2023 Coles Express NBL1 National Finals Recap

It was a huge weekend in Joondalup, Western Australia, where the 2023 Coles Express NBL1 National Finals were held. HBF Arena played host to the best NBL1 teams in Australia; the champions of each conference, all vying for the National Title, of which NBL1 East’s very own Norths Bears Women and Sutherland Sharks Men were in contention. 

Congratulations to the Norths Bears Women and Sutherland Sharks Men, who demonstrated incredible skill and talent, and performed well against the best of the best. The high energy both teams brought to National Finals, as well as their ability to have fun and team cohesion was on full display and earnt the attention of all. Although knocked out of the Championships competition on Saturday, a huge round of applause is due for the Sutherland Sharks, who gave National Finals everything they could, and brought an unmissable energetic dynamic to HBF Arena, that was unrivalled by any other men’s team.  A huge congratulations to the Norths Bears Women, who played their way to the Women’s Championship game, and earnt National Runner-up status! 

In addition to our league front-runners, the Bears and Sharks, several other NBL1 East representatives were present at the National Finals, representing our conference. Davey J (David) Lane from Basketball ACT, who commentated Canberra Gunners and Nationals games throughout the season, was selected as a National Finals commentator, and even commentated the Women’s Grand Final match! 

Five referees from our NBL1 East conference were selected for the 2023 Coles Express NBL1 National Finals referee panel, to officiate the National Finals. These referees were Michael Beevers, James Boyer, Bradley Mattioli, Nathan Paff and Jack Taylor. Bradley Mattioli was also selected to officiate the 2023 Women’s Championship game – which was a match-up full of East talent.

DAY ONE – FRIDAY 18TH AUGUST

Check out a Day One Wrap from around the Courts, with NBL1 Show host Megan Hustwaite:

Norths Bears 104 – Northside Wizards 81 

Norths Bears took on the champions of NBL1 North head-on, and made a hot start to their National Finals campaign, aided by the fact that Northside were missing their Grand Final MVP, Courtney Woods. Norths went on a 13-0 run in the open quarter to open up a 14-point lead and remained in control the rest of the way. The lead for Norths got out to as much as 25 points, and even though the Wizards did string together 13 consecutive points throughout the second half, they could never seriously threaten and the Bears took charge again to win by 23. NBL1 East Grand Final MVP Jolene Anderson continued her hot form, finishing with 19 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals. Emily Simons helped her out, as the top-scorer for the match with 20 points, seven rebounds, two assists, six rebounds and four assists – while also knocking down 5/7 from three-point land. Kate Seebohm also landed 5/7 from beyond the arc with 15 points, seven assists and five rebounds with Carla Pitman contributing 19 points, six rebounds and four assists while also knocking down 5/7 three-pointers. Norths showed a strong team, with Sarah Schicher also contributing 10 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals, and Maddie O’Hehir six points, six boards and two assists. 

Watch the game highlights:

Geraldton Buccaneers 85 – Sutherland Sharks 67

Sutherland Sharks unfortunately fell short to the Geraldton Buccaneers from NBL1 West, competing against a full strength championship winning team without pivotal starter, Adrian Cabrera. The Sharks refused to go down without a fight, and closed the gap in point difference late in the third quarter. Lochlan Hutchison delivered 17 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals for Sutherland, with captain Geoff Gerlach contributing 15 points, eight boards and three assists. Marquel Beasley delivered some spectacular dunks earning gasps from the audience, finishing with 13 points and three assists. Jordan Mitchell also contributed 11 points, three rebounds and two steals, and sharp-shooter Aaron Waban bringing nine points with 3/3 three-point shooting. 

Watch the game highlights:

DAY TWO – SATURDAY 19TH AUGUST

Check out a Day Two Wrap from around the Courts, with NBL1 Show host Megan Hustwaite:

Norths Bears 110 – Norwood Flames 79

NBL1 Central’s Norwood Flames put up a fight against the Norths Bears, with Ally Wilson had the opening seven points of the game, on the way to 17 in the first period. The first quarter ended at 25-25, but Norths took over and delivered 33 points to 20 in the second quarter to go into half-time leading 58-45. Norwood stayed in the contest and even claimed the point for the third quarter, outscoring Norths 24 points to 23, but the Bears pulled away again in the final stanza with 29 points to 10. Norths finished up with a 31-point win to book their place in Sunday’s Championship Game, with an impressive all-round performance by the team. Maddie O’Hehir delivered 32 points, three rebounds and two assists while knocking down 6/10 from three-point territory, and Jolene Anderson continued her supremely impressive form with another 24 points, nine boards and four assists for Norths. Carla Pitman contributed a big 15 points, six rebounds and five assists, Emily Simons 10 points, nine rebounds and two steals, and Caitlyn Martin nine points, six boards and two assists.

Watch the game highlights:

Knox Raiders 124 – Sutherland Sharks 113

Knox were looking to book their Championship spot, which meant taking the Sharks down, but it was a wild ride with the Sharks combatting with a huge fight! Sutherland denied Knox the point for the first quarter, starting strongly with 32 points to 27, and kept the lead 56-55 at half-time. Knox did outscore the Sharks 28 points to 20 in the third quarter but Sutherland weren’t going away, and it proved quite the dramatic finish to the regulation. Knox were still leading by seven with 3:15 left on the clock for the last quarter, but then the Sharks scored through Geoff Gerlach and Jordan Mitchell to cut it back to a three-point game. Lochlan Hutchison then hit two free-throws before the Sharks forced a turnover, captain Gerlach scored and Sharks were in front by a point and 1:30 on the clock. In the final seconds, Hutchison caught the inbounds pass and rose for a deep two, and the foul was called, and after scoring one, the score levelled 108-108 and the game went into a thrilling overtime. The tension was palpable, however Knox overcame the Sharks in the overtime to claim the victory and advance to the Championship game. It was an admirable performance from the Sharks, who acquitted themselves well this weekend with Jordan Mitchell ending up with 32 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Marquel Beasley added 23 points and six rebounds, Geoff Gerlach brought 19 points and three assists, Callum Norris 16 points, five assists and three rebounds, and Lochlan Hutchison finishing up with 12 points, eight assists and three steals.

Watch the game highlights:

DAY 3 – SUNDAY 20TH AUGUST

Bendigo Braves 114 – Norths Bears 87

The 2023 Coles Express NBL1 National Finals Championship Game is a huge accomplishment to qualify for, and NBL1 East’s very own Norths Bears made it to the final stage of the Women’s competition against an undefeated NBL1 South Bendigo Braves side. To further the NBL1 East representation in this huge game, Bradley Mattioli was selected for the Championship Referee Panel, and Davey J on the microphone commentating the livestream. The Sutherland Sharks Men were also in the crowd of spectators, cheering on their NBL1 East Women’s counterparts! It was a competitive first half with the Bears doing well to stick with the Braves despite the dominant presence of Megan McKay, with the lead blowing out as the game went on. The Bears battled valiantly with Maddie O’Hehir ending up with 23 points and two assists, with Jolene Anderson adding 11 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two steals. Holly Wills also had nine points and two rebounds, Jessica Bygate eight points and two boards, Kate Seebohm seven points, 10 assists and three rebounds, and Emma Donnelly seven points. It was an ominous start with Amy Atwell hitting the first basket, off the back of her 44 points on Saturday, but the Bears worked into the contest nicely with triples from Kate Seebohm and Maddie O’Hehir. Megan McKay threatened to be the difference, and had nine points in the opening five minutes to help Bendigo to a 3-point lead, but Norths stayed in touch and instant impact from Jess Bygate with two buckets tied scores up, and by quarter-time, Bendigo was only leading 22-21. Bendigo threatened to pull away going up seven early in the second quarter, but a well timed timeout from Head Coach Renae Garlepp steadied the Bears and they hit the next four points coming out of it. A determined Bears team had done well to remain in the contest with a half to play, and started the second half well, taking the first four points to bring it back to a four-point ball game, but Braves’ McKay continued strong form, and her size or strength proved unmatchable for Norths to get under control. To the Bears’ credit, they did open the fourth quarter with a 7-1 run, leading Braves’ Head Coach to call a time-out, however the Braves proved too strong and finished the game with a 27-point win. NBL1 East Grand Final MVP Jolene Anderson from Norths Bears was also named in the 2023 Coles Express NBL1 National Finals Women’s All-Star Five -  a huge achievement!

Watch the game highlights:

Congratulations to our Norths Bears Women, earning themselves a NATIONAL Runners-Up title, and to our Sutherland Sharks Men for making their mark at the 2023 Coles Express National Finals. You can view the National Finals Program HERE.

This marks the end of another incredible NBL1 season, and a huge congratulations and thank you to all the players, clubs, volunteers, officials, commentators, and fans for all their contributions and excitement this season – we’ll be back for a bigger and better 2024 NBL1 East season!