South Recap | Anzac Round Saturday

Image credit: @In2Action Photography-Jodie Rawiri

It was a Saturday night of match winning men's NBL1 South performances including from Sam Whelan for Eltham Wildcats, Jock Perry for Diamond Valley Eagles, Ade Murkey for Knox Raiders and Dillon Stith for Kilsyth Cobras.

SOUTH RECAP | ANZAC ROUND FRIDAY

WOMEN

Sandringham Sabres (81) defeated Kilsyth Cobras (63)

Funda Nakkasoglu knocked down five three-pointers and scored 26 points as the Sandringham Sabres continued their strong start to the season with the 81-63 home win against the Kilsyth Cobras.

The Sabres were back home at Southern Basketball Stadium playing their first game of the weekend up against a Kilsyth team trying to bounce back from last Thursday's 53-point loss at the hands of the Ringwood Hawks.

Sandringham had the better of the start scoring 11 straight points in the first quarter to end up leading 18-12 by quarter-time and then the Sabres pushed that lead out to 18 in the second term.

The Sabres ended up outscoring the Cobras 26 points to 14 in that quarter to go into half-time leading 44-26 before the lead grew to as much as 27 points in the third frame.

Sandringham converted that into the 18-point victory to improve to a 5-1 record on the season under new coach Mark Alabakov.

Funda Nakkasoglu produced another standout performance made up of 26 points and four assists on shooting 8/13 from the field to go with 5/8 from three-point range and 5/5 at the foul line.

Haylee Andrews added 13 points and six assists, Isis Lopes 15 points and four rebounds, Lucy Cochrane 12 points and six boards, Keeley Frawley seven points and eight rebounds, and Klara Wischer four points, eight boards, five assists, three steals and three blocks.

Kilsyth is now 2-5 on the season having lost their past couple despite Abby O'Connor delivering 21 points and 10 rebounds.

Anamaria Virjoghe also had 14 points and 13 rebounds, Georgia McBean seven points, five boards and two assists, and Shannon Dufficy six points and 15 rebounds.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 81 (Nakkasoglu 26, Lopes 15, Andrews 13)

KILSYTH COBRAS 63 (O'Connor 21, Virjoghe 14, McBean 7)

Bendigo Braves (61) lost to Knox Raiders (86)

The Knox Raiders made it two wins in the space of 24 hours as they flexed their considerable muscle with the 86-61 road win on Saturday night over the Bendigo Braves.

Knox did suffer a first loss of the season last Thursday night to the Sandringham Sabres but responded on Anzac Day to beat the Casey Cavaliers ahead of their trip to Red Energy Arena to face Bendigo on Saturday.

The Braves were playing their first game since losing to Geelong two weeks ago as well with Knox ending up leading by four points at quarter-time.

Things remained tight throughout the second quarter and by half-time it was the Raiders just holding a narrow 37-31 advantage.

However, Knox completely dominated the second half with 28 points to 18 in the third period, and 21 to 12 in the fourth to end up leading by as much as 25 points which was the final winning margin.

The Raiders now improve to a 5-1 record with the win with plenty of their big names delivering strong showings again under the coaching of Al Westover.

Alicia Froling delivered 18 points, eight rebounds, three blocks and two assists while Kiera Glover (nee Rowe) added 13 points, 11 boards and two blocks, and Paige Bradley 15 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.

It didn’t stop there with Emily Fisher contributing 10 points and two assists, Emma Pearce 10 points, four rebounds and two assists, and Rachael Quirk eight points, three boards and three steals.

The Braves are now 2-3 for the season with Mikayla Pivec delivering 20 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and three steals with Casey Samuels adding 14 points and seven boards, and Taisheka Porchia nine points and six rebounds.

BENDIGO BRAVES 61 (Pivec 20, Samuels 14, Porchia 9)

KNOX RAIDERS 86 (Froling 18, Bradley 15, Glover 13)

Casey Cavaliers (76) lost to Diamond Valley Eagles (93)

Lara McSpadden and Abbey Ellis combined for 50 points as the Diamond Valley Eagles made it four straight wins with the 93-76 win on the road to the Casey Cavaliers.

Both teams were coming off playing on Anzac Day where the Cavs had a loss to the Knox Raiders while the Eagles kept their momentum going with a win at home to the Ringwood Hawks.

They locked horns on Saturday night at Casey Stadium and after the Cavs started well to lead early on by seven points, the Eagles hit back with a 9-0 scoring run to be on top 28-21 by quarter-time.

That lead got out to double-figures for Diamond Valley in the second quarter and by half-time they were in control leading 51-42.

Casey did try to make a charge in the third quarter and outscored the Eagles, but then Diamond Valley took charge once more in the final stanza with another 24 points to 12 on the way to the 17-point victory.

It's three straight wins now for the Eagles as they improve to a 4-3 record with Abbey Ellis delivering another 25 points, eight rebounds and two assists.

Lara McSpadden also had 25 points and 10 rebounds with Erin Riley contributing 17 points, eight boards and three assists, and Orla O'Reilly 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Casey is now sitting on a 3-3 record with the two wins in the space of 24 hours with Ahlise Hurst finishing with 17 points, four steals and three rebounds, Sabrina Haines 16 points, four boards and four assists, and Sharne Robati 15 points, eight rebounds and two steals.

Casey Cavaliers 76 (Hurst 17, Haines 16, Robati 15)

Diamond Valley Eagles 93 (McSpadden 25, Ellis 25, Riley 17)

Eltham Wildcats (80) lost to Ballarat Miners (88)

The three-pronged attack of Abbey Wehrung, Julia Gladkova and Micah Simpson delivered the Ballarat Miners the 88-80 road victory against the Eltham Wildcats.

The Wildcats were also in action on Anzac Day and were able to beat the Nunawading Spectres while the Miners were playing a first game in two weeks and chasing just a second win of the season.

Eltham got off to a fast start on their home floor at Montmorency Secondary College to be leading 30-23 by quarter-time and then stretching their advantage to 10 in the second term.

The Wildcats were still clinging to a 47-44 lead by half-time but Ballarat took control in the third quarter by grabbing the lead by outscoring Eltham 29 points to 17.

The Miners turned that into a 12-point lead and the eventual eight-point victory to improve them to a 2-3 record on the season.

Abbey Wehrung was the star in the win on the night for Ballarat with 27 points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists but it was far from a solo act.

Julia Gladkova added 18 points, six rebounds and two assists, Micah Simpson 18 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and three steals, and Laura Taylor 10 points, six boards, four steals and two blocked shots.

Eltham is now 2-3 on the season following the home defeat with Lil Dart finishing with 23 points, five assists and four rebounds with Bec Pizzey contributing 22 points, 10 boards and six assists, and Kennedy Dickie 14 points and eight rebounds.

ELTHAM WILDCATS 80 (Dart 23, Pizzey 22, Dickie 14)

BALLARAT MINERS 88 (Wehrung 27, Gladkova 18, Simpson 18)

Hobart Chargers (62) lost to Geelong United (91)

Geelong United completed the perfect road double in Tasmania this weekend and stayed unbeaten this season with the 91-62 victory over the Hobart Chargers.

Geelong started the weekend on Anzac Day beating the Launceston Tornadoes ahead of taking on the Chargers at South East Stadium with Hobart fresh off having lost to Keilor Thunder as well on Friday.

United already stamped their authority on the contest with 25 points to 17 in the first quarter before another 23 points to 15 in the second term on the way to the 48-32 lead by the half-time break.

It was more of the same in the second half and Geelong completed a 16-0 scoring run on the way to their lead growing to 35 points in the third quarter before they secured the 29-point victory.

United are now 6-0 to start the season as the last remaining unbeaten team in the NBL1 South with Gemma Potter producing 24 points, five steals and four rebounds with 6/11 three-point shooting.

Hannah Hank also delivered 17 points and nine rebounds, Lilly Rotunno 12 points, five boards and five assists, Jaz Shelley 12 points, 10 rebounds, seven steals and four assists, and Dakota Crichton 11 points and five assists.

Hobart is now 2-5 having lost both home games this weekend with Kayla Steindl their only player scoring in double-figures with 11 points, six rebounds and two blocks.

Ellie Collins also had nine points, four rebounds and two assists, and Sharna Thompson nine points, 11 boards and two assists.

HOBART CHARGERS 62 (Steindl 11, Thompson 9, Collins 9)

GEELONG UNITED 91 (Potter 24, Hank 17, Shelley 12, Rotunno 12)

Launceston Tornadoes (66) lost to Keilor Thunder (89)

Maddy Rocci produced another standout performance to keep Keilor Thunder's winning weekend going with the 89-66 victory against the Launceston Tornadoes.

While the Thunder are without Issie Bourne, they've had Rocci back for this weekend's road trip to Tasmania that began on Anzac Day with the victory against the Hobart Chargers.

The Tornadoes also played on Friday with a loss to Geelong United and it was always going to be a challenge to get a first win of the season against Keilor.

It was an exciting opening to the match up at Harcourts Stadium with the two teams combining for 54 points with Keilor ending up leading 30-24 by quarter-time.

The scoring dried up in the second quarter and Launceston did well to restrict Keilor to just the 11 points and that saw the home team head into the half-time break trailing by just the solitary point.

However, the Thunder took control in the third stanza with 24 points to 15 before adding another 24 to 11 in the fourth period on the way to the eventual 23-point win.

The win means that Keilor improves to a 6-1 record on the season including the pair of wins in Tasmania this weekend with Maddy Rocci the star once more with 27 points, six rebounds and six assists with 3/6 three-point shooting.

Madeline Puli ended up with 20 points and seven rebounds while Keilor also added in Tayah Burrows and the WNBL point guard produced 13 points, nine rebounds and four assists in 20 minutes.

The Tornadoes remain winless from seven attempts this season with the defeat with Millie Baker finishing with 13 points and five rebounds on a perfect 6/6 shooting.

Megan Mullings added 12 points and nine rebounds, Keely Froling 10 points and 13 boards, Lucy Aherne eight points and three rebounds, Sarah O'Neill eight points and four assists, and Bailey Flavell eight points and two rebounds.

LAUNCESTON TORNADOES 66 (Baker 13, Mullings 12, Froling 10)

KEILOR THUNDER 89 (Rocci 27, Puli 20, Burrows 13)

MEN

Sandringham Sabres (89) lost to Kilsyth Cobras (90)

Dillon Stith put his team in front and then Malith Machar missed a chance to get the game to overtime with the Kilsyth Cobras beating the Sandringham Sabres 90-89 on Saturday night.

The Sabres were back home at Southern Basketball Stadium still hunting that first win of the season hosting a Cobras team who had a last up win over the Ringwood Hawks last Thursday night.

Kilsyth came out and made an impressive start going on an 8-0 scoring run in the first quarter on the way to leading 27-19 by quarter-time.

That lead for the Cobras got out to as much as 14 points in the second period as well before Sandringham did try to work back into the contest with seven straight points of their own.

It was Kilsyth still leading 50-42 at the half-time interval but Sandringham fired back in the third quarter with 29 points to 21 to retake the lead in the hunt of that first win of the season.

It all set up a big finish to the contest even after Kilsyth was up by six with three minutes to play when Khadim Sy knocked down a three-pointer.

A pair of three balls in the space of 30 seconds in the final minute from Malith Machar suddenly had Sandringham back level before it was Dillon Stith that put Kilsyth back on top when they executed well out of a timeout.

Sandringham still had a chance to either send the game to overtime to even win it on the last possession, and Machar was able to draw the foul on Sy.

He stepped up to the line and made the first, but missed on the second and that left Sandringham a point short with Kilsyth securing the win to improve to a 4-3 record on the season.

Dillon Stith ultimately hit the winning basket and finished with 23 points and four rebounds for the Cobras including making 4/8 of his three-point attempts with Corey Jeffs contributing 21 points, six assists and three rebounds.

Khadim Sy also had 13 points and three rebounds, Adrian Tomada 11 points and five assists, and Hamish MacDonald 10 points, four boards and two assists.

Sandringham are now 0-6 following the heartbreaking defeat with Machar having a mixed night where he was terrific with 29 points, three blocks, two rebounds and two assists on 10/14 shooting from the field and 6/8 from three-point land, but he did miss that free-throw at the death.

CJ Asuncion-Byrd added 22 points, six rebounds and two assists for the Sabres, Elliott Brown 14 points, seven boards and six assists, and Tom Koppens 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 89 (Machar 29, Asuncion-Byrd 22, Brown 14)

KILSYTH COBRAS 90 (Stith 23, Jeffs 21, Sy 13)

Bendigo Braves (85) lost to Knox Raiders (94)

The Knox Raiders were down some bodies but Ade Murkey came up huge as they scored the 94-85 win on the road against the Bendigo Braves.

Knox were coming off a first loss of the season on Anzac Day against the Casey Cavaliers ahead of taking on the Braves at Red Energy Arena.

Bendigo were playing a first game since beating Geelong United two weeks ago and they started well to be leading 26-20 by the end of the first quarter, and still leading 48-43 by the half-time break.

Knox had work to do and were without Tad Dufelmeier and Norvel Pelle in their second game in 48 hours, but the Raiders took total control of the contest in the second half.

The Raiders put up 25 points to 16 in the third quarter and 26 to 21 in the fourth to turn an 11-point deficit into the nine-point victory to split their weekend and make up for a first loss of the season.

Knox now sits on a 5-1 record with Ade Murkey showing just what he's capable of with 33 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and six steals on 12/23 shooting from the floor and 7/9 at the foul line.

Sunday Dech added 22 points and six rebounds with 4/10 three-point shooting while Brody Nunn contributed 17 points, two rebounds and two assists, and Sydney Kings NBL powerhouse Keli Leaulepe 16 points, seven boards and two assists.

Bendigo is now 2-3 on the season ahead of a road game against the Waverley Falcons on Sunday with Lual Diing finishing with 25 points, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks.

Charles Matthews added 18 points and nine rebounds, and Justin Johnson 17 points, four boards and three assists.

BENDIGO BRAVES 85 (Diing 25, Matthews 18, Johnson 17)

KNOX RAIDERS 94 (Murkey 33, Dech 22, Nunn 17)

Casey Cavaliers (94) lost to Diamond Valley Eagles (97)

It was a Saturday night overtime classic at Casey Stadium with Jock Perry the hero for the Diamond Valley Eagles scoring the game's last eight points to deliver his team the 97-94 victory.

Both teams were also in action on Anzac Day with Casey handing Knox Raiders a first loss of the season while Diamond Valley also scored the win against the Ringwood Hawks.

That set up the battle nicely at Casey Stadium and the Cavaliers made a dominant start already leading 26-11 by the end of the first quarter.

That lead for the Cavs grew to 19 points as well in the second term while they went into the half-time break still in control 51-37.

Diamond Valley had to do something swiftly and were able to do exactly that with 25 points to 11 in the third quarter which saw them get all the way back level with the Cavaliers.

That set up a big finish and it was a fourth quarter full of big plays and big shots including the go ahead three-pointer for Adam Thoseby that had Diamond Valley up by a point in the final minute.

Preston Bungei was fouled on the next possession and had the chance to win the game for Casey, but he only made one at the stripe which saw the game end up in overtime.

The Cavaliers then looked on track for the win with a pair of free throws from Hunter Marks which gave them a five-point lead, but they wouldn’t score again in the last 2:30 of the extra period.

That's when Jock Perry took over firstly with a three-pointer, then he scored after an offensive rebound and he was able to knock down another three ball to put the Eagles in front.

That would prove to be the game winning shot too and he ended up scoring the game's last eight points to take Diamond Valley from five points down to winning by three.

The Eagles improve to a 3-4 record as a result of the two wins in the space of 24 hours with Jock Perry ultimately the difference with 34 points, 19 rebounds, four assists and three steals on 12/18 shooting from the field, 5/6 from downtown and 5/5 at the foul line.

Ngor Manyang also had 20 points and four rebounds with 4/7 three-point shooting while Adam Thoseby contributed 14 points, three boards and two assists, and Jesse McIntosh 13 points, six rebounds and two assists.

Casey is now 4-2 following the overtime defeat with Nate Roberts producing 20 points, 14 rebounds and three steals with Trendon Hankerson delivering 17 points, six assists and five boards.

Sydney Kings guard Tyler Robertson also had 16 points and four rebounds, Preston Bungei 16 points, seven boards, five assists and four steals, and Hunter Marks 10 points and two rebounds.

Casey Cavaliers 94 (Roberts 20, Hankerson 17, Robertson 16, Bungei 16)

Diamond Valley Eagles 97 (Perry 34, Manyang 20, Thoseby 14)

Eltham Wildcats (105) defeated Ballarat Miners (71)

Championship winning captain Sam Whelan knocked down eight three-pointers to lead the defending champion Eltham Wildcats to the 105-71 victory at home to the Ballarat Miners.

The Wildcats had just won one of their first four matches to start their title defence including an Anzac Day defeat at the hands of the Nunawading Spectres ahead of hosting the Miners on Saturday at Montmorency Secondary College.

Ballarat came into the match up having won three of four matches so far this season but it was Eltham who came out ready to prove a point that they can still have an impact in 2025 despite the loss of championship stars including Angus Glover and Owen Foxwell.

The Wildcats outscored the Miners 22 points to 12 in the first quarter on the back of scoring 13 consecutive points and then that lead got out to 21 in the second term when they would outscore the Miners 32 points to 21.

That saw Eltham leading 54-33 at half-time before going on with the job with another 14-0 scoring run to lead by 33 in the third quarter and 35 in the fourth with the final winning margin settling at 34.

Eltham ended up making 15/32 of three-point attempts on top of going 34/39 at the foul line with captain Sam Whelan showing the way hitting 8/11 from long-range on his way to 27 points and four steals.

Gabe Hadley backed up his huge performance from Anzac Day with another 29 points and four rebounds with 4/6 three-point shooting and 13/15 at the foul line with Xavier Bledson adding 26 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocks.

Ballarat are now 3-2 following the loss despite 30 points with 6/11 three-point shooting from Nick Stoddart.

Luke Rosendale also had 12 points, six rebounds and two assists, Bol Bak 11 points on 3/4 three-point shooting, and Majok Majok pulled down 15 rebounds while not managing to score on missing all seven of his shot attempts.

ELTHAM WILDCATS 105 (Hadley 29, Whelan 27, Bledson 16)

BALLARAT MINERS 71 (Stoddart 30, Rosendale 12, Bak 11)

Hobart Chargers (73) lost to Geelong United (78)

Both Hobart and Geelong had opened their weekend with wins on Anzac Day and they played out a Saturday night thriller with United coming from behind at three quarter-time to beat the Chargers 78-73.

The Chargers welcomed Anthony Drmic into their line-up as an injury replacement for Will Cranston-Lown in their win over Keilor Thunder on Anzac Day while Geelong started their Tasmania road trip also beating the North West Tasmania Thunder.

It was a defensive grind of a first quarter with the two teams only combining for 26 points with Hobart leading 15-11 by quarter-time before things opened up in the second stanza.

The two sides put up 51 points including the Chargers going on an 11-0 scoring run to open up a 12-point lead and that saw the home team go into half-time leading 43-34.

Even though the Chargers went on to lead by 14 points in the third quarter, Geelong fired back and produced 23 points to 15 in the fourth term to go from three points down to end up securing the five-point victory.

Geelong improves to 3-3 on the season with the pair of wins in Tasmania for the weekend with Liam Herbert coming up huge with 24 points and six assists on 4/9 three-point shooting.

Tristan Forsyth backed up his monster performance on Anzac Day with 19 points, nine rebounds, four steals and two assists with DeMarcus Gatlin contributing 17 points, 13 boards, five assists and three steals.

Hobart is now 4-2 having split the weekend at home with Jacob Richards delivering another 18 points and three rebounds with Anthony Drmic contributing 15 points, five boards, four steals and three assists.

Noah Straatsma added 11 points and two rebounds, Ole Angerstein 10 points, 15 boards and two blocks, and Henry Makeny nine points, 12 rebounds, three assists and two steals.

HOBART CHARGERS 73 (Richards 18, Drmic 15, Straatsma 11)

GEELONG UNITED 78 (Herbert 24, Forsyth 19, Gatlin 17)

North West Tasmania Thunder (98) defeated Keilor Thunder (53)

Archie Woodhill was a dominant force down low and the North West Tasmania Thunder took full advantage for the 98-53 victory at home over Keilor Thunder.

Both teams were also in action on Anzac Day with North West suffering a narrow loss to Geelong United while Keilor started their double-header in Tasmania with a loss to the Hobart Chargers.

North West started impressively with a 22 points to 13 first quarter before building a 16-point lead during the second frame on the way to leading 46-32 at the half-time interval.

The home team went on with the job from there too completing a 16-0 scoring run to lead by 28 points in the third quarter, and then by 45 in the fourth on the way to the eventual thumping 45-point victory on their home floor.

The win improves North West to a 3-3 record on the season after splitting their double-header weekend.

Keilor returns home without a win from their Tasmanian double to now be 2-5 on the season.

NORTH WEST TASMANIA THUNDER 98 KEILOR THUNDER 53