South Recap | Round 2 Saturday

Image credit: Mitchell Barlow

The Sandringham Sabres and Hobart Chargers split two fascinating NBL1 South Saturday night match ups while there were statement pairs of wins for Geelong United, Waverley Falcons and Knox Raiders.

SOUTH RECAP | ROUND 2 FRIDAY

WOMEN

Sandringham Sabres (80) defeated Hobart Chargers (75)

The Sandringham Sabres came from behind at three quarter-time to remain undefeated to open the new season with the thrilling win at home 80-75 over the Hobart Chargers.

The Sabres opened their season with a pair of wins last weekend beating the Frankston Blues and Melbourne Tigers while the Chargers also had a first up win against Tasmanian rivals, the Launceston Tornadoes.

It was a tight contest all evening at Southern Basketball Stadium with no more than six points ever separating the two teams with the Chargers leading by a point at quarter-time and stretching that to four by half-time but that had been whittled back to a solitary point at three quarter-time.

It remained a close battle right through the final 10 minutes too and with just under two minutes to play, the scores were locked at 75-75 after Sharna Thompson hit two free throws for Hobart.

However, the Chargers wouldn’t score again with Sandringham scoring the last five points of the game starting with a three-point play from Lucy Cochrane followed by a pair of clinching free throws from Funda Nakkasoglu.

As a result, the Sabres are now 3-0 under new coach Mark Alabakov with Nakkasoglu delivering 19 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals, and Cochrane 18 points, 10 boards, three assists and three blocked shots.

Klara Wischer also had 14 points and 11 rebounds, Haylee Andrews 14 points, five boards and four assists, and Eilidh Vanderwal had nine rebounds and four assists to go with two points.

Chelsea D'Angelo top-scored for Hobart with 22 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals with 3/4 three-point shooting while Tayla Roberts contributed 20 points and nine boards, Sharna Thompson 14 points and nine rebounds, and Ellie Collins 11 points and nine boards.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 80 (Nakkasoglu 19, Cochrane 18, Wischer 14)

HOBART CHARGERS 75 (D'Angelo 22, Roberts 20, Thompson 14)

Geelong United (94) defeated Ballarat Miners (61)

With her confidence boosted by the WNBL season she was part of, Hannah Hank delivered a dominant performance to lead Geelong United to their second win to open the new season, beating the Ballarat Miners 94-61.

Geelong opened the NBL1 South season last week beating the Mount Gambier Pioneers by 40 points ahead of remaining home at The Geelong Arena to host a Miners team who did lose first up last week to the Bendigo Braves.

It was a scorching start from United with the home team putting up 27 points to 14 in the first quarter but Ballarat fired back in the second frame with 27 points to 17 of their own.

That cut the Geelong lead to 44-41 by half-time but United dominated the second half especially on the defensive end holding the Miners to just 20 points in the last 20 minutes including six points in the final period.

United put up 50 points themselves on the way to the 33-point win to back up the 40-point win over Mount Gambier with Hannah Hank a powerful force with 24 points, 12 rebounds and two steals on 6/10 shooting from the floor and 11/11 at the foul line.

Jaz Shelley went ever so close to a triple-double with 19 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds with Dakota Crichton adding 19 points and eight boards, Lilly Rotunno 10 points, five assists, three steals and three rebounds, and Gemma Potter seven points, six boards and four steals.

It was a second tough night to open the season for Ballarat despite Abbey Wehrung top-scoring with 21 points and five rebounds with Micah Simpson providing 16 points and three assists, and Laura Taylor eight points and seven rebounds.

GEELONG UNITED 94 (Hank 24, Crichton 19, Shelley 19)

BALLARAT MINERS 61 (Wehrung 21, Simpson 16, Taylor 8)

Bendigo Braves (77) lost to Keilor Thunder (84)

Keilor Thunder made another statement to start the NBL1 South season coming from behind at three quarter-time to beat the Bendigo Braves 84-77 with Maddy Rocci and Issie Bourne combining for another 62 points.

Keilor delivered two huge victories last weekend to open the season by a combined 46 points against the Diamond Valley Eagles and Mount Gambier Pioneers while the 2023 champion Braves started life under new coach Doccy Black beating the Ballarat Miners.

That set up a tantalising match up at Red Energy Arena with an exciting opening with Keilor leading Bendigo 25-23 by the end of the first quarter.

Bendigo then took over in the second period with 21 points to 12 to go into the half-time break on top 44-37 with that advantage growing to as much as 14 in the third frame.

However, Keilor finished the better overrunning the home team with 25 points to 14 in the final stanza on the way to the eventual seven-point win to improve to 3-0 on the new season.

The two guns for the Thunder were on fire once again with Maddy Rocci delivering 33 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and four steals while Issie Bourne had 29 points, 12 boards, five assists, two steals and two blocked shots.

Cassidy McLean finished with 18 points, six assists, three rebounds and two steals for Bendigo with Poppy Blanch contributing 13 points and two boards, Taisheka Porchia 12 points, nine rebounds and two steals, Mikayla Pivec 11 points, eight boards and five assists, and Ash Hannan 12 points and 11 rebounds.

BENDIGO BRAVES 77 (McLean 18, Blanch 13, Hannan 12, Porchia 12)

KEILOR THUNDER 84 (Rocci 33, Bourne 29, Puli 8)

Dandenong Rangers (79) defeated Eltham Wildcats (61)

Even with Nyadiew Puoch still sidelined, the Dandenong Rangers kept their winning start to the season going with the 79-61 home win against the Eltham Wildcats.

Dandenong opened the season beating Casey and Diamond Valley last week by a combined 67 points ahead of being back home at Dandenong Basketball Stadium against a Wildcats team who lost first up to the Ringwood Hawks.

The Rangers got off to a good start to be leading 20-16 by quarter-time before then continuing to build on that advantage against Eltham with another 18 points to 13 in the second period to go into the half-time break on top 38-29.

The lead continued to grow for Dandenong with it getting out to as much 16 points in the third quarter and 18 in the fourth before they ended up winning by that 18-point margin to improve to 3-0 on the season.

In the absence of injured sister Nyadiew, Manuela Puoch was outstanding for the Rangers with 22 points, 12 rebounds and six assists on 9/16 shooting from the floor.

Imogen Rock added 18 points, 14 rebounds and four assists, Georgia Booth 18 points, four boards and two assists, and Dallas Loughridge 14 points, four assists, three steals and two rebounds.

Eltham is now 0-2 to start the season despite Lil Dart providing 16 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and two steals.

Emily Maltezos added 11 points and two rebounds, Bec Pizzey nine points, three boards and three steals, and Kennedy Dickie nine points, five rebounds and five steals.

DANDENONG RANGERS 79 (M Puoch 22, Booth 18, Rock 18)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 61 (Dart 16, Maltezos 11, Dickie 9, Pizzey 9)

Diamond Valley Eagles (73) lost to Knox Raiders (95)

The Knox Raiders come into the 2025 NBL1 South season on a mission and put together another emphatic performance to beat the Diamond Valley Eagles 95-73.

Knox finished in top spot last year in the NBL1 South entering the finals on a 12-game winning streak before being bundled out in straight sets with losses to Mount Gambier and Ballarat.

They have that in the back of their minds coming into the new season and started with a 29-point win over the Kilsyth Cobras last week, and continued on that same path on Saturday night at Diamond Valley Sports and Fitness Centre.

Despite the final scoreline, it was a tight contest in the home opener for the Eagles who lost both games in Round 1 by a combined 41 points to Keilor and Dandenong.

Scores were level at 22-22 by quarter-time before Knox were only just clinging to the 44-41 advantage by half-time.

The Raiders pulled away in the second half, though, with 51 points to 32 to end up leading by as much as 27 points and winning by 22 to have won their past 14 straight regular season NBL1 South games.

Kiera Rowe delivered 23 points and eight rebounds on a perfect 4/4 three-point shooting for Knox with Alicia Froling providing 23 points, seven boards and four assists.

Leah Santomaggio added 11 points and two rebounds, and Paige Bradley nine points, three boards, three assists and two steals.

Abbey Ellis provided 26 points, nine rebounds and two steals despite the loss for Diamond Valley with Erin Riley contributing 17 points and nine boards, Tayha Watkins 11 points and eight rebounds, and Lara McSpadden 10 points, 10 boards, five assists and two blocks.

DIAMOND VALLEY EAGLES 73 (Ellis 26, Riley 17, Watkins 11)

KNOX RAIDERS 95 (Froling 23, Rowe 23, Santomaggio 11)

Waverley Falcons (76) defeated Launceston Tornadoes (55)

The defending champion Waverley Falcons continued their winning ways by beating the Launceston Tornadoes 76-47 to make it 15 consecutive victories.

After storming to the NBL1 South championship last year from seventh position and then continuing the momentum to win the NBL1 National Finals on the Sunshine Coast, Waverley started their 2025 season beating the Nunawading Spectres by 21 points last week.

Launceston, meanwhile, lost to the Hobart Chargers and now were looking to take a big scalp on their first visit to Melbourne for 2025, but the longer the game went the more control Waverley took of the contest.

The Falcons were only leading by three points at quarter-time but by half-time had stretched that to 10 before then outscoring the Tornadoes 22 points to 15 in the third stanza.

Both teams only combined for 18 points in the final quarter with Waverley on the way to the eventual 21-point victory to improve to 2-0 on the season and to be on a 15-game winning streak.

The Falcons dominated the boards with 67 rebounds to 35 including 26 at the offensive end to eight which ended up seeing them take 16 extra shots for the night.

Katelyn Shumate starred in the win for Waverley with 27 points, 10 rebounds and two assists on 10/16 shooting with Carley Ernst contributing 14 points, eight boards, two assists and two blocked shots.

Sophia Locandro provided eight points and seven rebounds, and Renae Mokrzycki eight points, nine boards, three assists and three steals.

Bailey Flavell finished with 14 points, four rebounds and three steals for Launceston with Sarah O'Neill contributing 14 points, three boards and two assists, and Megan Mullings 11 points, six rebounds, five steals and three blocks.

WAVERLEY FALCONS 76 (Shumate 27, Ernst 14, Locandro 8, Mokrzycki 8)

LAUNCESTON TORNADOES 55 (O'Neill 14, Flavell 14, Mullings 11)

MEN

Sandringham Sabres (76) lost to Hobart Chargers (80)

The Hobart Chargers scored the only five points of the last minute to beat the Sandringham Sabres 80-76 after what had been a tight affair all night at Southern Basketball Stadium.

The Sabres were on the hunt of a first win of the season after two road losses in Round 1 to the Frankston Blues and Melbourne Tigers while the Chargers weren’t able to complete their match with the North West Tasmania Thunder.

The power went out with 1:24 remaining in the game with Hobart leading 85-84 at the time, but it was later determined the game would be counted as a non-result meaning the Chargers were effectively 0-0 coming into the Saturday night match up.

After the Sabres were able to open up a six-point lead in the first quarter, the Chargers fired up in the second period with 22 points to 12 to end up leading by as much as 10, and 43-35 at the half-time interval.

The Hobart lead got out to as much as 14 in the third quarter but Sandringham fired back determined to avoid a third successive loss to start the season after last year's preliminary final appearance.

The Sabres were all the way back into the lead with a minute to play when Malith Machar scored but from there, the Chargers would score the game's remaining five points starting with a Jacob Richards jumper and then a strong Ole Angerstein and-one play.

That secured Hobart the four-point win with two-time NBL1 East MVP Will Cranston-Lown delivering 19 points, five rebounds and four assists with Jacob Richards putting up 17 points, 12 boards and three assists.

Ole Angerstein finished with 15 points, 16 rebounds and five blocked shots with Henry Makeny contributing 11 points and eight boards, and Jordan Straatsma nine points and two rebounds.

Malith Machar top-scored for Sandringham with 16 points and 10 rebounds with Tom Koppens delivering 15 points, six boards and five assists, Elliott Brown 13 points and four assists, CJ Asuncion-Byrd 12 points, two rebounds and two steals, and the soon-to-be married Dane Pineau eight points, 12 board and three blocks.

SANDRINGHAM SABRES 76 (Machar 16, Koppens 15, Brown 13)

HOBART CHARGERS 80 (Cranston-Lown 19, Richards 17, Angerstein 15)

Geelong United (98) defeated Ballarat Miners (72)

Geelong United got a combined 69 points out of DeMarcus Gatlin, Kaelen Malone and Tristan Forsyth to open their account for 2025 with the 98-72 win over the Ballarat Miners.

Geelong suffered a 50-point loss at home to the Mount Gambier Pioneers to open the season while Ballarat scored a first up win over the Bendigo Braves on the back of last season's grand final appearance.

It was a tight contest throughout the first half with Geelong leading by three points at quarter-time and then just by one at half-time, but the home team then took charge in the second half.

United outscored Ballarat 25 points to 17 in the third quarter and then completed a 15-0 scoring run in the fourth with the lead growing to as much as 28 points before they scored the 26-point victory.

It was an impressive offensive display from Geelong as they shot at 53 per cent from the field opposed to the 35 from Ballarat with captain DeMarcus Gatlin hitting back hard from last week with 31 points, seven rebounds and six steals on 13/15 shooting.

Kaelen Malone added 20 points, nine assists and four rebounds with 4/8 shooting from downtown while Tristan Forsyth delivered 18 points, 12 boards, three blocks and two steals, and Marach Marach 12 points and two rebounds.

Luke Rosendale top-scored for Ballarat with 14 points, five rebounds, three steals, two assists and two blocks with Nick Stoddart contributing 11 points and two boards, Zac Dunmore 10 points, and Aiden Krause 11 points and two rebounds.

GEELONG UNITED 98 (Gatlin 31, Malone 20, Forsyth 18)

BALLARAT MINERS 72 (Rosendale 14, Stoddart 11, Dunmore 10)

Bendigo Braves (87) defeated Keilor Thunder (71)

With Lual Diing delivering a host of spectacular plays, the Bendigo Braves opened their account for the 2025 season with the 87-71 home victory over Keilor Thunder.

The Braves started the season with a loss on the road to the Ballarat Miners last Saturday night while Keilor played a double-header for a win against the Diamond Valley Eagles and loss to the Mount Gambier Pioneers.

Bendigo started strongly at Red Energy Arena with 29 points to 22 in the first quarter before that lead continued to grow to as much as 14 in the second term before they went into half-time on top 48-34.

That lead for the Braves kept growing to as much as 18 in the second half as well and they would end up scoring the 16-point victory with Lual Diing putting on a show on his way to 21 points, six rebounds and two assists, and hitting 5/8 from behind the three-point line.

Justin Johnson added 19 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals, Charles Matthews 18 points and three assists, Isaac Murphy nine points, five boards, three assists and two steals, and Billy Smythe nine points and 10 rebounds.

Keilor is now 1-2 following the defeat with Deng Cut once again top-scoring with 21 points and four assists.

Daniel Foster also had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Thunder, Daniel Poelsma 11 points and six boards, and Chris Harris six points and seven rebounds.

BENDIGO BRAVES 87 (Diing 21, Johnson 19, Matthews 18)

KEILOR THUNDER 71 (Dut 21, Foster 15, Poelsma 11)

Dandenong Rangers (72) lost to Eltham Wildcats (94)

The Eltham Wildcats won their first game as defending NBL1 South champions with Gabe Hadley putting up 25 points on six three-pointers in the 94-72 road win over the Dandenong Rangers.

Both teams came into the Round 2 Saturday night match up at Dandenong Basketball Stadium yet to record a win in 2025 with the Rangers losing twice last weekend to the Casey Cavaliers and Diamond Valley Eagles.

The Wildcats began their championship defence with a first up loss at home to the Ringwood Hawks, and on their home floor it was the Rangers getting the better of the start to be leading 30-25 at quarter-time.

Eltham was then able to hold Dandenong to just seven points in the second quarter while scoring 18 themselves to be leading 43-37 at half-time.

The Wildcats then kept on going with the job with 31 points to 21 in the third quarter on the way to the eventual 22-point victory on the back of shooting 56 per cent from the field and making 16/34 from three-point territory.

Gabe Hadley led the charge in the win for Eltham making 6/10 from beyond the arc for 25 points, four rebounds, four steals and three assists.

Zahn Agosta also had 21 points, six rebounds and three assists with Xavier Bledson contributing 18 points, five boards and five assists with both those players making four three-pointers.

Mitch McCarron provided 12 points and seven assists, and Josh Sykes 10 points, three rebounds and three assists.

Dandenong welcomed in Illawarra Hawks NBL championship winning forward Mason Peatling who ended up with seven points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals in his 28 minutes.

Jack Roberts top-scored with 19 points while Bryton Hobbs put up 18 points, six assists and five steals, and Ruot Monyyong 11 points and five rebounds.

DANDENONG RANGERS 72 (Roberts 19, Hobbs 18, Rapp 13)

ELTHAM WILDCATS 94 (Hadley 25, Agosta 21, Bledson 18)

Diamond Valley Eagles (73) lost to Knox Raiders (104)

The two-time defending NBL1 National Champion Knox Raiders added a Sydney Kings powerhouse and continued their impressive start to 2025 by beating the Diamond Valley Eagles 104-73.

The Raiders might not have been able to defend their NBL1 South championship in 2024, but they did go to the Sunshine Coast and defend the National Finals crown they had won in Perth the previous year.

Knox has now loaded up for the 2025 season with Keli Leaulepe into the line-up on Saturday night after his impressive rookie season in the NBL at the Kings before it was ended prematurely with a hamstring injury.

The Raiders beat the Kilsyth Cobras to open the season ahead of taking on the Diamond Valley Eagles at Diamond Valley Sports and Fitness Centre with the Eagles coming off a win over Dandenong and loss to Keilor in the opening round.

After scores were tied at quarter-time, Knox took total control in the second term going on a 12-0 scoring run and putting up 36 points to 15 on the way to leading by as much as 23 and being on top 52-31 at the half.

It was another 28 points to 14 in the third term with the Raiders lead growing to as much as 38 points before they went on to win on the road over Diamond Valley by 31.

Keli Leaulepe produced an impressive first up showing with Knox with 18 points and eight rebounds with Ade Murkey adding 18 points, six boards and three steals, and Tad Dufelmeier 17 points, seven rebounds, six assists and two steals.

Henry Sewell also had 14 points and three rebounds, Brody Nunn 13 points, five boards, four assists and two steals, and Sunday Dech nine points and six rebounds.

Jock Perry put up 19 points and 11 rebounds for Diamond Valley with Ngor Manyang contributing 18 points and two steals, and Jesse Ghee seven points and five rebounds.

DIAMOND VALLEY EAGLES 73 (Perry 19, Manyang 18, Ghee 7)

KNOX RAIDERS 104 (Leaulepe 18, Murkey 18, Dufelmeier 17)

Waverley Falcons (104) defeated North West Tasmania Thunder (88)

The Waverley Falcons showcased their impressive depth once more with the 104-88 home victory over the North West Tasmania Thunder.

Waverley opened the 2025 season beating the Nunawading Spectres and they remained home at Waverley Basketball Centre to take on a Thunder team who weren’t able to complete their match last week.

The Thunder were trailing the Hobart Chargers by a point with 1:24 left when the power went out and the game couldn’t be completed, and was subsequently ruled a no result.

The Falcons came out firing in their second straight home game to start the season with 28 points to 15 in the first quarter and they never looked back from there despite a big finish from North West Tasmania.

The lead for Waverley grew to 23 points in the second quarter and then 28 in the third and 31 early in the fourth before the Thunder did manage to put up 34 points in the final term to cut the final winning margin for the Falcons to 16.

Waverley finished with four players scoring in double-figures and another five players scoring at least six points with NBL1 East recruit Robbie Heath putting up 19 points, four assists and three rebounds.

Malik Meunier added 18 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals, Mason Forbes 16 points, 10 boards, three assists, three steals and two blocks, DeJuan Clayton 12 points, three rebounds and three steals, and Ryan Dean eight points and four boards.

Lachlan Barker delivered 23 points, five rebounds and two assists with 3/4 three-point shooting for North West Tasmania with Brisbane Bullets development player Kye Savage contributing 20 points.

Archie Woodhill provided 12 points and six rebounds, Tyler Harris 12 points and seven boards, and Isaac Atuer six points, five rebounds and two assists.

WAVERLEY FALCONS 104 (Heath 19, Meunier 18, Forbes 16)

NORTH WEST TASMANIA THUNDER 88 (Barker 23, Savage 20, Harris 12, Woodhill 12)