Featured image: Joy Hooper @shoot_nhoops
Leah Scott inspired South West Metro Pirates to crucial NBL1 North Saturday win with Miela Goodchild and Mikaela Ruef firing for North Gold Coast Seahawks, and the Mackay, Darwin and Logan men flexing their muscles.
RECAP NBL1 NORTH | ROUND 14 FRIDAY
WOMEN
Gold Coast Rollers (83) lost to North Gold Coast Seahawks (91)
Miela Goodchild was back with 36 points, Mikaela Ruef produced another triple-double and the North Gold Coast Seahawks will enter the playoffs in form with the 91-83 road victory over the Gold Coast Rollers.
Both teams were playing their last games of the season in the match up at Carrara Stadium with Gold Coast trying to snap a seven-game winning run and North Gold Coast looking to enter the finals with winning momentum.
It had been a tough season for the Rollers with just the three wins but they started hot on Saturday to try and finish things off on a high note on their home floor.
Gold Coast opened up a 10-point lead in the first period and that advantage got out to 16 points in the second frame with the Rollers leading 49-33 at half-time.
The Rollers were still on top by eight points early in the fourth quarter, but then the Seahawks turned it on and scored 12 consecutive points and would end up outscoring Gold Coast 31 points to 17 in the quarter.
That saw the Seahawks end up claiming the eight-point victory to finish the regular season with a 12-5 record with Miela Goodchild back into the line-up and delivering 36 points, four rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals.
Mikaela Ruef had another triple-double too with 14 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists with Chailee Ward contributing 11 points, three boards and three assists, and Majella Carey six points, six rebounds and two assists while Grace Champion scored 21 points.
Gold Coast threw everything at a season-ending win but finish now at 3-14 with eight consecutive defeats despite Kate Deeble putting up 33 points and seven rebounds on a perfect 6/6 three-point shooting.
Cassidy Gould added 17 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals while Lisa Koop contributed 14 points and 10 boards, and Myah Selland nine points, five assists and four rebounds.
GOLD COAST ROLLERS 83 (Deeble 33, Gould 17, Koop 14)
NORTH GOLD COAST SEAHAWKS 91 (Goodchild 36, Champion 21, Ruef 14)
Townsville Flames (86) defeated Ipswich Force (60)
The Townsville Flames scored a big win heading into the playoffs with the 86-60 victory at home to the Ipswich Force.
The Flames came into their last game of the regular season at StarFM Stadium hosting a Force team out of the playoff hunt but fresh off a Friday night win against the Cairns Dolphins to start their road trip.
Townsville had been replaced in second place with Rockhampton's win on Friday too so the Flames couldn’t move from third spot no matter the result at home on Saturday to the Force.
That didn’t stop the Flames putting in a dominant performance, though, starting with 26 points to five in the opening quarter.
That 21-point lead at quarter-time turned into a 30-point advantage during the second quarter for the Flames before they went into half-time on top 52-22.
The lead continued to grow throughout the second half and got out to 38 points in the third period and 40 in the fourth before Townsville scored the eventual 26-point victory after a strong finish from Ipswich.
Townsville remains in third place finishing the regular season with a 14-3 record with Alex Fowler producing another 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals in under 18 minutes.
None of the Flames starters played more than 22 minutes with Ella Tofaeono also finishing with 14 points, six rebounds and three steals, Indiah Bowyer 14 points and four assists, and Saffron Shiels 13 points, five assists, three rebounds and three steals.
Kate Gaze also had 14 points and six rebounds with Katherine Andersen contributing six points, five boards, five assists and two steals.
Ipswich's season ends with a 4-13 record despite Kahlaijah Dean producing another 25 points, four rebounds and two steals.
Amanda Cahill added 20 points and 13 rebounds with Claire Fraser contributing seven points and five rebounds, and Makayla Daysh five points and seven boards.
TOWNSVILLE FLAMES 86 (Fowler 15, Tofaeono 14, Gaze 14, Bowyer 14)
IPSWICH FORCE 60 (Dean 25, Cahill 20, Fraser 7)
Logan Thunder (87) defeated Sunshine Coast Phoenix (68)
Logan Thunder finished their NBL1 North season on a winning note with the 87-68 victory at home to the Sunshine Coast Phoenix.
Both teams came into the final night contest at Bendigo Bank Cornubia Park Sports Centre out of the playoff race to be just looking to finish off on a positive note.
It was Sunshine Coast away from home that opened up strongly hunting a third win of the season with 28 points to 16 in the first quarter.
Logan were able to turn the tide with 32 points to 16 in the second quarter which saw the home team take a 48-44 advantage into the half-time break.
The Thunder then continued to build on that advantage throughout the second half to be leading by as much as 10 points in the third stanza and 23 in the fourth before securing the eventual 19-point triumph.
The win means that Logan finishes the season with an 8-9 record and having won their last two matches with Jade Kirisome delivering 23 points, five rebounds and four assists with 5/8 shooting from behind the three-point arc.
Mikhaela Cann also had 19 points, 11 assists, six rebounds and two steals with Cate Reese contributing 18 points and 19 boards.
Chevannah Paalvast provided 15 points and 11 rebounds while Sharni Reisinger finished with five points, seven boards, three assists and two steals.
Sunshine Coast finishes the season with a 2-15 record and having lost its past three matches with Carlie Smith completing her strong season in tough circumstances with 22 points, 10 rebounds and four steals with 4/8 three-point shooting.
Haylee Andrews added 15 points, six assists and five rebounds with Amy Browne adding 11 points and 10 boards.
LOGAN THUNDER 87 (Kirisome 23, Cann 19, Reese 18)
SUNSHINE COAST PHOENIX 68 (Smith 22, Andrews 15, Browne 11)
Darwin Salties (52) lost to South West Metro Pirates (95)
The South West Metro Pirates confirmed their place in the playoffs in emphatic fashion with Leah Scott again mighty impressive in the 95-52 road win over the Darwin Salties.
The sixth and final spot in the playoffs went on the line between the Salties and Pirates at Darwin Basketball Stadium on Saturday night.
The Pirates came into the match up in sixth spot at 9-7 with the Salties seventh at 8-8 so the equation was simple – the winner would reach the finals and the loser's season would be over.
South West Metro arrived in Darwin coming off a loss to Logan Thunder while the Salties came into the contest having lost seven of the last nine games after opening the season impressively winning five of the first six.
It was a strongly competitive opening quarter too with South West Metro only leading 25-24 by quarter-time, but then the Pirates began to pull away with 23 points to 13 in the second stanza.
South West Metro then took further control in the second half with 26 points to 11 in the third quarter and then Darwin managed just four points in the final term to finish their season in unceremonious fashion.
The Pirates put up another 21 points to secure the 43-point victory to secure sixth position and a place in the finals with a 10-7 record.
Leah Scott played a starring role in the win for South West Metro delivering 25 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and four steals.
She had plenty of help too with Taya Hanson finishing with 22 points, 11 rebounds and six assists on 4/5 three-point shooting while Charlotte Whittaker added 13 points and three boards, and Bronte Corke 10 points.
It was a tough back end of the season for Darwin who end up at 8-9 to miss the playoffs with Cat MacGregor finishing with 12 points and three rebounds, Abigail Curtin 12 points and four boards, and Ashley Harris 12 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots.
Courtney Woods finished with seven points, eight rebounds and six assists but she only attempted four field goals the entire game while playing over 35 minutes.
DARWIN SALTIES 52 (Harris 12, Curtin 12, MacGregor 12)
SOUTH WEST METRO PIRATES 95 (Scott 25, Hanson 22, Whittaker 13)
Mackay Meteorettes (74) lost to Southern Districts Spartans (99)
The Southern Districts Spartans secured a fourth place finish by beating the Mackay Meteorettes 99-74 on the road to close the NBL1 North regular season.
While the Meteorettes were just looking for a winning way to finish the season at Mackay Basketball Stadium, a win for the Spartans would see them improve to fourth position given they hold the season split over the North Gold Coast Seahawks.
Southern Districts started well to lead 31-23 by the end of the first quarter before another 25 points to 15 in the second term saw the Spartans go into the half-time break leading 56-38.
The lead continued to grow for Southern Districts throughout the second half with the advantage getting out to as much as 27 points and in the end the Spartans prevailed by 25 points.
The result sees Southern Districts finish the season with a 12-5 record and to move ahead of the Seahawks into fourth position for the finals.
Ariana Moorer ended up delivering 23 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals in the win for the Spartans with Steph Bairstow adding 15 points and 11 boards, and Kalani Purcell 12 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals.
Abby Cubillo also contributed 11 points, three assists and three steals with Maddy Allen adding 11 points and four rebounds, and Erin Harvey 10 points, three boards, three assists and two steals.
The season is over for Mackay after they finished with a 6-11 record with Taylor Mole fighting hard for 20 points, 12 rebounds and three assists.
Samantha Haiby top-scored with 21 points to go with six boards as well while Chelsea Brook contributed 14 points, six rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots, and Nikita Van Wyk seven points, 14 boards and two assists.
MACKAY METEORETTES 74 (Haiby 21, Mole 20, Brook 14)
SOUTHERN DISTRICTS SPARTANS 99 (Moorer 23, Bairstow 15, Purcell 12)
MEN
Gold Coast Rollers (99) defeated North Gold Coast Seahawks (83)
The Gold Coast Rollers will be disappointed to miss the playoffs in 2024 but did finish their season on a winning note with the 99-83 home win against the North Gold Coast Seahawks.
Despite winning the championship in 2022 and making the Grand Final again last year and even winning Game 1 of the series, the Rollers were out of contention coming into the last night of the regular season where they hosted the Seahawks at Carrara Stadium.
The Seahawks were also out of the finals hunt having lost their past five matches so it was just a positive way to end the season that both teams were fighting over.
Both teams were missing a key player too with Preston Le Gassick not out there for Gold Coast with the Seahawks missing Nathaniel Salmon, and it was Gold Coast starting the better with 29 points to 16 in the first quarter.
The Rollers were still on top 47-34 by the half-time break before then pushing that lead out to 19 points in the third period, and 21 in the fourth on the way to the eventual 16-point victory.
The win sees Gold Coast finish a frustrating season with an 8-9 record with Boston Mazlin putting up 30 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks on 12/20 shooting.
Reigning MVP and 393-game NBL veteran Jason Cadee put up 26 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds with Jaryd Eustace combining 13 points, eight boards and four assists, Reed Nottage 13 points and six rebounds, and Daniel Titus eight points, 12 boards, five assists and two blocks.
The Seahawks finish their season at 5-12 with six consecutive losses with Cameron Healy finishing with 26 points, three rebounds and three assists while Kane Bishop added 20 points and 13 boards, William Taufoou 12 points and six rebounds, and Will Mahoney 10 points and two boards.
GOLD COAST ROLLERS 99 (Mazlin 30, Cadee 26, Eustace 13)
NORTH GOLD COAST SEAHAWKS 83 (Healy 26, Bishop 20, Taufoou 12)
Townsville Heat (113) defeated Ipswich Force (85)
The Townsville Heat avoided the wooden spoon for 2024 by finishing off with the impressive 113-85 home victory against the Ipswich Force.
The Heat might not have had the season they were hoping for, but finishing off at home at StarFM Stadium gave them the chance to avoid bottom spot up against the defending champions Ipswich.
The Force's title defence has never gathered steam and they arrived in Townsville fresh off a loss to Cairns the previous night looking for a seventh win of 2024 and Townsville a fifth.
After a tight opening quarter, Townsville took over in the second period opening up a double-figure advantage and leading 48-41 by half-time.
After Ipswich stuck with them in the third quarter, the Heat did pull away for good in the last term with 35 points to 15 on the way to the eventual 28-point victory thanks to scoring 14 consecutive points.
The victory sees Townsville finish on a 5-12 record and to avoid the wooden spoon with the North Gold Coast Seahawks ending up with the Seahawks, Heat, Northside Wizards and South West Metro Pirates all at 5-12.
Richard Peachey knocked down 5/7 from three-point territory in the win for the Heat for 25 points and three assists with Kyle Leslie also making 4/8 for 26 points and six rebounds.
Michael Cedar added 13 points, six assists and five rebounds with Harrison Pennisi contributing 12 points and seven boards, and Ethan Betts eight points, 14 assists, seven rebounds and two steals.
Ipswich finishes its championship defence just one game ahead with a 6-11 record with the double loss weekend in Far North Queensland without Grand Final MVP Nathan Sobey.
DJ Mitchell top-scored for the Force with 28 points and eight rebounds with Henry Pwono contributing 20 points and 10 boards, Deng Deng 12 points and nine boards, and Michael Fleming 12 points and five assists.
TOWNSVILLE HEAT 113 (Leslie 26, Peachey 25, Rees 13, Cedar 13)
IPSWICH FORCE 85 (Mitchell 28, Pwono 20, Fleming 12, Deng 12)
Logan Thunder (79) defeated Sunshine Coast Phoenix (71)
Logan Thunder withstood a fast finishing Sunshine Coast Phoenix to close the regular season with a 79-71 home victory to confirm their third position heading into the finals.
It was the last game of the regular season for both teams with Logan to stay third no matter the result at Bendigo Bank Cornubia Park Sports Centre while the Phoenix were just looking to make it back-to-back wins to end their campaign.
The Thunder were in control for a lot of the evening opening up a lead by as much as seven points in the first quarter before seeing that grow to as much as 10 points in the second period, 15 in the third and 17 in the fourth.
However, the Phoenix wouldn’t go away and threw everything at it knowing they had eight months to stew over the way they finished the season.
Sunshine Coast did get back within single figures but couldn’t quite complete the comeback with Logan holding out for the eventual eight-point victory.
The win sees the Thunder finish the regular season in third position with a 13-4 record and on a three-game winning streak with Callum Dalton delivering 23 points, 12 rebounds, two assists and two steals on 11/18 shooting.
Zac Triplett added 17 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals while Isaiah Lee contributed 14 points, two boards and two assists, and Shaun Bruce seven points, 11 assists, five rebounds and five steals.
Sunshine Coast finishes the season with a 7-10 record following the defeat with Jeryn Lucas top-scoring with 24 points on 5/11 shooting from beyond the three-point arc.
Darnell Robateau delivered 15 points and eight rebounds with Jamaal Robateau contributing 10 points, six boards, three assists and two steals, and Kobe McDowell-White nine points, three assists and two steals.
LOGAN THUNDER 79 (Dalton 23, Triplett 17, Lee 14)
SUNSHINE COAST PHOENIX 71 (Lucas 24, D Robateau 15, J Robateau 10)
Darwin Salties (113) defeated South West Metro Pirates (77)
The Darwin Salties got themselves ready for the playoffs in style with a dominant 113-77 home victory against the South West Metro Pirates.
To make sure of second position by the end of the regular season, the Salties did need to take care of business on Saturday night hosting the out of contention Pirates at Darwin Basketball Stadium.
The Salties had already opened up an eight-point lead by the end of the first quarter before extending that to as much as 19 points in the second period.
The lead continued to grow and a 15-0 scoring run saw Darwin leading South West Metro by 37 points in the third stanza, and then 41 in the fourth before securing the eventual 36-point victory.
Darwin finishes the regular season in second position with a 13-4 record with Makuach Maluach outstanding once more with 28 points, four rebounds, four steals and two assists on 7/12 shooting from three-point range.
Deba George also had 20 points and three assists with 4/6 shooting from behind the three-point line with Chier Maker contributing 17 points and eight rebounds, Sean Macdonald 14 points, five assists and four boards, and Wani Swaka Lo Buluk 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
South West Metro ends the season with a 5-12 record having lost the last two matches with Ben Volkman putting up 19 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.
Kai Woodfall added 16 points, five rebounds and four assists, Brendan Teys 15 points, seven boards and five assists, Tendekai Machando 11 points, and Jeremy McLaughlin nine points and 12 rebounds.
DARWIN SALTIES 113 (Maluach 28, George 20, Maker 17)
SOUTH WEST METRO PIRATES 77 (Volkman 19, Woodfall 16, Teys 15)
Mackay Meteors (112) defeated Southern Districts Spartans (85)
Even with top spot already secured, the Mackay Meteors made another statement at home to close the regular season with the 112-85 win over the also playoff bound Southern Districts Spartans.
Coming into the last night of the regular season and the Meteors were already two games clear in top spot ahead of hosting a Spartans team at Mackay Basketball Stadium trying to bounce back from Friday's loss to Rockhampton.
It was a hot opening from both teams as they combined for 64 points in the first quarter with scores tied at 32-32 by quarter-time but after that the Meteors began to take charge.
Mackay had opened up a 56-49 advantage by half-time before then blowing the game open with 33 points to 20 in the third quarter. The Meteors would then end up leading by as much as 30 points before winning by 27.
Mackay finishes the regular season clear in top spot with a 15-2 record with Isaac White thriving on his match up with Brisbane Bullets teammate Mitch Norton and finishing with 24 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Todd Blanchfield also had another 22 points and 16 rebounds with Amarco Doyle contributing 12 points and three steals, Kye Medhurst 12 points and two assists, and Aiden Krause 12 points, four rebounds and two assists.
Emmett Naar also ended up with 11 points and 11 assists, and Luca Yates 11 points, six rebounds and two assists.
Despite losing twice this weekend, Southern Districts will still finish in the top six with a 9-8 record with Tyrell Harrison putting up 20 points and 10 rebounds on 9/12 shooting from the field.
Corey Shervill added 11 points and four rebounds, Mason Honeyman 10 points, six boards and three assists, and Mitch Norton nine points, three assists and three steals.
MACKAY METEORS 112 (White 24, Blanchfield 22, Krause 12, Doyle 12, Medhurst 12)
SOUTHERN DISTRICTS SPARTANS 85 (Harrison 20, Shervill 11, Honeyman 10)
