rebounds on 5/13 three-point shooting with Obi Kyei contributing 10 points, 16 boards and two assists, and Shareef Saipaia seven points, three rebounds and two assists.

The Bruins are now 6-7 having split their two games already this weekend with Jaylin Galloway finishing with 14 points, seven rebounds and two blocks.

Charlie McBeath top-scored with 16 points on 4/7 three-point shooting while Jason Cadee contributed 13 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and three steals, and Dominique Keyes 12 points and 13 boards on 4/7 shooting.

SYDNEY COMETS 87 (Hickey 32, Mundine III 21, Kyei 10)

BANKSTOWN BRUINS 74 (McBeath 16, Galloway 14, Cadee 13)

Albury-Wodonga Bandits (93) defeated Inner West Bulls (89)

Both teams were in the need of a win and the Albury-Wodonga Bandits got 67 points from Ahren Freeman, Immanuel Allen and Matthew Gray for the 93-89 home win against the Inner West Bulls.

The two teams came into the match up at Lauren Jackson Sports Centre occupying spots in the bottom four of the standings with a combined record so far in 2025 of 6-16.

So they were both desperate for the chance to get a win on the board and they put on quite the show in the opening quarter combining for 62 points, but it was Inner West leading 34-28 by quarter-time on the back of shooting 8/12 from behind the three-point arc.

Albury-Wodonga turned things around in the second frame with the Bulldogs shooting just 7/25 while the Bandits outscored them 27-18 to go into the half-time break with the 55-52 lead.

It remained a tight contest throughout the second half with no more than six points ever separating the two teams, but it was the Bandits that got the job in the final three minutes.

Inner West were leading by three with 3:45 to play before a dunk from Matthew Gray who then also knocked down a triple to put the Bandits back on top by two.

Ahren Freeman eventually sealed the win with a dunk for the Bandits to push the lead out to four and they were able to secure the result from there for a third win of the season and to get out of bottom place.

Ahren Freeman provided the Bandits with 25 points, 13 rebounds, three blocks and two assists in the win while Immanuel Allen contributed 22 points, three assists, three steals, two blocks and two boards.

Matthew Gray also had 20 points, 18 rebounds, three assists and two blocks with Jacob Cincurak contributing 11 points, four rebounds and four assists with 3/5 three-point shooting.

Inner West now slip to a 4-8 record with the loss with Ramon Cao putting up 26 points and seven rebounds on the back of shooting 5/9 from behind the three-point arc.

Maxwell Clark delivered 19 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals, Dalen Ridgnal 18 points, nine boards and four steals, and Nicko Timonera nine points, six rebounds and three assists.

ALBURY-WODONGA BANDITS 93 (Freeman 25, Allen 22, Gray 20)

INNER WEST BULLS 89 (Cao 26, Clark 19, Ridgnal 18)