East Recap | Round 6 Saturday

Image credit: @jamesodphotography

Kristina Moore put up 35/18 in NBL1 East win for Inner West Bulls while Sydney Kings duo Kouat Noi and Jason Spurgin combined for 61/16 for Sutherland Sharks, and Jaylin Galloway returned with 37 points for Bankstown Bruins.

EAST RECAP | ROUND 5 SUNDAY

WOMEN

Hills Hornets (48) lost to Centre of Excellence (90)

Sitaya Fagan continues to show what an exciting emerging talent she is with another huge performance with 30 points and 10 rebounds as the Centre of Excellence beat the Hills Hornets 90-48.

The Hornets were back home at Hills Basketball Stadium attempting to snap a four-game losing slide but the job was ahead of them against a Centre of Excellence having won five straight since a first up loss to the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles.

The CoE had already opened up a seven-point advantage by the end of the first quarter even while only shooting 6/21 from the floor.

The Hornets did well to make a game of it by outscore the Centre of Excellence 19-14 in the second term on the back of knocking down 4/8 from downtown to cut the lead of the young guns to 32-30 by half-time.

The shooting started to come for the CoE in the third quarter and they made 5/9 from behind the arc to put up 31 points as a team to suddenly open up a 24-point lead.

The Centre of Excellence then completely took control in the final period with 27 points to nine and the lead got out to 44 points before they scored the 42-point win to improve to a 6-1 record having won six in-a-row.

The CoE won the rebound count 60 to 39 including 24 at the offensive end while also forcing the Hornets into 21 turnovers from which they scored 11 points from.

Sitaya Fagan was once again the star in the win for the Centre of Excellence with 30 points, 10 rebounds and three assists while Isabel Smith added 20 points, six boards and four assists.

Zara Russell also had 14 points, six assists, two rebounds and two steals, Emilija Dakic 10 points, nine boards, five assists and four steals, and Jade Crook five points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals.

The Hornets have now lost their past five games to sit at 1-5 with Jade Kirisome finishing with 17 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Lucy Corke added seven points on 3/6 shooting while Ella Gale pulled down seven rebounds and Elizabeth Smith had five assists.

HILLS HORNETS 48 (Kirisome 17, Corke 7, Clarke 5, Worner 5)

CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE 90 (Fagan 30, Smith 20, Russell 14)

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders (79) lost to Illawarra Hawks (87)

Another 27 points from Jessie-May Hall wasn’t quite enough for the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders with the Illawarra Hawks coming away with the 87-79 victory for their second win of 2025.

The Spiders were back home at The Brickpit looking to avoid a fourth straight defeat up against a Hawks team also having lost their past two with just one win on the board so far in 2025.

Illawarra stated strongly with 24 points to 15 in the first quarter and the Hawks were still leading 44-40 by half-time even though the Spiders outscored them 25-20 in that second term.

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai then turned their momentum into a 10-0 scoring run in the third quarter as they took a five-point lead and were still on top 60-57 by three quarter-time.

The Spiders had all the momentum heading into the fourth term but the Hawks were completely able to turn it around and ended up with 30 points to 19 while going 13/13 at the foul line to end up winning by eight in the finish.

The win sees Illawarra improve to a 2-5 record on the season with Kiara Bell delivering 25 points, 15 rebounds, four steals and two assists while Ella Dent contributed 21 points, 10 boards, two assists and two steals.

Asha Phillips added 15 points and five assists, and Tsubasa Nisbet 14 points, 12 rebounds and five assists.

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai have now lost four straight to be 3-4 to start the 2025 season with 17-year-old rising star Jessie-May Hall delivering another tremendous performance with 27 points, eight steals, six rebounds and four assists.

Keira Hudson 23 points and three rebounds, and Dalla Walker 10 points and three assists.

HORNSBY KU-RING-GAI SPIDERS 79 (Hall 27, Hudson 23, Walker 10)

ILLAWARRA HAWKS 87 (Bell 25, Dent 21, Phillips 15)

Central Coast Crusaders (74) defeated Inner West Bulls (89)

Kristina Moore produced a monster performance with 35 points and 18 rebounds as the Inner West Bulls made it back-to-back wins beating the Central Coast Crusaders 89-74.

Both teams came into the match up in winning form with the Crusaders scoring their first win of the season last Saturday against the Illawarra Hawks while the Bulls won a cracking overtime affair with the Sutherland Sharks.

The Bulls blew the game apart to close the opening period going on an 11-0 run to lead by as much as 16 points while hitting 5/7 from three-point range for the 27-13 lead.

That advantage got out to 21 points in the second term as well and by half-time the visitors were still on top 48-32.

Inner West maintained a lead around the mark for most of the second half and it even got out to as much as 24 points at one point before the Bulls secured the 15-point win.

It's consecutive wins for Inner West as they improve to 4-2 on the season on 52 per cent shooting from the field opposed to 37 while knocking down 14/31 from downtown to the 7/29 from the Crusaders.

Kristina Moore had a dominant performance playing every second of the game and delivering 35 points, 18 rebounds and five assists with 6/12 three-point shooting and going 5/5 at the foul line.

Mizuki Wakamatsu added 15 points and five rebounds with 3/6 from deep while Ai Matsumoto contributed 13 points, seven assists and five boards, and Tylah Mundine 11 points and six rebounds.

Inner West won without needing a big performance either from Tahlia Tupaea who finished with seven points, six rebounds and two assists.

Central Coast are now 1-6 following the loss at home with Leilani Mitchell again doing all she could with 24 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals.

Jasmine Forcadilla added 22 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals, and Mikaela Dombkins 19 points and 11 rebounds.

Central Coast Crusaders 74 (Mitchell 24, Forcadilla 22, Dombkins 19)

Inner West Bulls 89 (Moore 35, Wakamatsu 15, Matsumoto 13)

Sutherland Sharks (64) lost to Newcastle Falcons (92)

The defending champion Newcastle Falcons had five players score in double-figures as they took full advantage of the Sutherland Sharks missing Vanessa Panousis for the 92-64 road victory in the grand final rematch.

Newcastle arrived at Sutherland Basketball Stadium having won all six matches so far this season on the back of winning the 2024 championship with the Sharks trying to do it without Panousis with Lauren Nicholson already out awaiting the birth of her first child.

Newcastle came out and knocked down five three-pointers in the first quarter for the 29-15 lead by quarter-time before that lead got out to as much as 30 points in the second term.

The Falcons outscored the Sharks 29 points to 14 to be leading 58-29 at half-time and even though Sutherland kept on fighting in the second half including an 8-0 run, Newcastle was still able to cruise to the 28-point victory.

Newcastle now sits on a 7-0 record to start 2025 and to be on a 15-game winning streak dating back to last year with MVP Nicole Munger delivering another 17 points, 14 rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Kate Kingham added 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists, Meg Jefferson 14 points, 12 boards and four assists, Hannah Chicken 14 points, five rebounds and three assists, and Sophie Brennan 11 points.

Sutherland couldn’t quite get revenge for last year's grand final with them now sitting on a 1-6 record to start 2025 including having lost four in-a-row.

Maddie Norris finished with 20 points on 5/13 three-point shooting for the Sharks with Laci Hawthorne contributing eight points, 11 boards and two assists, and Aliza Fabbro eight points, three assists and two rebounds.

SUTHERLAND SHARKS 64 (Norris 20, Hawthorne 8, Fabbro 8)

NEWCASTLE FALCONS 92 (Kingham 17, Munger 17, Jefferson 14, Chicken 14)

Bankstown Bruins (77) lost to Albury-Wodonga Bandits (87)

Caitie Jones and Riley Lupfer combined for 50 points as the Albury-Wodonga Bandits began their road double this weekend with the 87-77 victory over the Bankstown Bruins.

The Bruins were looking for their second win of the season when hosting the Bandits at Bankstown Basketball Stadium with Albury-Wodonga arriving trying to bounce back from a last up loss to the Centre of Excellence.

It was a hot start from Bankstown as they looked for a win to get off the bottom of the standings and they scored 10 straight points in the first quarter to lead by 12 at quarter-time.

The Bandits shot 1/9 from deep in the first quarter and that was only slightly better in the second with 2/8 but they did score 8/13 inside the arc on the way to outscoring the Bruins 24 points to 13.

Despite that Bankstown were still clinging to the 40-39 lead at half-time before the Bandits pulled away in the third quarter with 28 points to 16 on the back of shooting 10/19 from the field.

From there Albury-Wodonga completed the deal for the 10-point victory ending up taking 11 extra shot attempts than Bankstown thanks to forcing the Bruins into 27 turnovers from which they scored 15 points.

The Bandits improve to a 5-2 record with the win ahead of playing the Hills Hornets on Sunday with Caitie Jones delivering 29 points, eight assists, seven steals and five rebounds on 12/21 shooting from the field.

Riley Lupfer also had 21 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals with Brynn Masikewich contributing 13 points, seven boards, four assists and three steals, and Melanie Kirby eight points and a steal.

The Bruins remain in bottom place at 1-7 on the season with Jada Rice finishing 22 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots on 9/13 shooting from the floor.

Sienna Tutani added 13 points, eight rebounds and two assists, Shalome Dunlop eight points, four boards, three assists, two steals and two blocks, and Kalia Proctor eight points, four rebounds and four assists.

BANKSTOWN BRUINS 77 (Rice 22, Tutani 13, S Dunlop 8, Proctor 8)

ALBURY-WODONGA BANDITS 87 (Jones 29, Lupfer 21, Masikewich 13)

Norths Bears (94) defeated Penrith Panthers (77)

Despite 27 points and 21 rebounds from Jordan Vaquez, the Norths Bears had too much firepower for the Penrith Panthers on the way to the 94-77 home victory.

The Bears were back home at North Sydney Indoor Sports Centre putting their perfect record to start the season on the line up against a Panthers team looking to snap a four-match losing streak.

The Bears made an impressive start to already be leading 27-20 by the end of the first quarter on the back of knocking down 4/6 from three-point territory.

It was another 19 points to 14 in the second period from the Bears as they pushed out to a 46-34 lead at the half-time break.

The lead continued to grow throughout the second half for Norths and got out to as much as 15 points in the third quarter and then 20 in the fourth before they secured the 17-point triumph.

The Bears ended up shooting 12/27 at 44 per cent from three for game opposed to the 3/15 at 20 per cent for the Panthers.

Norths improve to a perfect 8-0 record on the season with the win with Maddie O'Hehir producing 21 points and five assists while knocking down 3/5 from behind the three-point line.

Emma Donnelly contributed 15 points and two rebounds, Carla Pitman 14 points, 10 assists and nine boards, Caitlyn Martin 14 points and eight assists, and Jolene Anderson 13 points on 3/6 three-point shooting.

The Panthers have now lost their past five matches to sit at 2-6 on the season with Jordan Vasquez putting in a monstrous performance with 27 points and 21 rebounds on 11/20 shooting from the field and 5/6 at the foul line.

Mia Heide added 19 points, 13 rebounds, six rebounds and three steals, and Tatiana Beaumont 12 points and three assists.

NORTHS BEARS 94 (O'Hehir 21, Donnelly 15, Martin 14, Pitman 14)

PENRITH PANTHERS 77 (Vasquez 27, Heide 19, Beaumont 12)

Maitland Mustangs (75) defeated Canberra Nationals (68)

The Maitland Mustangs bounced back from last week's loss to record the hard earned 75-68 home victory against the Canberra Nationals.

The Mustangs were back on their home floor at Maitland Federation Centre coming off a loss to the Newcastle Falcons ahead of hosting a Canberra team on a two-game winning run.

That set up a tantalising match up and it was the visiting Nationals leading 22-16 by quarter-time while knocking down three triples.

Canberra pushed out to an 11-point lead in the second term as well before Maitland turned their focus inside and shot 10/13 from two for the quarter to limit the Nationals lead to 46-40 at half-time.

Canberra were still clinging to a 58-55 lead by three quarter-time but it was all the Mustangs in the fourth term with 20 points to 10 even with both teams continuing to struggle shooting the ball.

In the end Maitland secured the seven-point come from behind win to improve to a 5-2 record even while shooting just 4/17 from three-point range with Canberra only marginally better at 7/25.

Alexis Plater finished with 18 points and five rebounds on 7/10 shooting in the win for the Mustangs with Mila Wawszkowicz contributing 17 points, four boards, four blocks and two assists.

Shakera Reilly also had 14 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals, Kasey Neubert 10 points, four boards and two steals, and Sydney Hunter nine points and 13 rebounds.

Canberra are now 3-4 following the loss and ahead of facing the unbeaten Newcastle Falcons on Sunday with Abby Solway producing 19 points and three rebounds.

Carlie McAlister also had 16 points, 13 rebounds, four steals and two assists, and Callie Bourne 15 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.

MAITLAND MUSTANGS 75 (Plater 18, Wawszkowicz 17, Reilly 14)

CANBERRA NATIONALS 68 (Solway 19, McAlister 16, Bourne 15)

Sydney Comets (41) lost to Manly Warringah Sea Eagles (63)

The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles put the clamps on the Sydney Comets to hold them to 41 points and 27 per cent shooting on the way to the 63-41 road victory.

Sydney were back home at Comets Stadium looking to back up last Saturday's win against the Penrith Panthers but the Sea Eagles arrived having won their past two and looking to maintain pace with the top teams.

Manly Warringah made a strong start with 24 points to 10 in the first quarter while knocking down 4/6 from three-point range while the Comets struggled shooting just 5/19 in those first 10 minutes.

Both teams struggled to put the ball in the hole in the second frame combining for just the 18 points with 10 to eight in favour of the Sea Eagles with Manly Warringah shooting 1/17 from the floor and the Comets 4/16.

The Sea Eagles still went into half-time leading 34-18 and then that lead got out to as much as 24 points in the second half as they held Sydney just 23 more points after half-time on the way to the 22-point win.

It wasn’t the offensive night Manly Warringah would have wanted either with just the 32 per cent shooting but they did hold Sydney to 27 per cent including 2/19 from behind the three-point arc while also forcing them into 23 turnovers.

The Sea Eagles have now won three straight to improve to a 5-2 record with Alex Delaney delivering 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Taylor Wurtz also had 13 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, Sari Mowbray 11 points, six boards and three steals, and Zoey Miller seven points, nine rebounds, seven assists and three steals.

The Comets are now 3-5 on the season following the defeat with Abi Curtin finishing with 13 points, 13 rebounds and two steals.

Piper Anderson added 11 points and two rebounds, Mikayla Pirini six points and four boards, and Alex Kayrouz three points, eight rebounds and two assists.

SYDNEY COMETS 41 (Curtin 13, Anderson 11, Pirini 6)

MANLY WARRINGAH SEA EAGLES 63 (Delaney 14, Wurtz 13, Mowbray 11)

MEN

Hills Hornets (58) lost to Centre of Excellence (68)

Neither team was able to find much of an offensive groove but the Centre of Excellence did enough to keep their winning form going beating the Hills Hornets 68-58.

The Hornets were on their home floor at Hills Basketball Stadium looking to make it four straight wins as they played host to a CoE outfit also having won three in-a-row.

It turned out to be a rough offensive outing for both teams with the Centre of Excellence leading 21-15 by quarter-time after they shot 9/20 in the first term and the Hornets went just 6/16.

The teams only combined for 27 points in the second period with the CoE building on their lead with 19 of those to end up leading by as much as 17 and still being on top 40-23 by the half-time interval.

The Hornets did outscore the Centre of Excellence 35 points to 28 throughout the second half while still only shooting 9/32 while the CoE went at 10/22, but the Basketball Australia rising stars retained control to end up scoring the 10-point victory.

By the end of the night, the Centre of Excellence finished up shooting 42 per cent from the floor to 27 while both struggled from deep with the CoE going 3/15 and the Hornets 6/33.

The win is a fourth in-a-row for the CoE as they improve to a 6-1 record with Luke Fennell delivering 14 points on 5/12 shooting from the field and 4/4 at the foul line.

Roor Akhuar added 10 points and seven rebounds, Ajak Nyuon eight points and nine boards, Mading Kuany six points and nine rebounds, Che Brogan six points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals, and Sebastien Emenalo seven points, three boards and two blocked shots.

The winning run of the Hornets comes to an end with them now sitting on a 3-4 record with Meekness Payne top-scoring with 12 points to go with four rebounds.

Jacob Foy also had 11 points and two rebounds, Liam Moss nine points and four boards, and Zach Hudson nine points, three rebounds and two assists.

HILLS HORNETS 58 (Payne 12, Foy 11, Hudson 9, Moss 9)

CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE 68 (Fennell 14, Akhuar 10, Nyuon 8)

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders (100) defeated Illawarra Hawks (69)

The Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders took full advantage of Todd Blanchfield missing for the Illawarra Hawks to open their account for the 2025 season with the 100-69 home victory.

The Spiders were back on their home floor at The Brickpit having lost their opening six matches of the season but the Hawks did present a gettable opponent with the unavailability of Blanchfield who is with the Australian Boomers this week for the Trans-Tasman Throwdown.

The Hawks had won their last couple of games coming into the match up, but that was with Blanchfield on deck and Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai smelled blood and were already leading 26-20 by the end of the first quarter.

That lead for the Spiders grew to 16 points in the second quarter and by half-time they were on top 46-31 while shooting 16/34 opposed to the 13/41 from the Hawks.

The lead continued to grow throughout the second half for Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai and it got out to 21 points in the third quarter, and 35 in the fourth before the Spiders secured the 31-point victory to open their account with a first win of 2025.

Akil Douglas starred in the win for the Spiders with 25 points and two steals on 4/8 three-point shooting with Daniel Titus contributing 17 points, 10 boards and four assists.

Mohamed Kone added 17 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and three steals, Steven Hall 15 points, six boards, two assists and two steals, and Aaron Redhead 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

The Hawks are now 4-3 on the season following the defeat with Kobe McDowell-White finishing with 14 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and five steals.

Brad Ballinger added 11 points and seven rebounds, Christian Maran 10 points and four boards, Matthew Mims nine points, six rebounds and two steals, and Dante Bruton nine points, four boards and three assists.

HORNSBY KU-RING-GAI SPIDERS 100 (Douglas 25, Titus 17, Kone 17)

ILLAWARRA HAWKS 69 (McDowell-White 14, Ballinger 11, Maran 10)

Central Coast Crusaders (97) defeated Inner West Bulls (81)

The Central Coast Crusaders snapped a four-game losing run and handed the Inner West Bulls a third consecutive defeat with the 97-81 home victory.

Central Coast were back home at Breakers Indoor Sports Stadium looking for a third win of the season while they played host to an Inner West team having lost their past two following a three-game winning run.

It was a tight battle in the opening quarter with scores all level at 24-24 by quarter-time before Central Coast went on an 8-0 run in the second term to open up a 12-point lead.

The Crusaders were still leading 45-38 on the back of that heading into the half-time break before going on with the job in the third frame with another 27 points to 22 with the lead getting out to 18 points.

Central Coast finished it off from there with the 16-point victory to improve to a 3-4 record having avoided a fifth consecutive victory while shooting 51 per cent from the floor opposed to the 37 per cent from the Bulls with Inner West getting up 41 three-point attempts and making 14.

Ilisia Washington finished with 23 points and three rebounds on 4/7 three-point shooting for the Crusaders with Garric Young adding 20 points, 14 boards and two blocked shots.

Lino Manhom contributed 16 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks, Solomon Kuol 11 points on 2/2 shooting from downtown, and Thomas Akamarmoi 10 points, five steals, four rebounds and three assists.

The Bulls have now lost three straight to slip to a 3-4 record ahead of hosting the Centre of Excellence on Sunday with Maxwell Clark finishing with 22 points, three assists, two rebounds and two steals.

Mirko Djeric also had 16 points, nine assists and five rebounds despite missing all six three-point attempts while Dalen Ridgnal added 11 points, eight boards and three assists.

CENTRAL COAST CRUSADERS 97 (Washington 23, Young 20, Manhom 16)

INNER WEST BULLS 81 (Clark 22, Djeric 16, Ridgnal 11)

Sutherland Sharks (103) defeated Newcastle Falcons (74)

Kouat Noi put up 40 points and he and Sydney Kings teammate Jason Spurgin combined for 61 points and 16 rebounds as the Sutherland Sharks won big 103-74 over the Newcastle Falcons.

The Sharks were back home at Sutherland Basketball Stadium looking for consecutive wins as they hosted a Falcons outfit also fresh off a win against the defending champion Maitland Mustangs.

Newcastle knocked down 5/8 from three-point range in the first quarter to fire back from Sutherland opening up an early 15-point lead after a 12-0 run as the Falcons limited the Sharks lead to just 30-25 by quarter-time.

Sutherland pushed back out to an 11-point lead during the second frame but by half-time again Newcastle had limited the damage to cut the Sharks advantage to 48-42.

The Sharks did get out to a 14-point lead by three quarter-time and then dominated for good in the fourth term with 34 points to 19 to secure the eventual 29-point victory.

The win improves Sutherland to a 6-1 record on the season with Kouat Noi dominating with 40 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals on 13/25 shooting from the field, 4/11 from downtown and 10/12 at the foul line.

His Sydney Kings NBL teammate Jason Spurgin added 21 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks on 9/14 shooting.

Connor Woodbridge also had 14 points on 4/7 shooting from downtown while Lochlan Hutchison added 11 points, eight assists, five rebounds and five steals, and Geoff Gerlach eight points, nine boards and two steals.

Newcastle are now 2-5 on the season unable to back up their last up win over Maitland with Matur Maluach top-scoring with 16 points and five rebounds.

Eylijah Stephens added 12 points and two steals, Alex Clinton 10 points and two rebounds, Kobe Shannon 10 points, three boards and two assists, and Ryan Beisty nine points, 11 rebounds, three assists and three steals.

SUTHERLAND SHARKS 103 (Noi 40, Spurgin 21, Woodbridge 14)

NEWCASTLE FALCONS 74 (Maluach 16, Stephens 12, Clinton 10, Shannon 10)

Bankstown Bruins (107) defeated Albury-Wodonga Bandits (87)

Jaylin Galloway made a spectacular return from a shoulder injury with 37 points as the Bankstown Bruins overcome 39 points from Ahren Freeman for the Albury-Wodonga Bandits to win 107-87.

The Bruins were back home at Bankstown Basketball Stadium looking to steady their season back at a .500 record as they welcomed in Sydney Kings excitement machine Galloway who was in the NBA at the Milwaukee Bucks a little over 12 months ago.

Galloway only played 10 games in NBL25 at the Kings before undergoing shoulder surgery, but he returned to the basketball court on Saturday night joining Jason Cadee at the Bruins as they played host to the Bandits.

Bankstown knocked down 6/11 from three-point range in the first quarter as a team on the way to the 29-21 lead, but Albury-Wodonga fired back impressively in the second frame.

The Bandits outscored the Bruins 26 points to 15 to turn a 10-point deficit into their own 47-44 lead by half-time on the back of holding Bankstown to shooting 2/15 from the field in that second term.

The Bruins turned things back around in the third quarter to outscore the Bandits 30 to 21 before going on with the job with another 33 points to 19 in the fourth to end up going on an 11-0 run to break the game open.

Bankstown ended up confirming the 20-point victory thanks to knocking down 13/35 from behind the three-point arc opposed to the 6/32 from Albury-Wodonga.

The Bruins improve to a 4-4 record on the season with the win with Jaylin Galloway starring on his return with 37 points, 13 rebounds, four steals, three assists and two blocked shots.

Jason Cadee also produced 22 points and 11 assists with 5/9 three-point shooting while Andre Wolford finished with 12 points, three assists and three steals, and Dominique Keyes 12 points, nine rebounds and two assists.

The Bandits are now 1-6 with a fourth straight defeat with Ahren Freeman delivering 39 points, nine rebounds, three steals and two assists on 16/27 shooting from the field and 6/9 at the foul line.

Matthew Gray added 13 points and 17 rebounds, and Immanuel Allen nine points, three assists, three steals and two rebounds.

BANKSTOWN BRUINS 107 (Galloway 37, Cadee 22, Keyes 12, Wolford 12)

ALBURY-WODONGA BANDITS 87 (Freeman 39, Gray 13, Allen 9)

Norths Bears (97) defeated Penrith Panthers (86)

The Norths Bears came from behind at three quarter-time to avoid consecutive losses with a 31-point fourth quarter to secure the 97-86 win over the Penrith Panthers.

The Bears were back home at North Sydney Indoor Sports Centre looking to bounce back from a last up loss to the Hills Hornets as they hosted a Panthers outfit trying to avoid suffering a fifth consecutive defeat.

It was Penrith clinging to the 26-25 lead by the end of the first quarter and then the visitors were still narrowly leading 43-41 heading into the half-time break.

It remained a tight affair in the third quarter too and it was the Panthers still leading by a solitary point at three quarter-time, but then it was all the Bears in the final term with the game on the line.

Norths outscored Penrith 31 points to 19 on the way to the eventual 11-point win thanks to shooting 12/17 from the field in the last 10 minutes including going 3/4 from downtown while the Panthers missed all seven of their three-point attempts.

The Bears improve to a 4-4 record on the season as a result of the win with Hunter Goodrick producing 24 points, 12 rebounds, four steals and two assists.

Austin Patterson also had 22 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals, Robert Moore 11 points and three boards, Matthew Wacher 10 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals, and Iggy Mitchell 10 points, five boards, three assists and two blocks.

Michael Yoong knocked down 3/5 from three-point range for nine points and two steals.

The Panthers are now 2-6 following a fifth consecutive loss with Ben Kearins top-scoring with 15 points, seven assists and four rebounds.

Jonah Pares added 14 points, eight rebounds and six assists, Oliver Amajoyi 13 points, three blocks, two boards and two assists, Zeke Evans 11 points and 11 rebounds, and Adam Lulka 10 points, two boards and two assists.

NORTHS BEARS 97 (Goodrick 24, Patterson 22, Moore 11)

PENRITH PANTHERS 86 (Kearins 15, Pares 14, Amajoyi 13)

Maitland Mustangs (86) defeated Canberra Gunners (72)

The Maitland Mustangs and Canberra Gunners renewed their rivalry for the first time since last year's grand final and it was a similar result with the reigning champions scoring the 86-72 victory.

Not only did the Mustangs and Gunners play off in the grand final of the NBL1 East last year, but also in the decider of 2022.

It was Canberra who prevailed in that 2022 battle while Maitland got one back on the Gunners in the 2024 decider, and Saturday night at Maitland Federation Centre was their first time meeting in 2025.

The Mustangs came into the game fresh off a loss to the Newcastle Falcons while Canberra were the long unbeaten team in the competition setting the stage for another tantalising match up.

It was a stunning opening from the defending championships with the Mustangs opening up an 18-point lead in the first quarter thanks to shooting 11/19 from the field and the Gunners going just 3/15.

However, Canberra did get back into the contest in the second period outscoring the Mustangs 23 points to 14 on the way to only trailing by five points at half-time.

But Maitland took back control in the third quarter with another 23 points to 15 to end up leading by 17 points and this time there would be no fightback from the Gunners with the Mustangs going on to score the 14-point victory.

The victory improves the Mustangs to a 5-2 record on the season as defending champions with Daniel Millburn producing 24 points and four rebounds on 10/17 shooting from the field.

Christian Little added 16 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals, Mandrell Worthy 14 points, four assists and two rebounds, and James Hunter 12 points and seven boards.

There is no longer an unbeaten team in the NBL1 East men's competition with Canberra suffering a first defeat despite Will Mayfield producing 30 points, 15 rebounds and two assists on 5/14 from three-point territory.

Glenn Morison added 10 points, five rebounds and four blocks, Lachlan Smith six points and six boards, Brooklyn Bruton six points, and James Toohey six points and three rebounds.

MAITLAND MUSTANGS 86 (Millburn 24, Little 16, Worthy 14)

CANBERRA GUNNERS 72 (Mayfield 30, Morison 10, Toohey 6, Bruton 6, Smith 6)

Sydney Comets (80) defeated Manly Warringah Sea Eagles (65)

Biwali Bayles was back on deck with the Sydney Comets and teamed up with Obi Kyei to help deliver them the 80-65 home win against the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles.

Sydney were back home at Comets Stadium looking to back up their win against the Penrith Panthers while the Sea Eagles arrived also coming off a victory against the Bankstown Bruins.

The Comets made an impressive start with Bayles into the team to open up an eight-point lead in the first quarter before that grew out to 17 in the second when they completed a 12-0 run.

Sydney were in control leading 42-27 by half-time with Manly Warringah shooting just 9/29 while missing all eight of their three-point attempts.

The lead for the Comets got out to as much as 22 points in the third quarter as well and there would be no fightback from the Sea Eagles with Sydney ending up with the 15-point victory.

The Comets improve to a 5-3 record as a result of the win with Biwali Bayles starring with 26 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists while Obi Kyei also delivered 17 points, nine boards, four assists and two steals.

Anthony Mundine III knocked down another 4/9 from three-point range for 14 points and three rebounds with Chol Adup adding nine points and three boards, Jacob Smith eight points and three rebounds, and Ethan Marten-Coney four points and 11 boards.

The Sea Eagles are now 3-4 on the season as a result of the defeat with Mason Bragg producing 21 points, seven rebounds, four steals and three assists, Preston Purifoy 16 points, six boards, three assists and two blocked shots, and Maxim Nesterov 11 points, two rebounds and two steals.

SYDNEY COMETS 80 (Bayles 26, Kyei 17, Mundine III 14)

MANLY WARRINGAH SEA EAGLES 65 (Bragg 21, Purifoy 16, Nesterov 11)