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Episode 3: A Toohey or Two
195 Plays3 years ago
After an exciting Round 1 of the Coles Express NBL1 East 2023, Squin and Lachy take us through the results, the highlights and some surprises. They also cover the 'game of the week' between Sutherland Sharks and Newcastle Falcons.
Find us on instagram @eastgotgame and let us know what content you'd like to be included and the players, coaches or administrators you would like to be interviewed.
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Transcript
Introduction and Episode Recap
00:00:14
Speaker
Welcome to another episode of East Got Game, an unofficial podcast about the MBL One East competition.
00:00:23
Speaker
We look forward to reviewing, previewing, and interviewing our way through the MBL One East to showcase your new favourite talents. My name's Jacinta, I'm from the Central Coast Crusaders. Joining me as co-host is the living legend, and everyone knows his name by now, Locky France from Sutherland Sharks. How you going, Locky? I am Spectacular Squin. It was a great first round at MBL One East, and I'm just so happy that MBL One East is back.
00:00:53
Speaker
Yeah, I think we said in the last couple episodes too, we can't believe it's back already considering the NBL and the WNBL are still wrapping up. So there is that overlap, but it has been a very eventful first round. But before we get into that, I firstly just want to say thank you to everyone who has listened to our first two episodes so far.
Men's Round One Highlights
00:01:15
Speaker
I mean, our first episode was only released the eve of MBL One East. We had a bunch of people in the league listening and provide us with some really lovely feedback. So we really appreciate you A, listening and B, reaching out to provide some lovely feedback. So we hope that we can continue to bring you some quality content to cover the MBL One East this season.
00:01:39
Speaker
So for today's episode, though, as we mentioned, round one was on the weekend on Saturday, the 11th of March. And it was an eventful weekend, Lockie. What were your thoughts? It was a really eventful weekend. Of course, I was at the game of the week between Sutherland and Newcastle. Very, very good game. Barely back and forth. But a lot of really intriguing results. You know, Aubrey nearly got up against Canberra.
00:02:09
Speaker
Manly with that new team kept it reasonably close against Norse at times. It was a really fun week. Very fun week. Very fun week. A lot of interesting results, as you said. So just to kick off the episode to cover round one, can you take us through the results of the men's comp this week?
00:02:30
Speaker
So in the men we had kicking us off this season was the basketball Australia center of excellence, Kenny. Oh, sorry. You wanted the men, didn't you? I did, but that's okay. They did get the win, but I was about to say the other score. Uh, so actually kicking it off was the Sydney Comets.
00:02:47
Speaker
getting a 90 to 65 win over Penrith on their MBL1 East Day Boo. We were guaranteed a debutant win and it was the Comets who got it. And then Centre of Excellence knocked off Bankstown to the tune of 95 to 70. Norse got over Manly in the Spit Bridge Stausch, 87 to 71. Try saying that three times quickly. It's hard enough saying it once.
00:03:14
Speaker
Canberra defeated Aubrey, 85-80 in what was an absolutely thrilling match. The battle of the two old Siebel teams. Central Coast hosted Hornsby, the team just down the road. And they got up 80-71, a valiant effort by the spiders. And then in the battle of two real contenders, it was Illawarra getting over Maitland 95-86.
00:03:38
Speaker
Our game of the week saw Sutherland
Game of the Week: Sutherland vs. Newcastle
00:03:40
Speaker
recover from an early first quarter deficit to take a 76 to 71 win over Newcastle. And we rounded it out with Chris Bryant and his monster dunk and inner West Bulls taking 84 to 76 win over the Hills Hornets.
00:03:58
Speaker
Chris Bryan already kicking off the highlight reel for MBL1E's 2023 monster dunk all over social media as it should be. Now, with those results in mind, Lockie, what were some of your highlights and shout outs for this round? Oh, well, I don't think you can really go past James Tooey dropping 32 against the Aubrey Widonga Bandits.
00:04:23
Speaker
Glen Morrison chipping in just like the 18 and 11 like you do for the grand final MVP and that big comeback that Canberra had after trailing to pick up the win. But I can't discount Aubrey's performance there. They had five players in double digits. So great to see sharing the ball around and sharing the scoring load as well.
00:04:45
Speaker
I like seeing in Maitland and Illawarra, nine players finished in double digits in that game. So plenty of scoring shared around there. We had Timmy Conrad scoring 21. And your boy, Davo Hickey, 16.7 rebounds and five assists in his first game for the Hawks.
00:05:08
Speaker
So far, people that we mentioned in our first episode covering the men's rosters already turning up and giving great performances. Because if you remember in episode one, Lockie, for COE, we expected the likes of Tui, Henschel and Conden turning up, given that they've had a little bit of Boomers experience. And like you said, our boy Dave O'Hickey is already leaving his mark on the league.
00:05:33
Speaker
That's right, and as you mentioned those COE boys, Henshaw 18 points, Alex Tuohy making it a good weekend for the family with 12 points and 10 rebounds picking up the double-double and Alex Condon a big 14 and 14 as COE got the win. But I can't go without mentioning Jack Lopez putting up 22 points off the bench for the Bankstown Bruins shooting 56% from the field in the process.
00:06:00
Speaker
I'd also like to mention Sharif's side payers 23 points for Hornsby, a valiant effort up there against Crusaders, but James Trustum's 22 and Hamish Loader's 11 points and 11 rebounds.
00:06:13
Speaker
getting crew over the line there. And Luke Cassidy, six steals alongside his 17 points as well. And you know, it was really interesting about Sharif's side payers game is that most of his points came in the third quarter. So yeah, he really came alive after halftime. I feel like the spiders were still relying on a lot of his scoring and creating off the dribble in the first half. But
00:06:35
Speaker
Yeah, it was the third quarter where he came alive. And I think we mentioned on the broadcast, too, that their coach made a really sound decision when it came to the stretch of the game, where Sharif Supai was in foul trouble. So anytime there was a defensive possession and the spiders had to foul, they'd sub him off. As soon as it was turned over to an offensive possession, they sub him back on. Really, really smart thinking first round stretch of the game. Very impressed with the spiders coach in that respect.
00:07:03
Speaker
Very nice and of course we also already mentioned Chris Bryant's dunk and also shout out to the Inner West commentators for the reaction.
00:07:14
Speaker
Oh yeah, Mookie and Mack McQuaid. I mean, absolute veterans in the commentary box. I really think you and I will perhaps learn a little bit more from them too. They've been doing it for so long and it's still so nice that they're so passionate and that passion comes through in their
Coaching Changes and League Insights
00:07:30
Speaker
commentary when they're getting excited about such a dunk. But how could you not get excited when that is happening right in front of you?
00:07:37
Speaker
100% and of course that game was really one where we saw the new imports taken to the league like a duck to water so Blake Murrow 29 points Bryant 20 points seven rebounds three steals and then for the Hills Hornets Sean Montague 22 points and seven rebounds shooting 9 of 15 from the field so a few of the imports really are really showing their wares early which is great to see and I know that happened in the women's league as well
00:08:07
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, which we'll get to as well, actually. And just on the Crusaders men, not too sure how many people are aware.
00:08:16
Speaker
that the Crusaders men had signed on Tim Hudson to be the head coach of the, of the NBA one men's team for 2023. And unfortunately just before the season kicked off, uh, he was, um, he wasn't there. So he wasn't there coaching and the club did issue an official statement the day before on Friday, the March 10th. And I'll just read a little bit more of this official statement. Um,
00:08:45
Speaker
It reads, we have needed to be nimble in changing circumstances and wanted to advise Tim Hudson, a longstanding and exceptional part of our community, is no longer in the role of NBL1 men's coach for the Central Coast Crusaders.
00:09:00
Speaker
We're very proud of the work Tim has put in place to establish the pathways he's developed through his long history at our club. Tim has generously shared his experience in the NBL state programs and the NBA for the benefit of now and in the future. So unfortunately, the NBL won crusaders men find themselves without a coach. At the meantime, there hasn't been any official announcement of who the interim coach will be at this stage.
00:09:27
Speaker
But stay tuned, if we have any information, if that we're able to share, we'll be able to share it as well. But as a whole, Locky, what were your general impressions of the first round for MBL1 for the men's comp?
00:09:45
Speaker
Well, I was very happy to see so many games remain and me remain close throughout the week. A lot of them on paper were close match-ups, but still that has to transpire on the court.
00:10:03
Speaker
bodes well for the competitiveness this season and I see teams like, you know, Aubrey and, you know, giving Canberra all they could handle and Illawarra and Maitland fighting it out and Sutherland and Newcastle in a close one as well. All looks very good. Of course, you got to remember that before Aubrey, you know, fell away last season, they were right up at the top of the table. So if they can just avoid that, you know, mid to late season stretch of losses again, they're going to be right amongst it.
00:10:32
Speaker
And I wonder as well if their losses last season was reflective of some of the roster changes too. I think it certainly might have been. It stays, you know, everything stays hunky dory. Yeah, it really bodes well for them. But just lastly on the men, of course we had game of the week, Sutherland Newcastle, which was the game I called.
00:11:01
Speaker
Lockie Hutchison had his 21, seven, and seven to lead Sutherland in a great game, really physical game, but that certainly didn't take away from the spectacle. It wasn't scrappy. It was just a hard fought and with the lineup Sutherland and Newcastle have. I mean, guys like Adrian Cabrera, Lockie Hutchison, Jordan Mitchell, Jeff Gerlach, and then those big guys for Newcastle, Miles Cherry, Ryan Beasty, and Tom Dawson, never back away from a physical matchup.
00:11:30
Speaker
Mator Maloc, Newcastle's Basketball Social Media called it a Maloc mid-range masterclass and I certainly can't disagree as he finished with 19 points, 5-9 from 2-point range and I think at least 4 of those makes worth the mid-range.
00:11:50
Speaker
Finally got to mention Angus Lake on day boo Not just for Sutherland, but in MBL one coming over from Bankstown the Young man who's represented New South Wales at junior level Hit four of his first five three-pointers on his way to a vital 13 points and ended up playing 28 minutes as the first man off the bench so
00:12:12
Speaker
Sharks have had issues with three point shooting in recent years. They've had decent ones, but just not even good ones, but just not a huge quantity of shooters. But if Angus Lake can keep that up, could bode very, very well for the sharkies. And so being only a five point ball game, what do you feel like were the most significant factors for the sharks to make sure they got this win?
00:12:39
Speaker
I actually think it was the defense in the third quarter. It was a 14 to 8 third quarter. So it started off really weirdly with the Sharks opening up an 8-0 advantage to start. But by the end of the first quarter, it was 30-20 to Newcastle. But then the second and third quarter, Sutherland just ratcheted up the defense.
00:13:02
Speaker
The thing with how they're not got a lot of height, the sharks, but they can battle in the paint really well. Guys like Jordan Mitchell Adrian Cabrera will battle in the paint and against Newcastle that really, it works really well despite the lack of height. There were a few times there in the third quarter where they were banging away and just leaving those shots a little bit short because I think they thought they were getting, you know, more penetration than they were going to get. Um,
00:13:32
Speaker
And I think that's really what did it. And I mean, I just mentioned him, Angus, like, cause Callum Norris did have an off night shooting. He shot one of eight. In fact, apart from Angus, the shark shot one of 20 from three point range. So just having that spark, uh, him coming in and he's, he's kind of long as well. I really enjoyed watching him play.
00:13:58
Speaker
Well, that sounds pretty good for a first game of the week, actually. Now, just a reminder, we are talking a little bit more about the Sutherland Sharks Newcastle game, purely because it's game of the week. And it is very convenient that you are their commentator, Locky, so you are right there. It is. And that insights into it. Sorry, I can't forget Miles Cherry, because
00:14:19
Speaker
He finished with 15 points and 17 rebounds, just grabbing down rebounds for absolute fun on the defensive end, finished 16 to be 17 were defensive rebounds. Very good there, just preventing the Sharks from getting a lot of second chance opportunities. Sharks only finished with 11 offensive rebounds, whereas Newcastle picked up 15.
00:14:43
Speaker
Yeah, and interestingly, the overall rebound count for both teams, the Sharks were 42 and Newcastle were 50.
Women's Round One Highlights
00:14:50
Speaker
That's still a pretty decent...
00:14:54
Speaker
like a margin over the rebound count then, generally you would expect the team with the most rebounds are generally going to put in a better position to win because they're going to be dominating more possession. But it looks like here in the box score that, I mean, even the field goal percentage was really, really tight. Three point percentage wasn't the best. I mean, the Sharks shot five from 27 at 18.5%, which is very unsubtle and shark-like.
00:15:28
Speaker
But the free throw count blew out a bit in the end as well. Even before Newcastle started fouling in the late stages, there were some stretches there where they are. I think in the third quarter, they picked up their fifth foul after just two and a half minutes or so. Maybe it was in the second quarter. In one quarter, they were sending the Sharks to the line for almost the entire quarter, which certainly didn't help things. And Lockie Hutchison hit his first 10 free throws in the row before finishing 15 of 20 at the line.
00:15:46
Speaker
From what I've seen? Yeah.
00:15:56
Speaker
15 of 20 at the line. That is, I mean, that's an excellent percentage, 75% for those who need quick maths. Um, but having 20 free throw attempts in a game. That's wow. That is, uh, like that is exceptional numbers overall with the sharks having 21 out of 35 free throw attempts compared to new castles, 18 from 16. So that's a really sound observation, lucky about.
00:16:26
Speaker
how much the free throw opportunities probably helped shape this game as well. What was the foul count? 28 to 18, 18 being Sutherland and 28 being Newcastle. So yeah, that definitely starts to tell the story about perhaps what also helped with this six point win. Yeah, it also didn't help that Jaden Goodwin fouled out fairly early in the piece. He's obviously their captain in a big part.
00:16:53
Speaker
for Newcastle. I only finished with one point on the night. The Sharks did a really good job on him and a few other players, you know, getting in foul trouble or Jacob Dorakite and then Tom Akamamoi also fouled out before they were, you know, failing to stop the clock kind of time. Before they really had, sounds like before they really had a sound opportunity to make an impact on the game and play at their best too. Correct.
00:17:19
Speaker
And any as the league as a whole lucky, do you have any general observations from the round? You know, we just talked about free throw and three point percentages. Did you see any trends across
Women's Upcoming Matchups
00:17:30
Speaker
the league? I know it's a few low scoring teams, but I don't think there's anything to really, you know, stand out. I'm just happy that things are looking competitive at the moment.
00:17:46
Speaker
You know, games in the 70s, but then there's games in the 90s as well. And I think that'll be a function of pace as much of anything as to whether any teams are any good or not. Yeah, I think that's fair enough. Well, having said that, shall I take us through the women's results? Please do, Squin, because it was a really fun week with some great storylines, wasn't it?
00:18:11
Speaker
Yeah, it certainly was. I mean, I'm going to be biased and talk a little bit about the Crusader storyline. And then I will throw it to you again for the Game of the Week between Sharks and Newcastle again, because that looks like a really great game. But just running through the results for round one of the NBA One East Women's Comp for 2023. Off the top, we had Centre of Excellence playing Bankstown Bruins.
00:18:34
Speaker
down at the AIS. Center of Excellence taking out that win 87 to 49. Then we had Manly Waringa Sea Eagles and North Bears, which to me was equally
00:18:49
Speaker
a game of the week type matchup, but mainly getting away with a 15 point win, 70 points to 55. Then we go all the way down south where Aubrey Wodonga Bandits, the inaugural MBL One East Women's Champions took on Canberra Nationals and they got away with a five point win, 86 to 81. Now my beloved Central Coast Crusaders
00:19:15
Speaker
one point away from 100 points. I can't tell you the last time a Central Coast Crusaders women's team got to 100 points was probably in the early to late 2000s, not to age myself or anything, because age is a state of mind.
Preview of Round Two
00:19:30
Speaker
Nonetheless, Crusaders getting a win 99 to 45 from the Hornsby Keringai Spiders.
00:19:37
Speaker
Illawarra Hawks hosted Maitland Mustangs for their first home game and unfortunately going down 61 to 71. Great to see the Stangers though notching up a win early in the season. Game of the week as we said Sutherland Sharks, Newcastle Falcons 52 for the home side and 66 for the Falcons. In the West Bulls so close to starting this season with a win 47 to 59 going down to Hills Hornets at home.
00:20:07
Speaker
And then to top it off, we had the Sydney Comets making their debut in NBL 1 East against Penrith. Also on debut, Comets getting the win 86 to 61. So some really like colorful results there.
00:20:22
Speaker
Great to see inner west pools with a brand new roster. They've still got Michaela Domkins to add to their squad as well. So they're already competing with teams like Hills with some of their new superstars. Adding Michaela Domkins, they're only going to go strength to strength.
00:20:40
Speaker
Shout out to the Crusaders, also a relatively new roster, but managed to find a lot of great chemistry in this first game against Hornsby. And I love to see the Aubrey Wodonga Bandits have two of their juniors return in Ashley Hannon, who you gave a shout out in our second episode, Lucky, and Emma Maharty.
00:21:04
Speaker
as they return to Aubrey-Wodonga Bandits, coming up big for both of those games, for sure. Did you happen to catch any of these highlights? A little bit. Is Hannan from Aubrey originally, or is she from somewhere else? Oh, that's a good question, actually. I know she has played for Aubrey before, but yes, it's probably a good point that we confirm if she's an Aubrey junior. My understanding is, talking to someone close to the Aubrey camp is that
00:21:33
Speaker
She hasn't played for Aubrey in some time. Also, I think we may have talked off air in the past that she did need to take a break away from basketball.
00:21:47
Speaker
But yeah, so Ashley Hannon for that game played 27 minutes, ended up with 28 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks with an efficiency of 26. And great to have Emma Mahade back in the East after she spent a couple of seasons in MBL1 South.
00:22:04
Speaker
In her 35 minutes, she had 24 points, nine rebounds, five assists,
Episode Conclusion and Listener Engagement
00:22:10
Speaker
26 in the efficiency. So, oh, and obviously one of our favorites, Brody Page Theodore had 21, three and three as well. She was shooting 50% from the field. Ashley Hannon was shooting 60% from the field. Yeah, just really, really strong numbers from Aubrey straight off the bat.
00:22:30
Speaker
Um, but we also got to give a shout out to Abby Sol away from the caps with 23 and six and Bianca do for Maya. Thankfully he's back on court. Um, I've been told she had some time away with also some injury and other issues. So really great to see her playing. She had 24 and five and two. Um, so that was a really, really tight contest. Um, I also have to give a couple of shout outs to.
00:22:59
Speaker
Jada Clark from the COE, originally from Western Australia with 25 points. Kimberly Hodge from Manly Waringa, she had 21 and 15. And as you mentioned before, Lockie, one of our imports, who's playing for Maitland Mustang, Sydney Hunter, on debut, had 26 points, 9 rebounds, and shooting 90% from the free-through line.
00:23:21
Speaker
Then we had our girl Vanessa Penussis back in a home club of comets with 35, five, six, and two. What do you think of that, Lockie? That is massive. And they've still got Shyla Hale to come back as well. So that is danger for opposing back courts, especially when you're defending.
00:23:45
Speaker
Yeah, I think the two of them, now they're like, how do you think the balance is going to go between the two of them in terms of roles and responsibilities with being a point guard and being shooters? I mean, I think they're mature enough. They've got enough experience to make it work. You know, Penousa is such a good shooter. She really needs to play off the ball. She can. I know she prefers to get it back after bringing it up, but I'm
00:24:14
Speaker
They can make it work. It's not always easy to get two players who love having the ball and their hands play together, but they'll even be all players. If they really want to win a title, they're going to make it work. I don't think there's any worry there.
00:24:30
Speaker
And so we did make some predictions early in our first two episodes. Locky yourself tipping COE and myself tipping the North Bears. Now, the North Bears going down to Manly was something I wasn't expecting in the nicest possible way I could say that. But did you get to see many highlights of that game? No, unfortunately, I haven't. Long day at Sutherland on Saturday, I'll tell you that, doing
00:25:00
Speaker
being part of the crew as well as commentating.
00:25:04
Speaker
It was very interesting looking at the Manly Norse just on the box score. You know, teams combined to shoot five of 38 from three between them. A couple of players, you know, barely hitting a field goal, let alone a three. And the foul count ballooned out 44 total fouls. So did you get a chance to see that one?
00:25:31
Speaker
I did see some probably at least the first half of that game because prepping for the pod, obviously we try and see as much as we can, but realistically sometimes
00:25:43
Speaker
watching however many games of basketball in a day, that's not possible. But I did watch the highlights in the first half of this particular game, and it was quite an unorthodox game, what you would expect from these two teams, considering they both got talented rosters, a lot of returning players. And to be frank, Locky, I'm not too sure how people feel about this statement, but the first five minutes was boring.
00:26:11
Speaker
Because there were more fouls than points than the first five minutes. The first five minutes, it was still four all and I, I was pretty sure there were eight fouls to match. Wow. Okay. That's, uh, that's certainly an interesting, yeah, interesting scenario.
00:26:32
Speaker
And it's not like a reflection on the players or their talents or anything. It's just, that's just what happened. There were lots of fouls called. There were lots of stoppages. And for the sake of being a fan and wanting to watch a game for entertainment, it just made it really boring. It does look like the cream rose to the top a bit though, as you mentioned Kim Hodge before and a couple of other players putting in solid shifts. Yeah. Sarah Schicker for North. She also ended up with a double double in only 23 minutes with 15 and 10.
00:27:02
Speaker
Um, so I mean, it definitely, the game definitely wasn't, uh, you know, it wasn't people not trying hard enough. It just was one of those games where things just were, it was a comedy of errors really for both teams in that game. So I'm sure that both teams are going to go home and turn it around. We're going to see them back to the form that we're used to in the next round. Oh, a hundred percent. I mean, there's just too much talent on the rosters for them not to, you know, make it work in the end. Oh yeah, absolutely.
00:27:31
Speaker
I think, let me see if we've got any more shout outs for this particular game that we have down marked. I think that covers the shout outs for me. I think in terms of general observations of the league in particular, I just noticed generally not the, probably an improvement on some free throw percentages for me would be nice. I will admit,
00:28:00
Speaker
that i am a little bit uh prickly when it comes to free throw percentages because i'm very fixated on the fact it needs to be 80 to 85 percent and across the both men and women i feel like that's probably a room for improvement along with three point percentage um and perhaps rebounds in a sense that
00:28:19
Speaker
Not a lot of boxing out going on, particularly in the Crew Crusader's Hornsby men's game. A lot of jumping in the air, a lot of AFL tactics, like rather than boxing out and going for rebounds. So I'm hoping those things will improve over time. But in terms of shooting percentage lockage, you put it down to perhaps first round nerves or adjusting to, you know, the pace of a real game versus when you're scrimmaging at training.
00:28:46
Speaker
Yeah, I wouldn't say nerves. I'd say just, you know, first round. I mean, for a lot of these players, you know, they don't play competitive basketball much, if at all, you know, from the time the season ended in August until March. So, you know, it takes time to get up to speed.
00:29:05
Speaker
I mean, obviously at the defensive end as well, but shooting is such a, you know, technique-based action that, yeah, in the early rounds, I'm not surprised that players are a bit rusty. I mean, you know, not everyone, not everyone was missing all their shots, but, you know, certainly there were a few across the board that could have done a bit better and they'll get in the gym and they'll shoot a bit and they'll come out next week and probably hit at a better clip.
00:29:35
Speaker
But you're mentioning defensive rebounding or just rebounding in general. Anyone who watched the Sutherland, Newcastle men's game will know that Callie Hovada actually put her hand up during the course. She was calling the game with me and put her hand up and said, yep, we're going to look at the tape and we're going to not be happy with what they see from the defensive rebounding standpoint because
00:30:04
Speaker
It wasn't that they weren't in a good position to get rebounds, you know, there were players there just, um, Newcastle were just the ones getting on the glass better. Yeah. You know what? I was really impressed with Newcastle's, uh, defensive intensity. Um, I felt like they played really well, especially in the back court. Um, they were very well pressuring the lanes. Their rotation was pretty good.
00:30:31
Speaker
I was actually really impressed with Newcastle's defence this round. That was probably the outstanding team defence that I saw. And they did a really good job of converting a lot of the time in transition when they could. How nice is it, though, to see the likes of Sophie Kleeman and Alison Ebsbury back together on the floor?
00:30:52
Speaker
Oh, it's brilliant. And it's great to see Abby Curtin back in the league as well. You know, knocking down those mid-range shots she loves. And I was talking to her after the game and I said, how do you end up at Newcastle? And she said, they called me. I just gave her a call and she said, yes, no major story there. She just wanted to play for someone.
00:31:13
Speaker
Listen, if you don't ask, you don't get. Exactly. Sometimes that's all it takes. If you want someone, just call them and see what they say. What's the worst I could say? Nope. That's right. And of course, Newcastle still with Nicole Munger to come back as well. Um, and Kelly McLean didn't play in that game. Uh, and Newcastle like the defensive end really good, but also at the offensive end, keeping it simple. Um, you know, it didn't have a stack of different plays to run through, but.
00:31:44
Speaker
it worked. So they kept, you know, kept going to those, you know, few plays that they were running and whether they were getting Rachel McGuskin feeds in the paint or trying to get Kate Kingham some open shots. She finished three of eight from deep. It was, you know, at times you could really see what they're building towards.
00:32:05
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. Good point that Nicole Munger didn't play. As we know for Sutherland, Eliza Fabro and Lauren Nicholson didn't play because they're still with the Townsville Fire chasing a chip. So best of luck to them if they ever happen to listen to this. Really interesting though, Nicole Munger, Newcastle winning without Nicole Munger. But then watching Abby Curtin play, she actually plays a lot like Nicole Munger, I found. A little bit.
00:32:35
Speaker
Yeah, so I mean, Abby can do a lot. I mean, we know she can shoot mid range, but I think over the years she's become a lot more mobile as well, which has really made her a much more versatile player. At times, you remember she was like, especially like back in her youth league days where she was used really in the front court. She's really extended her game as time's gone on.
00:33:06
Speaker
Yeah, so my thought was, you know, Nicole Munger was such a dominant presence last season. She's had a fantastic season with the UC caps in her WNBL debut. And she has happened to re-sign as well, which is an excellent move by the caps. But now Newcastle have potentially two players that play like Nicole Munger. I mean, doubling Nicole Munger's or star of thereof can't be a bad thing.
00:33:34
Speaker
No, and they're both good enough to, you know, play a different role if they really need to. Yeah, that's exactly right. They both have the versatility of playing inside, outside, working off each other. Um, yeah, Newcastle looking really exciting. I think they might be a bit of a, well, they would, they might be a bit of a dark horse compared to some of the other rosters we're used to. Bit of a smoky. Bit of smoky. Yeah.
00:34:01
Speaker
All right, so that wraps up round one. Just looking through round two, we can see, I'll just very quickly take us through round two. It's going to be Bankstown and North are hosting Norths. Aubrey are hosting Hornsby.
00:34:19
Speaker
Canberra and Maitland, Canberra's hosting Maitland Mustangs. So in the men, that's going to be a grand final rematch, which is going to be very exciting. And that's actually going to be the game of the week, Canberra versus Maitland. So you'll be able to watch that on KO freebies when the link is available. Illawarra Hawks are back at home against Penris Panthers. Newcastle will have their first home game against Manly Waringa. So two teams that's for the women.
00:34:48
Speaker
That saw a win facing off against each other. Hill's horn, it's first game at home against Sydney Comets. Inner West Bulls will be back at home against the center of excellence. Crusaders also back at home against Sutherland Sharks. And then the center of excellence have to drive back to Canberra to play against Maitland on the Sunday. So that's a little bit rough going for center of excellence, but I think with their young bodies, hopefully they'll be able to recover quicker.
00:35:17
Speaker
Well, they got plenty of, uh, plenty of experience with quick turnarounds, playing all those Australian junior championships they play, so. Yeah. The young ones will be fine. It's us oldies that you got to look out for. That's right. So other than the Canberra Nationals being game of the week, men and women like this matchup is going to be exceptional. So really glad this is going to be on KO freebies. Any other games stick out to you, Lockie, that could be, you know, also a game of the week.
00:35:47
Speaker
Well, I will, I will say that I will be tuning in to listen to your call of the Central Coast Crusader Sutherland Sharks. Squin, that'll be excellent listening, excellent watching, especially in the man I'm looking forward to, Centre of Excellence in Maitland. You know, Centre of Excellence coming in, they'll want to.
00:36:07
Speaker
you know, stand their authority on the game, on the league and Maitland. Well, we know they're definite title contenders. I think Maitland's trip to Canberra could be a very exciting one for basketball fans in general. But if you're looking for me, you can probably find me at Bankstown North on Saturday afternoon. That is the game I will be attending.
00:36:28
Speaker
Thanks to our North it is, that's going to be Locky's personal game of the week, it sounds like. But as we mentioned, the Canberra Gunners, the men versus the Maitland Mustangs men grand final rematch. But as we mentioned in episode one, different roster for Canberra Gunners versus a Maitland roster that is pretty much the same.
00:36:48
Speaker
as last season. So one may expect Maitland to get the win over this one. But Maitland against the COE is going to be a really good test. How do you feel like the younger athletes of the COE are going to go against some of the bigger built, more experienced, probably more experienced men in the sense of the Maitland Mustangs? That's the thing that can really
00:37:13
Speaker
be a game changer for, especially in the men's competition where it is a bit more physical, is how the
00:37:22
Speaker
young players going to take on those physical teams and Maitland is going to be an exceptional test. You know, when they take on Maitland, teams like Newcastle, guys like Glen Morrison for Canberra, how they go against those really big front courts is going to be the absolute litmus test for this team. Because when it comes to speed, most of these young guys, you know, they've got, you know, speed, quickness, but when they got a bang in the paint, guys who have had a few more years in the weight room often have an advantage.
00:37:53
Speaker
Yeah, definitely. Um, I think that's the right way to put it, the physicality of, uh, which is a whole other skill set. When you make that jump from playing juniors, even from playing youth league, um, into MBO one, it's definitely the physicality that can make a big difference. And now for the men, uh, sorry for the women, um, game of the week, Canberra gnats, Maitland Mustangs, Maitland Mustangs coming off their season, open a win. As we mentioned, Sydney Hunter with some big numbers.
00:38:22
Speaker
What kind of match-ups are you looking for in this lineup, Blocky? So, I'm obviously looking forward to seeing how Sydney Hunter does again against Canberra. I'm not entirely sure, I think.
00:38:46
Speaker
I think Illawarra were a really good matchup for Sydney Hunter to go well against. But I think Canberra provide a bit of a different, they're a bit of a different kettle of fish, especially with all those players that have just spent a year playing WNBL and getting more used to playing against big players. Abby Solway, I think we saw last week how big her,
00:39:15
Speaker
how much her year with the Caps helped in dropping 23 last week. And it'd be nice to see Chloe Tulliak on the court, but I think Caps will really provide a different challenge. And I'd really like to see Mia Slater do well in this one.
00:39:35
Speaker
Yeah, we probably sorry, I probably should have mentioned earlier that in this round one game of Aubrey versus Canberra, Canberra were missing Chloe Tuleak and Lizzie Tonks, as they've just come off the cap season, I think having some recovery time. But they were also missing their head coach, Natty Hurst, who's also having some downtime after
00:39:55
Speaker
her first year as head coach of the Adelaide Lightning in the WNBL. So yeah, like you said, hopefully, Chloe, Lizzie and Natty will all be back for Canberra Nats this week against Maitland. But for me, I think Newcastle and Manly Waringa in the women's is going to be a great matchup, both coming off wins against two other very competitive teams.
00:40:19
Speaker
I'm looking forward to some of the match-ups of the likes of Delaney versus Curtin, Ebsery versus Brie Delaney, maybe even Kingham versus Zoe Miller. There's a lot of fun match-ups in this game. They're all the match-ups I like. I'm speaking the same language, Lucky. We are. Yeah, Newcastle manly because, as you said though, round one fixtures can be a bit
00:40:47
Speaker
how you go. And I think we saw that in the manly, manly North game. So I think, you know, both teams got to win under their belt. Uh, new cars, obviously under strength, but I think this will be a really good barometer as to the real top four or even higher credentials this season.
00:41:03
Speaker
Yeah, I'm really looking forward to see how they, if they're able to sustain it too as the season progresses. Cause you know, we've only just gotten started, but, uh, just before you wrap up. So just a reminder that round two does start next week, Saturday, the.
00:41:19
Speaker
18th of March, had to do my quick maths. Game of the week, as we said, Canberra versus Maitland in Canberra on KO freebies. Locky, your game of the week is going to be Bankstown North. Mine is going to be the women's Newcastle hosting Manly. So that's all the great stuff we can look forward to for round two. And just before we wrap up, we also want to invite everyone
00:41:48
Speaker
to join our Instagram page at East Got Game. And if you have any suggestions for content that you would like to hear, interviews that you would like to hear, or just any general kind of things that you would like to potentially see added if we can, follow us on Instagram, send us a DM, but you know, keep it friendly. We're friendly here. We are. We try to be.
00:42:15
Speaker
Yeah. Save all your hatred for Twitter, like everyone else. Um, but otherwise, Locky, we ready to sign off? I think we're ready to sign off. Just, if you're not watching the KF freebies game of the week, make sure you're tuning in to listen to Squint's call of Central Coast versus Sutherland.
00:42:34
Speaker
I would demand this. It's going to be great. And a reminder that if all the games of the weeks will be on KIO freebies, as you mentioned, Locky, all the other games are always available to watch on the MBO1 website. So you can see the full games, you can see highlight packages. There's lots of great content. And of course, the box scores there for you as well. But otherwise, for now, Locky, enjoy your week and let's get ready for round two. It's going to be a great one.