It was an exciting opening night of the NBL1 West season with Stacey Barr putting up 37 points for Warwick Senators, CJ Turnage 38 for Joondalup Wolves while Michael Harris, Todd Withers and Sunday Dech combined for 103 as Teige Morrell and Gorjok Gak dominated.
The women's opening round action saw the Cockburn Cougars defeat the Mandurah Magic 83-73 while the Rockingham Flames beat the South West Slammers 103-44, the Warwick Senators downed the East Perth Eagles 96-81, the Perry Lakes Hawks prevailed 125-46 over the Eastern Suns, the Lakeside Lightning won in overtime 80-71 against the Willetton Tigers, and the Joondalup Wolves beat the Perth Redbacks 87-78.
The opening night men's matches then saw the Cougars beat the Magic 103-91, the Flames defeat the Slammers 96-85, the Senators down the Eagles 97-83, the Hawks hold out the Eastern Suns 87-82, the Tigers beat the Lightning 107-101 and Wolfpack defeat the Redbacks 89-67.
LYNX COACHING PAIR TURN FOCUS TO SENATORS' NBL1 SEASON
ADDED BONUS FOR ELLIS TO CELEBRATE THWAITES' 200TH
REPRESENTING MANDURAH REMAINS THE FOCUS FOR LEGENDARY MILO
WOMEN
Cockburn Cougars (83) defeated Mandurah Magic (73)
The Cockburn Cougars started their NBL1 West championship defence beating the Mandurah Magic 83-73 in a typically hard fought affair at Wally Hagan Stadium.
It was a rematch of last year's preliminary final to open the season on Thursday night but neither the Cougars nor the Magic were close to being at full strength.
Cockburn was without Perth Lynx WNBL pair Steph Gorman and Alex Ciabattoni along with new imports Daniel Raber and Maria Blazejewski while it was a Mandurah team minus new additions Nicole Fransson, McKenna Dale and Sam Roscoe.
That only added to the intrigue of the contest and the back court battle between Jewel Williams and Casey Mihovilovich was fascinating in its own right, but in the end it was the Cougars who got the job done.
It was a tight affair most of the way but down the stretch the Cougars pulled away with 24 points to 16 in the fourth quarter helped with Mihovilovich fouling out for Mandurah for Cockburn to go on to score the 10-point triumph.
Jewel Williams came up huge in last year's championship triumph for the Cougars and started this season in standout fashion with 31 points, three rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
Jessie Edwards also delivered 17 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks with Jaya Scafidi adding 13 points, six boards and four assists, and Amelia Corasaniti 10 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
The band is back together at the Magic with sisters Bree Mullenax and Emma Klasztorny back in 2024 to reform alongside long-time teammates Casey Mihovilovich, Rachel Pettit, Kelly Bailey and Rachel Halleen.
Mullenax was also celebrating her 250th game on her return and had nine points, four rebounds and three assists while younger sister Klasztorny had 25 points and 10 boards.
Mihovilovich finished with 13 points, seven assists, five steals and four rebounds with Halleen contributing 11 points and five boards.
Next up for the Cougars is a road clash with the Slammers next Friday night. The Magic will be at home to Rockingham also Friday at 6:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
COCKBURN COUGARS 83 (Williams 31, Edwards 17, Scafidi 13)
MANDURAH MAGIC 73 (Klasztorny 25, Mihovilovich 13, Halleen 11)
Rockingham Flames (103) defeated South West Slammers (44)
It has been a great summer of change at the Rockingham Flames and they couldn’t have been more impressive to open the season beating the South West Slammers 103-44.
The turnover has been significant at the Flames in the off-season starting with Marcus Wong coming in as coach and then the player signings began to land including two-time MVP Alex Sharp, former Best Defensive Player Emma Gandini and emerging star Nes'eya Parker-Williams.
Opal Mader, Sophie Doran, Shani Amos, Georgia Pineau and Jess Jakens then rounded out those signings too before Sami Whitcomb topped it all off to return to the club she made her start down under with before going on to become a WNBL, WNBA and Australian Opals superstar.
That meant it was a daunting task first up for the Slammers who have lost their past 32 matches and 73 of their last 74 coming into the 2024 season.
Rockingham was in control the whole way but took charge more and more the longer the game went. The Flames led 47-27 at half-time but then outscored the Slammers 56 points to 17 in the second half for the 59-point win.
Alex Sharp opened up the season in ominous form for Rockingham with 21 points, 15 rebounds and five assists while Nes'eya Parker-Williams contributed 20 points, 13 boards, four assists and three blocks, and Sami Whitcomb 17 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals.
Sophie Doran also had 14 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals, Opal Mader 10 points and three boards, and Emma Gandini 10 points, eight rebounds, five steals and two assists in her return to the league.
Chervelle Cox produced 11 points and 11 rebounds for South West with Zaya Black adding eight points, six boards and two assists.
Rockingham will next face local rivals Mandurah next Friday with the Slammers at home to the Cougars, with both games at 6:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
ROCKINGHAM FLAMES 103 (Sharp 21, Parker-Williams 20, Whitcomb 17)
SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 44 (Cox 11, Black 8, Smith 8)
Warwick Senators (96) defeated East Perth Eagles (81)
Stacey Barr was on fire and inspired the Warwick Senators to a season-opening 96-81 home victory against the East Perth Eagles.
The Senators are looking to put themselves back in the title hunt after winning the NBL1 West and National Championship in 2022, and life with Brad Robbins as head coach started strongly at Warwick Stadium.
It was Barr who set the tone in the first half with the Senators leading the Eagles 55-48 at half-time, and then outscoring East Perth 21 points to 14 in the final period on the way to the 15-point win.
Two-time MVP Stacey Barr finished with 37 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Senators on the back of 7/12 from three-point territory.
Chloe Forster put up 20 points and seven rebounds after her first WNBL season as a fully rostered player with the Perth Lynx while Nat Burton put up 15 points and six boards, and rising star Kyana Weir 10 points and two steals.
Mary Goulding is a remarkable story to be back on the court playing with East Perth following a horrific car accident only 10 months ago. Her return NBL1 game saw her have 14 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.
Lawi Hawthorne also had 16 points and nine boards, Tessa Morrison 15 points and four steals, Bri Bailey 14 points, and Taylor Roberts 12 points and two assists.
The Senators remain at home to host the Perry Lakes Hawks next Friday with East Perth away to Kalamunda the same evening at 6:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
WARWICK SENATORS 96 (Barr 37, Forster 20, Burton 15)
EAST PERTH EAGLES 81 (Hawthorne 16, Morrison 15, Goulding 14, Bailey 14)
Kalamunda Eastern Suns (46) lost to Perry Lakes Hawks (125)
A deep and impressive Perry Lakes Hawks started the season emphatically beating the Kalamunda Eastern Suns 125-46 at Ray Owen Sports Centre.
Perry Lakes had an impressive off-season with coach Craig Mansfield securing the signatures of Jayda Clark, Grace Stone and Elizabeth Hutton, and up against a team he took to a Grand Final, the Hawks showed no mercy to open the season.
It wasn’t the coaching debut that Marcus Bardill was hoping for with the Eastern Suns and it just happened to be against the club he was a championship player with, but the silver lining is he still has Tayjanna McGhee-Pleasant and Ella Fotu to come into his team.
The Hawks didn’t take long to take control and they were already leading by 27 points at quarter-time on the back of outscoring the Suns 37-10.
Perry Lakes was leading 63-27 by half-time and then another 62 points to 19 in the second half saw the final margin blow out to 79.
Perry Lakes finished with six players scoring in double-figures and 11 scoring overall with Grace Stone leading the way with 21 points, five rebounds, four steals and three assists.
Beige Harris also had 18 points, 10 rebounds and four steals, Elizabeth Hutton 16 points and four steals, Ash Isenbarger 18 points and seven rebounds, Ellie Newman 15 points and four boards, Maddy Dennis 13 points, nine rebounds and five assists, and Mia Satie nine points, nine boards and four assists.
The Hawks did it without Jayda Clark as well who left the court after less than two minutes and didn’t return fresh off her rookie WNBL season at the UC Capitals.
It was tough going for the Eastern Suns with Tiahna Sears top-scoring with 14 points, six rebounds, five steals and two assists.
The Eastern Suns host East Perth next Friday with Perry Lakes away to Warwick at 6:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
KALAMUNDA EASTERN SUNS 46 (Sears 14, Firkins 7, Thomas 6)
PERRY LAKES HAWKS 125 (Stone 21, Isenbarger 18, Harris 18)
Joondalup Wolves (87) defeated Perth Redbacks (78)
Two teams who have loaded up big for the 2024 season locked horns in the opener on Thursday night with the Joondalup Wolves beating the Perth Redbacks 87-78 at home.
While the Wolves and Redbacks have put together impressive looking rosters, not everyone was available at HBF Arena Joondalup making for a fascinating opening night battle.
Joondalup has a new coach in 2024 with Jesse Pence taking over with the Wolves having a significant player turnover which has included the signing of Emma Clarke, Darien Huff, Sarah Toeaina, Jorjah Smith and Ella Thornton-Elliott.
The Redbacks have made plenty of off-season noise too with Tim Rendulic taking over as coach and with the signing of Perth Lynx WNBL captain Anneli Maley along with Natalie Chou, Kelsey Curtin and Georgia Denehey.
It was the Wolves who got better the longer the game went and ended up gradually building up their lead to a high of 16 points in the fourth quarter before scoring the nine-point win.
The Wolfpack were missing Clarke, Smith and Chelsea Belcher, but Toeaina showed what a significant signing she'll be with 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists on 10/16 field goal shooting.
Huff added 21 points and six rebounds, Josephine Odude 10 points and five boards, Ella Thornton-Elliott nine points, five rebounds and three assists, and Julia Chandler eight points and 16 boards.
The Redbacks were missing Maley and Chou, who will prove to be quite the dynamic duo, but got 31 points and nine rebounds from Brooke Malone, and 10 points and 15 boards from Shenae Hartree.
The Wolfpack are back home next Saturday to host the Slammers at 5pm while the Redbacks have their first home game to Mandurah on Saturday at 5pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
JOONDALUP WOLVES 87 (Toeaina 27, Huff 21, Odude 10)
PERTH REDBACKS 78 (Malone 31, Hartree 10, Lee 8, Dimanlig 8)
Willetton Tigers (71) lost to Lakeside Lightning (80)
A remarkable 27-point, 31-rebound game from Teige Morrell has lifted the Lakeside Lightning to a season-opening overtime road victory against the Willetton Tigers.
Coming off a loss in last year's Grand Final, Willetton was looking for a strong start at home despite the absence of some key players but it was the Lightning who blew the game open in the first half.
Lakeside built a 20-point lead during the second quarter, but Willetton turned the tide and went on a 17-0 scoring run to work on top, and open up an 11-point lead of their own in the fourth quarter.
It was the Lightning's turn to respond and ultimately it was free-throws from Perth Lynx WNBL teammates Morrell and Amy Jacobs that saw scores level by the end of regulation.
It was in overtime where Lakeside powered away outscoring Willetton 14 points to five for the 80-71 victory.
Teige Morrell made the move in the off-season to Lakeside from Joondalup to play under her dad, Marty Zeller, and she was remarkable with 27 points, 31 rebounds and four assists with 16 of those boards at the offensive end.
Jade Gowland had a significant impact too with 18 points, 14 boards and three blocks with Tia Ucich marking her return to Lakeside with eight points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals. Emma Burke also pulled down 13 rebounds with the Lightning collecting 79 as a team with 33 offensive.
Willetton will take heart from the performance as they await the arrival of more troops with captain Desiree Kelley finishing with 18 points, nine rebounds, four steals and two assists.
Amy Jacobs, fresh off the WNBL season at the Lynx, had 16 points, 11 rebounds and six assists with Kiara Waite adding 10 points and 13 boards.
The Tigers have the bye next week while the Lightning host the Goldfields Giants on Saturday at 6:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
WILLETTON TIGERS 71 (Kelley 18, Jacobs 18, Waite 10)
LAKESIDE LIGHTNING 80 (Morrell 27, Gowland 18, Ucich 8)
MEN
Cockburn Cougars (103) defeated Mandurah Magic (91)
Josh Hunt led the charge for the Cockburn Cougars as they opened the new season with a 103-91 home victory against the Mandurah Magic.
The Cougars have a new coach in 2024 with Mark Clayden getting a second opportunity as a head coach almost 20 years after he took on the role at the Rockingham Flames.
Cockburn has had a busy off-season too adding Rhys Vague, Hunter Clarke, Demetris Morant and Kyle Armour to a team still featuring Gavin Field, Seva Chan, Josh Hunt and Nathan Pond.
All those players were available for the season-opener on Thursday aside from Morant and Chan up against a Magic team once again coached by Mark Utley, and having added Jarrod Molnar, Julian Pesava and Michael Durr.
That set up a tantalising opening night match up and it was the home team starting well with 34 points to 24 in the opening quarter.
The Cougars remained on top the rest of the way with the lead growing to as much as 15 points in the final term before they went on to win by 12.
Josh Hunt showed that he could well be on the track for the best season of his 91-game career with 25 points and nine rebounds for Cockburn.
Rhys Vague also had 20 points and nine rebounds following his NBL season at the South East Melbourne Phoenix with Gavin Field contributing 17 points in the first game of what he's announced as his final season.
Julian Pesava was back on his old home floor and put up 30 points, 10 rebounds and four assists for Mandurah with Jarrod Molnar producing 22 points, and new import Michael Durr 18 points and 11 rebounds.
Next up for the Cougars is a road clash with the Slammers next Friday night. The Magic will be at home to Rockingham also Friday at 8:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
COCKBURN COUGARS 103 (Hunt 25, Vague 20, Field 17)
MANDURAH MAGIC 91 (Pesava 30, Molnar 22, Durr 18)
Rockingham Flames (96) defeated South West Slammers (85)
The Rockingham Flames were pushed all the way by the South West Slammers but were able to score the season-opening 96-85 home victory.
Coming off the NBL1 West and National Championship in 2022, it was a season of frustration in 2023 for the Flames where they won a regular season title but fell short of the Grand Final and then lost the National Finals decider also to the Knox Raiders.
Then to open the season on Thursday night at home to the Slammers, they were without two-time MVP Devondrick Walker, and won't have Marshall Nelson, Tom Jervis or Jeremy Combs in 2024.
They faced a stern test up against the Slammers at Mike Barnett Sports Complex despite opening up a double-digit lead in the first half, and leading by as much as 13 points in the fourth quarter.
When Devan Craig landed a three-pointer with two minutes to play, the Slammers were back within just six points and had the momentum following a three-point play also from Buay Tuach.
However, they couldn’t quite get closer with Rockingham holding out for the 11-point win.
Reigning Best Defensive Player Gorjok Gak, fresh off his NBL season at the South East Melbourne Phoenix, produced an impressive 28 points and 15 rebounds for Rockingham with Ryan Godfrey adding 24 points and seven assists.
Travis Durnin also had 18 points and 16 rebounds while Cody Hill contributed 10 points, three boards and two assists, Justin Beard eight boards and rebounds, and Emmanuel Dech eight points and five boards.
Buay Tuach put in an impressive first up season performance for the Slammers with 31 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and four steals with Devan Craig, Pharell Keats and Manyiel Wugol all scoring 13 points.
Rockingham will next face local rivals Mandurah next Friday with the Slammers at home to the Cougars, with both games at 8:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
ROCKINGHAM FLAMES 96 (Gak 28, Godfrey 24, Travis Durnin 18)
SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 85 (Tuach 31, Keats 13, Wugol 13, Craig 13)
Warwick Senators (97) defeated East Perth Eagles (83)
The one-two punch of Michael Harris and Todd Withers combined for 73 points in an impressive 97-83 win from the Warwick Senators over the East Perth Eagles at Warwick Stadium.
It's been a summer of change for the Senators with Andrew Cooper taking over as coach and with plenty of player movement including the departure of Caleb Davis and Ethan Elliott.
However, championship winning captain Cody Ellis was a late reinclusion after initially calling time on his career at the end of 2023 and the signings of Todd Withers, Michael Harris and Zac Gattorna was more than enough to get excited about.
They got their season underway at home on Thursday without Gattorna due to a back injury, but what Harris and Withers produced especially was tremendous against an Eagles team who will only get better with Jerami Grace, Lee Roberts and David Okwera to come in.
Warwick blew the game open in the first quarter with 27 points to 14 and were never really headed going on to win by 14 points with Michael Harris producing 42 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals fresh off his NBL season at the Perth Wildcats.
Former Adelaide 36ers import Todd Withers was a standout too with 31 points, eight rebounds, six assists, two steals and two blocks and some rim-rocking finishes at the rack.
Cody Ellis was back and put up 14 points, seven rebounds and three assists in almost 25 minutes on a shortened preparation while his long-time teammate Jay Thwaites celebrated his 200th game with the win.
Adelaide 36ers guard Sunday Dech has returned to the club he started playing with and won a championship at back in 2014, and had 30 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals for East Perth.
Taylor Young added 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals, and Elijah Pawson 12 points and three assists.
The Senators remain at home to host the Perry Lakes Hawks next Friday with East Perth away to Kalamunda the same evening at 8:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
WARWICK SENATORS 97 (Harris 42, Withers 31, Ellis 14)
EAST PERTH EAGLES 83 (Dech 30, Young 15, Pawson 12)
Kalamunda Eastern Suns (82) lost to Perry Lakes Hawks (87)
A new era at the Perry Lakes Hawks began on a winning note to start the 2024 season with the 87-82 victory against the Kalamunda Eastern Suns at Ray Owen Sports Centre.
It is the beginning of a fresh start at the Hawks in 2024 with the departures of coach Matt Parsons, championship winning co-captains Ben Purser and Rob Cassir along with key players Mitch Clarke, Lewis Thomas and Andrew Ferguson over summer.
That was a tremendously successful era that will be hard to follow, but new coach Damian Barr got them off to a strong start on the road on Thursday night with his team on top most of the evening against the Eastern Suns.
The Hawks did lead 26-20 by quarter-time having opened up a double-figure lead early, but the Suns wouldn’t go away and even held the lead for a couple of minutes in the final term.
A thrilling finish was set when Kalamunda captain Rob Huntington levelled scores with a minute to play before Luke Phillips put Perry Lakes back in front on the next possession.
In a dramatic ending, Dequan Abrom made a free-throw to extend the Hawks lead to three but the Suns still had a chance on the defensive rebound.
Marek Nelson grabbed it off the rim and got up the other end, but inexplicably went for a dunk despite his team down three. He tried to slam it home so hard it bounced off the back of the rim and the game was done with Perry Lakes going on to ice the win by five points.
There was a lot to like from the new-look Hawks with Jaylen Key finishing with 21 points, 12 rebounds and four assists with fellow import Dequan Abrom adding 16 points, seven boards and five assists.
Luke Phillips ended up with 15 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks while Nick Floyd added 14 points and four boards, and Matt Leary 10 points and two assists on 3/6 three-point shooting.
Bryan Michaels top-scored for the Eastern Suns with 19 points and six rebounds while Marek Nelson had 13 points and seven boards, Jack Exeter 13 points, six rebounds and four assists, and 212-game point guard Brendan Dinardo 16 points and seven boards.
The Eastern Suns also host East Perth next Friday with Perry Lakes away to Warwick at 8:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
KALAMUNDA EASTERN SUNS 82 (Michaels 19, Dinardo 16, Exeter 13, Nelson 13)
PERRY LAKES HAWKS 87 (Key 21, Abrom 16, L Phillips 15)
Joondalup Wolves (89) defeated Perth Redbacks (67)
The Joondalup Wolves went ever so close to a championship last season and started off on an impressive note in 2024 beating the Perth Redbacks 89-67.
Both the Wolfpack and Redbacks have had a big summer putting together teams they will hope can compete for the championship, but it was Joondalup who looked more ready to go on Thursday night at HBF Arena Joondalup.
The Wolves were still missing Jonathan Wade and Jeremy Combs while the Redbacks were without Ioannis Dimakopoulos and Connor Mincherton, and the home team started well with 25 points to 18 in the first quarter and never looked back.
The Joondalup lead got out to 27 points in the third quarter before they went on to score the 22-point victory.
CJ Turnage was a man possessed for the Wolves in the win with 38 points and five rebounds on 13/20 shooting from the floor and 9/13 at the free-throw line.
New point guard Ethan Elliott was impressive too with 20 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals with Christian Jurlina adding 13 points and three rebounds, and Caleb Davis seven points, seven boards and two assists.
Tevin Jackson top-scored for the Redbacks with 26 points and eight rebounds with Miles Gibson contributing 17 points but Joe Cook-Green struggled with seven points and six turnovers on 1/10 shooting.
The Wolfpack are back home next Saturday to host the Slammers at 7pm while the Redbacks have their first home game to Mandurah on Saturday at 7pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
JOONDALUP WOLVES 89 (Turnage 38, Elliott 20, Jurlina 13)
PERTH REDBACKS 67 (T Jackson 26, Gibson 17, Cook-Green 7)
Willetton Tigers (107) defeated Lakeside Lightning (101)
All five Willetton Tigers starters stood tall to hold off a late charge from the Lakeside Lightning for the season opening 107-101 home victory.
Willetton is coming off a strong season in 2023 finishing third in the regular season before losing both playoff games, and look on track to be right in the hunt again in 2024 based on their off-season signings and opening night performances.
The Tigers have added Michael Dupree, Deng Gak and now Marshall Nelson to an already impressive group, and things looked impressive on Thursday night.
It was a Lakeside team looking to improve on sneaking into the finals last season, but it was the all-round contributions most impressive from the Tigers who dominated the second quarter with 29 points to 12 to go into half-time leading 55-36.
That lead for Willetton got out to as much as 24 points in the third quarter and Lakeside did make a charge, but ran out of time with the Tigers holding on for the six-point win.
All five starters scored in double-digits for the Tigers led by Michael Dupree's 23 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Damien Scott, in his 328th career game, had 19 points and five rebounds with Deng Gak contributing 16 points and 10 boards, Roosevelt Williams 13 points and five assists, Michael Vigor 11 points, 11 rebounds and five assists, and Josh Ibukunoluwa nine points, eight boards and three steals.
Mike Adewunmi was mighty impressive on debut for Lakeside with 38 points and five assists on 13/22 shooting from the field, 5/9 from deep and 7/7 at the line.
Marshawn Blackmon added 21 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals with Justin Bennett scoring 12 points and Dom Jackson having six points and 11 rebounds.
The Tigers head to Geraldton against the defending champs next Saturday while the Lightning host the Goldfields Giants on Saturday at 8:30pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
WILLETTON TIGERS 107 (Dupree 23, Scott 19, Gak 16)
LAKESIDE LIGHTNING 101 (Adewunmi 38, Blackmon 21, Bennett 12)
