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Season 3, Episode 3 - Women's Rosters 2025 pt. 1
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NBL1 East 2025 Women's Rosters covered this episode:
* Albury-Wodonga Bandits
* Canberra Nationals
* Centre of Excellence
* Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles
* Newcastle Falcons
*Norths Bears
*Penrith Panthers
* Sydney Comets
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction and Chin Music Joke
00:00:22
Speaker
Well, hello, hello, hello, everyone. Welcome back to another episode of East Scott Game, the unofficial podcast about the MBL One East competition for 2025.
00:00:34
Speaker
We can't start the episode without a little bit of chin music. Can we, Lockie? Yeah.
00:00:44
Speaker
Ah, that's enough of that. I'm still trying to get the timing right between ah having the intro part, having the music. I'll get it down eventually. i don't think chin music was either. Definitely not the right way to describe that either. That's a cricket term.
00:00:58
Speaker
Am I correct? It certainly is a cricket term. And nonetheless, how are you going? how's What's happening down there in the east this evening?
Inner West Bulls' Big Signing
00:01:07
Speaker
ah Big signing announcement today.
00:01:11
Speaker
into fire to inner west. but Yeah. NBL1E this evening. Yeah, that's a massive signing. That is a really big signing. Inner West coming up big.
00:01:23
Speaker
ah Probably, arguably one of the biggest ah free agency or free agents, I think, um that we were waiting to hear be signed or at least be confirmed somewhere.
00:01:35
Speaker
So, yes, rumours were true. She's gone to Inner West Bulls. Now they've just got to put at least another 11 players together to complete the roster.
Team Signings and Roster Momentum
00:01:43
Speaker
Yes, but, well, their first one was pretty good.
00:01:47
Speaker
Yeah, that's right. That's right. They're 100% from the three-point line so far, some would say. They certainly are. um And what else is happening in the east? That was some pretty big news to start the episode off.
00:02:00
Speaker
What else is happening down there? there's been ah There's been a few signings around the way. a few teams. think the teams are starting to realise it's getting close and they've got to build some momentum, dropping some signings.
00:02:13
Speaker
Bankstown women are flying. yeah yeah We were calling them out and now they've got five on the roster. Illawarra men added someone else today. They had CJ Moran, who's played for, I think, Inner West, Sutherland and maybe...
00:02:28
Speaker
maybe a couple of other clubs before going up to Mackay last year. So you would have been privy to his exploits. I think he won Mackay Defensive Player of the Year for that title-winning team last year up in the north. So a defensive presence for the Hawks this season.
00:02:45
Speaker
Yeah, it's going to be really fun. It's shaping up really nicely for the Hawks. And like you said, think we did mention in a previous episode, um well, like yeah I think it was the first episode of this season that Bankstown haven't announced any female players. And I think we were hypothesising that perhaps they were doing all the men and then all the women, which I kind of like actually in hindsight because then it means that each team gets their individual individual time in the limelight, even though it's supposed to be, you know,
00:03:15
Speaker
one club and one one um competition and things like that. But I don't mind I don't mind it, especially if you're going start off with a signing like Davida Dale. And follow it up with Jada Rice.
00:03:27
Speaker
And then Jada Rice, yeah. Oh, that going to be fun. Yeah, that is outstanding.
NBL1 East Preseason Competition
00:03:33
Speaker
I think another thing just at the top of this episode we'll mention now and we'll likely mention again at the end, um it is the NBL1 East preseason competition this upcoming weekend in Maitland. Am I, if I'm not mistaken? That's in It's in Penrith. Oh, of course.
00:03:52
Speaker
I am mistaken. It's in Penrith. That's right. It is in Penrith, which would be fun. um It looks like a lot of teams are participating. I think the roster, oh, sorry, that I should say the schedule has recently been released.
00:04:08
Speaker
um And are you planning on attending, Lockie? I'll be there ah for the first session of the Saturday. So I'll see some women's games. ah But I made a promise to a friend that I'd go and watch her play soccer on the Saturday afternoon. So, and that was before the Blitz schedule was announced. So have to, ah can't break a promise to a friend.
00:04:33
Speaker
No, I think that's fair enough. I think that's fair enough. um There will be plenty more NBL 1 East that we can watch during the season. And I think just before the ah this episode rounds out, we'll talk a little bit more about the Blitz and the Thank you.
Women's Team Rosters for 2025
00:04:52
Speaker
but this episode is season is episode three of our third season of ecot game as mentioned in previous episodes we going to be going through the rosters as they are at the time of recording of a lot of the teams. So last episode we went through eight of the 16 teams in the men's competition for 2025.
00:05:15
Speaker
This episode we'll be doing the first eight of 16 teams for the women's competition. um So you can expect a few ah similar clubs to last episode.
00:05:25
Speaker
um i think maybe that reflects on the clubs and organisations as themselves of how timely they've been able to announce some of their players ahead of tip-off.
00:05:36
Speaker
ah So, yeah, buckle up. We've got some great rosters in the women's competition to go through, a lot of new players, a lot of um outstanding and consistent players that we're used to in NBL 1 East.
00:05:49
Speaker
So are you ready to get cracking, Lockie? I am always ready to talk about NBL 1 East, Gwyn, you know that. That is correct. That is correct because you're always staying ready. If you stay ready, you ain't got to get ready. Am I right?
00:06:02
Speaker
That's right. All right, here we go.
Bandits' Finals Statistics
00:06:05
Speaker
So, again, we're just going to go in alphabetical order. And this time we're going to start again with Aubrey Wodonga Bandits.
00:06:13
Speaker
Lockie has very kindly prepared the slides again for this episode. And the first slide up on screen is just some facts from their previous 2024 season. Take us through it, Lockie.
00:06:25
Speaker
I mean... we We know what happened in the finals last year, but oh my goodness, that those three names in the scoring, rebounding, and assist numbers and how big those numbers are.
00:06:39
Speaker
34 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists per game and 20 and 0. i Just an elite team to watch. and know like they didn't They didn't win it all in the end, but man, they were fun to watch.
00:06:55
Speaker
And I mean, Sammy Mack said it on TV a few weeks ago, and Swayce, partially wayside Riley Leper, is um they got they're pretty decent at shooting threes, but they don't shoot a lot of threes, which is probably why I've got that as their first room to improve stat.
00:07:14
Speaker
And I think it is going to be the stat that improves is how much they shoot the threes. And also mentioned there, which I didn't do for a lot of teams because it's kind of a touchy topic. They're non-paint two scoring.
00:07:27
Speaker
They get 10.4% of their points from non-paint twos, which is taking a fair few shots that aren't your... You know, what's the mantra nowadays in basketball? Threes and layups.
00:07:40
Speaker
And, yeah. Shout out to Duncan Berg, HoopsDB, because that stat is directly from him. sorry ah But I think it's the names on the left that aren't there.
00:07:54
Speaker
that are going to be on the next slide that are the r but sticking point. Yeah, and I think um once we let's go through this roster, I think that's the perfect segue, and then we can also talk back to what you mentioned before and about some of the things that Coach Sammy Mack felt like were missing statistically, particularly on the offensive end for the Bandits last season.
New Signings and Strategy
00:08:16
Speaker
But, yeah, this is the roster as it stands. Again, shout-out to the Bandits organisation for their timely and very informative social media posts about their upcoming signings for NBL1 East.
00:08:29
Speaker
Super helpful. um As we can see, so we've already highlighted some of these new signings in one of our in our first episode, our Believe the Hype episode.
00:08:40
Speaker
At the top there, Katie Jones has come over from NBO on West via Europe as well, having some time in Luxembourg. You mentioned already Riley Loughner. um Also, Claudia Hocking is a local up-and-coming talent as well.
00:08:56
Speaker
And then great to see Emma Mahardi back. um And I think, yeah, I think Emma Mahadi was probably a big question mark for me, whether she was going to come back or not. So i'm glad she's certainly back. But let's talk about one particular import that you are the most excited about, Lockie.
00:09:15
Speaker
Oh, Bryn. Bryn Maskewicz. Yes. yeah oh yeah some of it um Yeah, probably one of the sightings I'm most excited about. Had i um slightly interrupted college career at UCLA and DePaul.
00:09:32
Speaker
um So six foot three Canadian was a really highly regarded recruit. So she'll be there. I guess their front court import this year and Riley will be there backcourt import, which I love.
00:09:47
Speaker
I love when you get imports that do two very, you know, the play different roles. You don't want them, you know, stealing minutes from each other or, know,
00:09:58
Speaker
so yeah They need complementary skill sets, not overlapping skill sets, which I think these two these two have. um So yeah Riley's been over in Germany, which is where Katie Jones has been playing recently.
00:10:12
Speaker
um Shoots the three a bit. um Definitely stronger around the basket. looking...
00:10:22
Speaker
so he
00:10:25
Speaker
that seven rebounds or so a game. Sorry, they yes there it is. 6.9 rebounds a game over in Germany. So that's that's solid numbers as well. So definitely a solid addition to the frontcourt and they're going to need it.
00:10:39
Speaker
and They needed another frontcourt import with obviously Unique taking her 16 rebounds per game to somewhere else it appears because they filled both import spots.
00:10:50
Speaker
Yeah, that's correct. So just off the back of some of your insights already with these signings, I basically wrote Katie Jones to create and Riley to shoot. I think, again, what's really handy about these ah announcements online is that um Some of the clubs like the Bandits and even the Penrith Panthers, who we're going to get into a bit later, have started to put little clips together um to help complement their announcements. So we already get it helps us get more excited and more insight into what these players going to bring.
00:11:23
Speaker
But basically my notes read... Katie to create, Riley to shoot, Hannah Lacey, Rameka, I'm really excited about because she's super versatile. She's got great footwork.
00:11:35
Speaker
um She can shoot the three ball. She can put it on the floor. She's ah only 20 years old as well and has some 3x3 and World Cup experience representing New Zealand at the Under-17 World Cup.
00:11:48
Speaker
um Obviously, you've got Bryn who can is a 6'3 forward who can bring a whole lot of trouble inside the paint if need be. Then you've got ah people like Mahadi, Lewis and Mellington who are just absolute anchors in this Bandits team that are great role players. So this roster is looking really exciting.
00:12:09
Speaker
Did you say Lewis? I did say Lewis. I did. Molly Rice. I did. from Molly Lewis, forever and ever. I'm sorry, Molly. Molly Rice, you've been married a long time. And and it's still Lewis in my head. I think my brain over actually overcorrected my itself.
00:12:27
Speaker
But, yes, Rice, Mellington, Mahadi. And and mel kirby Mel Kirby's back in town as well after playing for Laura. Yes. Former ah New South Wales under-20s player.
00:12:43
Speaker
I think that was, yeah, my second under-20s. She was part of that team. Very nice to see her back in back in Bandit's Colours. Yeah, I agree. i agree. She's also a really reliable role player as well to add to this already very diverse roster.
00:13:01
Speaker
little bit younger, but I think, like you said, their skill sets are going to complement each other nicely. um i certainly don't think this is a roster to be underestimated because they've also got a lot of up-and-coming local talent injected in there, so they're going for sustainability as well.
Coach Sammy Mack's Roster Assembly
00:13:17
Speaker
And, you know, Sammy Mac, you... May joke with me sometimes, you know nothing about basketball, but you've put together a hell of a roster, mate. So you ain't fooling anyone. da No, he's not. Not in the slightest.
00:13:32
Speaker
All right, very good for Aubrey Wodonga. So some big outs, obviously, Hannon, Murphy, Jackson, Pivik, question mark, Thompson, question mark, as you mentioned before.
00:13:43
Speaker
I think they're they're definitely outs. It'd be epipping nice if they could ah sign somewhere else in the East. I wouldn't mind that, but I won't get my hopes up. No, it looks like ah if you head to Michaela Pivik's Instagram, um it looks like she's also just recently taken on a role working with a lot of college athletes too, which is she's loving. So I'm not sure if she's coming back any time soon.
00:14:09
Speaker
All right, should we roll on to the next squad? Sure. All right, we're we're keeping it. Relatively down south, we're heading over to Canberra. This does say the Gunners, so I'm going to hide that.
00:14:22
Speaker
ah It is the Canberra Nationals. um Record last season, 9 and 11, little bit of a, shall we say, challenging, stalling perhaps kind of a season in 2024 given some of the experience and depth of the roster that they had.
Canberra Nationals' Roster Strengthening
00:14:40
Speaker
Lizzie Tonks obviously leading the way and Callie Bourne was... very good in supporting her with getting it done as best as possible for the Nationals last season. What are some of the things that stick out to you the most when it comes to their statistical strengths and rooms to improve?
00:14:57
Speaker
ah The fact that both their rebounding rates are in their statistical strengths. So that's great to see. And especially when you consider, um I mean, having Callie Bourne for all 20 games was obviously Obviously great, but they had some players there who can rebound. So they only had Amelia Motz for nine games last year, and she averaged 7.4 rebounds in those games. So they still managed to ah get it done as a team. um
00:15:30
Speaker
The offensive rating, pretty good, but the defensive rating... worse than the offensive rating, not just in rank, but actually the number.
00:15:42
Speaker
So, you know, giving up half a point per 100 possessions more than they are scored. And guess that bears out in finishing 9 and 11 and only playing finals because COE had to pull But,
00:15:59
Speaker
I mean...
00:16:01
Speaker
i they Defensive rating not helped by, i guess, committing 17.7 fouls per game.
00:16:11
Speaker
That's, ah you you know, if you're not, you're probably sending teams to the line a bit too often there. Although at least it didn't it didn't bear out in how many free throws they actually gave up. But ah definitely room to improve mostly on the defensive end. I think four of those five stats are based on your defensive play.
00:16:32
Speaker
All right, I think that's a great segue. I'm really glad that you brought up rebounding as well because that is going to reflect in some of my notes, particularly of some of the people they've added to this roster.
00:16:43
Speaker
So for me, notably is Carly McAllister, huge signing for not just for Canberra Nationals but for the NBL One East competition as well.
00:16:54
Speaker
um And who else is sticking out to you now that they've announced more players? Yeah. Obviously, the the duo of McAllister and Kelly Bourne, like that rebounding rate was good. It could be like supersonic. And you add Abby Kettles in there. She ah spent last year, ah think, mostly playing Warratah for Nationals Academy.
00:17:18
Speaker
I mean, they are going to be hauling down rebounds for fun. So whoever's playing Canberra in round one, I hope you practicing boxing out. the Yeah. But I, I ah got gone.
00:17:33
Speaker
Oh, no, that's why I brought up rebounding as well. Exactly what you said, McAllister and Bourne and the addition of Kettles. um So according to basketball, ACT, social media outlets and the announcement of Abby Kettles returning to the national squad for NBL 1A star, it looks like she was injured a lot last season. Yeah.
00:17:54
Speaker
So it's good that she's healthy and back playing semi-pro. But I also did write my notes, likely is she likely to start in the four or five with McAllister and then you can bump up Callie Bourne the three spot maybe and go a little bit bigger? What do you think?
00:18:12
Speaker
I haven't thought of it that way, but I like that because I know Callie's got such a well-rounded skill set that you might want her one position smaller.
00:18:24
Speaker
to make use of her abilities. But um I guess it it does depend also. There's a couple of names in that TBA list that are still, still could be added and change things again. And they've got Abby Solway back as well.
00:18:42
Speaker
So that's probably one guard spot pretty much filled as well. But a player I'm actually really excited to watch is Jasmine Bootsos. ah she's just become more and more and more of a massive part of this Canberra team over over the years.
00:19:02
Speaker
It's one of those players you watch for like two or three, probably two two seasons to ago, and you're well, yeah, she's shown a little bit. And then I think actually against Sutherland last year, or maybe it was it was a game I commentated, she just lit us up.
00:19:17
Speaker
but I don't remember the final result, but were like, um but Jasbutz also is lighting us up tonight. It's happening. And now she was 30 minutes for them last year. um And she got 30% from three-point range and has just evolved into a real, you know, integral part of this Canberra team.
00:19:39
Speaker
And she's still young. So really looking forward to it. Yeah, and I'm excited that Jade McCowan is also back playing. I remember when she played in the inaugural NBL 1A season for Ulri Wodonga, so I'm glad she's back. She also has a lot of potential.
00:19:55
Speaker
I think she has ah potential to contribute a lot to this team as well, likely off the bench. um But now you mentioned how much Jasmine Butzos has improved and evolved and also testament to her investing in your local talent as well.
00:20:11
Speaker
um Initially I thought maybe she'd be handy, you know, coming off the bench as six man. But now I'm kind of thinking if you put her in the starting spot with, say, Abby Solway and then you've got, you kind of strengthen your bench a little bit more because then you've got someone maybe like McCowan, maybe Tuliac. Tuliac is great to be back on court, but she's also had some injury troubles the last 12 to 18 months. Yeah.
00:20:36
Speaker
um strengthen your bench, bring someone like Tuliak off or i'll bring a start Tuliak and bring Kettles off the bench or something like that. There's so much you could play around with depending on your opponent of the day. Yeah, 100%. I mean, that it's a great, great problem to have. And, I mean, they're three ins and one out. So, yeah, they've still got a few left to to announce if they're going to be announced. But even with this roster, they've got plenty of options and,
00:21:08
Speaker
I mean, that that just gives you a chance against more opponents. You know, the more versatile your roster, the better you can set up against different opponents, which can only ever be a good thing.
00:21:21
Speaker
Absolutely. And we've got some people joining live on Instagram at the moment. So thanks for joining us online as we still work our way through our live streaming. um We've got some Abby Solway fans as well in the chat. ah We've also got some respect to your detailed graphics as well, Lockie. So hats off to you or headphones off to you but That's the commentator's version of that expression.
00:21:45
Speaker
Or mics down maybe. We'll work on it. We'll workshop it. And our friends at NBL1 socials just said, it's back. So it sounds like they missed us.
00:21:56
Speaker
Well, I did drop a sneaky mention that I had to jump off the commentator seminar before this to record a podcast episode. So maybe I really got the word. Yeah, leave them eating crumbs, Lachlan, and make them follow the trail. I like that. I like that a lot.
00:22:12
Speaker
Okay, we're staying in the nation's capital, and this time we're going to have a look at the centre of excellence women's roster. And before we hit do that that, we're going to look at some stats from last season.
00:22:23
Speaker
Record 10 and 10, finishing eighth overall. But unfortunately, as you mentioned, had to withdraw. Because let's be real, they also had one huge schedule last season around 2020.
00:22:35
Speaker
and NBA Global Academy camps and ah World Cup responsibilities. um And I think that last year's COE roster for the women's program in particular ah had such a great variety and depth of talent that they were being asked to represent or at least join squads for multiple age brackets that they were able to fit in as well. So, yeah.
00:23:00
Speaker
And if you look at that roster, you know, we've had Bonnie Dees, Monique Babongi listed there as some of their top performers. We've just seen them now have such great seasons as rookies in the WNBL.
00:23:14
Speaker
um So it's kind of nice to think that, oh, hey, they were in the East last season and now they're like bona fide WNBL players. That's right. they' Having the COE in is great. Our list of East alums in the pros is just going to be electric a few years from now.
00:23:31
Speaker
Yes, yes. So we appreciate the COE always being in the East, particularly for this reason. Plant the seeds and watch them grow. ah but points in the paint, 53%.
00:23:43
Speaker
um I am actually surprised to see them first in the league for that statistic. Are you um ah i A little bit ah just because, like, you don't expect young players to... our
00:24:00
Speaker
you know, tangle as much in the in the paint with, you know, older players. um But I guess like if you watch someone like Manik Babongi get downhill, Sienna Harvey go under the rack, you know, it starts to ah starts to ah all come together when you start thinking about it.
00:24:23
Speaker
Yeah, they have really nice touch under the basket. Getting there is one thing, but their ability to finish was really impressive last season. But rooms to improve, the things that stand out for me is the three-point percentage and the free throw percentage. I mean, guys shooting every day. that's That was one thing. At three-point rate, not percentage.
00:24:43
Speaker
Oh, great. Apologies. That was still, I thought that was fairly low. Yeah.
00:24:51
Speaker
their turnovers and free throw percentage, because that was something that the COE men, that was, those were both in their statistical strengths. They didn't turn the ball over and they shot good free throws.
00:25:04
Speaker
And that was what I thought. um I thought COE women, well, but Watching their games, I didn't think they'd be top two or three or anything like that, but I did not think that a COE program would be 15th when you're playing together, training together, probably more often than, almost certainly more often than any other team in the league.
00:25:26
Speaker
And free throw percentage. Guys, you've got a training hall that's open, like, all the time. Yeah. It's not like you show up not let you turn up for a shoot-around and there's under 14 div 2 training on it and you can't do anything.
00:25:42
Speaker
Yeah, get the gun out. And you don't need anyone to rebound anymore. Sometimes like, oh, I won't shoot around because no one will rebound for me. You've got equipment for that now. yeah you Get on the gun.
00:25:53
Speaker
Get some free throws up. um But let's look at the roster because ah pretty much the names we've already mentioned, unfortunately, aren't going to be there. This roster bar four, five, bar five,
00:26:08
Speaker
A brand new. And when I was preparing for today's episode, the the thought that I had in my head was, does it feel a bit odd to consider Jade Crook a veteran?
00:26:22
Speaker
Because that's how I feel she is in this roster. Legit, though. Like, I mean,
00:26:31
Speaker
admittedly, we did have a year of her at Aubrey in the East. So we sort of... remember her from that as well. And I think if maybe like a Satya Fagan or someone like that was from New South Wales, it might be the same deal. But yeah, it definitely feels like, yeah, Jade's been there a while.
00:26:52
Speaker
She's just had such a wealth of experience as well since she was part of that bandit squad. I mean, she was in the squad, but she wasn't old enough and eligible to play, unfortunately, that season. But we still remember Lauren Jackson giving Jade a shout out in her speech when they were accepting the championship um and how important Jade was actually to that squad and challenging LJ every day.
00:27:17
Speaker
ah but yeah, since then, you know, she's been in, she's represented Australia a handful of times already. So I'm really excited to see her almost have a bit more of a breakout season um in NBL 1 East this year.
00:27:30
Speaker
um Who else are you excited for on the new roster? Yeah. ah Definitely Olivia Aleknovich from ah Logan, Queensland. I actually was ah but ah Logan Basketball when she was selected for under 15 Oceania Championship last year actually put out like a paragraph scouting report about her, which was very Very nice to read.
00:27:54
Speaker
So coming from someone who I'm sure knows more about her than I do, they call her a strong, versatile point guard with an impressive ability to finish at the rim from any angle, even in traffic.
00:28:06
Speaker
ah Can hit three pointers and excels on the defensive end, including securing steals. So, and she dropped 44 at a U16 Nationals game last year, I'm pretty sure.
00:28:21
Speaker
Yeah, in the UCSN National Championship Finals last year, she dropped 44 points. Yeah, so that's ridiculous. That is ridiculous. I'm pretty sure in our under-16s Nationals Grand Final against Vic Metro, the score was 44 to 45 or something.
00:28:39
Speaker
And that wasn't because we were poor shooters. We had very talented ah rosters. I'm not going to get into it now, but. 44 as an individual in a grand final is insane. Like, so, yeah, she's, I wonder if she's going to make a bigger impact as, say, Lara Somphire did when she first came to the East.
00:28:57
Speaker
You know, Lara came in kind of halfway through, just kind of owned the league in her own way for that very short period of time, and now she's, like, due to ball out at Stanford next season.
00:29:10
Speaker
Yeah, and she's giving me Somphire vibes. She has that potential. oh I very much hope You think it's stretch? I mean, it's tough to um say about any player who had a Somfy level impact, but if you don't aim that high, you're not going to get that high.
00:29:33
Speaker
Yeah, that's true. That's true. That's a nice way to put it. ah But, yes, a lot of outs. And as we can see from that outs list, you know, we mentioned Bobongi and Deez going on and having great WNBL debuts. Opal Bird, congratulations to Opal Bird, now a WNBL champion with the Bendigo spirit.
00:29:53
Speaker
ah But look at these inns. You know what's really interesting about a a lot of these inns? What's that, Skwin? They're all, like, most of them are from Queensland.
00:30:05
Speaker
Interesting. Yeah. So typically, ah you know, Victoria is the usually the most prominent state represented in, say, COE scholarships, ah all Australia camps, things like that, because, you know, fair is fair, Victoria have been the ah the strongest performing state for a long time.
00:30:27
Speaker
ah But, yeah, if you head to the Basketball Australia website where they announce the some of the new scholarship holders for the women's program. Aspen Crace is from SA Metro.
00:30:40
Speaker
Olivia, as you mentioned, from Logan, which is Queensland. ah Jade Sherrington, Queensland South. Jemima Maniok, Queensland South. Isabel Smith is Queensland North.
00:30:53
Speaker
Yeah, so a lot of Queenslanders representing. And then We've got a little Andy Smith as well, little at six foot three. Let's say little Andy Smith, a six foot four Ford, as they call it, yes.
00:31:06
Speaker
Yes. ah And probably fly, is you know, when your surname's Smith, you can sort of fly under the radar of who's in your family. It's a...
00:31:19
Speaker
Yes, another another A Smith following in the footsteps of another A Smith, yeah. i really And I'm really keen to see Sophie Taylor hit the court again because she was pretty much out all season with injury, so I bet she she's itching to get back on the court as well for an NBL one season.
00:31:36
Speaker
Very good. So, yeah, lots to look forward to for the Centre of Excellence. ah Now we're going to head back into New South Wales Metro Territory here with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles.
00:31:48
Speaker
Big facts here. Record at the end of the 2024 season it was 16-4, finishing third overall, losing the preliminary final to Newcastle.
00:31:59
Speaker
now Now we can look back on it. Do you feel like the loss doesn't sting as much when you end up losing to the champions or does it sting just as bad, Lockie? Not when it's Manly and Newcastle. They've played too many close games. They've played well like the Zoe Miller takeover up at Newcastle Basketball Stadium. Then this prelim final.
00:32:20
Speaker
Manly and Newcastle... um I mean, the two places already hate each other from the 1997 Rugby League Grand Final. So shout out shoutout to Darren Albert.
00:32:33
Speaker
ah But yeah, dave that that loss is, especially after losing the Grand Final the previous season, the back of Grand Final, you've made two prelims and a Grand Final.
00:32:46
Speaker
It only stings more every single time. Every single time. I think it just adds to it instead of you don't get used to it. You like, you just get more and more mad because it just keeps adding to it.
00:32:57
Speaker
Yeah. um Offensive rebound rate third in the league, ah net rating third in the league. I think, I don't think there's too many.
00:33:10
Speaker
think maybe fast break points are probably, iss probably the statistic in room to approve that I'm most surprised by because I know how well they can play in transition. What about you? What are you most surprised by or most interested by in these facts that you've prepared?
00:33:27
Speaker
Well, yeah. I struggled to find things manly do badly, as you could expect. But the reason I put something they came eighth in in their room to improve is because their offensive rebound rate was 35.1%.
00:33:39
Speaker
And then they were only eighth for second chance points per game. And when you've already got a good offensive rating, then your second chance points, like, as a percentage of the total, is probably even lower ranked, or at least around the same.
00:33:52
Speaker
And so... It's great to have extra opportunities, but it would be nice to complete more of them. If you go yeah get that second chance, use it.
00:34:04
Speaker
But ah yeah the yeah this rate the assist rate is just phenomenal. As you, I think, it yeah if you just ask someone, just take a blind guess, who has the best assist rate in NBL1 East women, I think the majority would probably guess Manly Waringov watching how they play.
00:34:24
Speaker
yeah poetry in motion sometimes watching their half-court offense just so well executed you can just see how much buy-in each player has into what they're doing and how committed and disciplined they are just by the way that they play it's not a matter of uh saying it in presses or online or anything you just watch how they play and you can tell that they're playing for each other which is something i really like about manly ah Looking at the schedule, however, speaking about the rivalry with Newcastle, they only play each other once.
00:34:58
Speaker
That is going to be a ah really interesting game to watch this season, given that they only play each other once. I'm pretty confident that the last two seasons they've played each other twice in the regular season. Am I right?
00:35:13
Speaker
I think so. And it's at Manly, and I saw they just got a brand new set of grandstands put up at Northern Beaches Indoor Sports Centre. So hopefully the Seagulls fans pack those out.
00:35:26
Speaker
They're what should be an absolute belter of a game. Yeah, yeah, i can already I can already hear it from here. It's going to be really, really great. um So let's get to this Manly roster.
00:35:40
Speaker
Again, quite a lovely, complete roster. Probably a couple of new names as well added to their list. The likes of Brooke Flowers not returning. um Bree Delaney, on you know, unfortunately not returning, but she's gone and living her best life. So...
00:35:56
Speaker
Dead set. Yeah. So we're we're still pleased for you, Bree Delaney. While we miss watching you play, we're pleased that you're living your best life. ah But at the top, Alex Delaney, Josie Borman, Kimberley Dickinson, Zoe Miller, you know, all all your favourite hits are there.
00:36:12
Speaker
And at the bottom here of this roster, Kirstie Lucido, Gabby Van Dyke, Taylor Wurtz. um I've tried to get some intel from this roster, but I couldn't get a lot other than that. I know that Gabby Van Dykes played three x three through UTS.
00:36:34
Speaker
It looks like Kirstie Lucido hasn't played for Manly for a very, very long time. It's been a while. but it's The last record I could see was 2015. Well, she went to college at Newbury.
00:36:49
Speaker
um twenty She was... ah senior at college in 2016 so yeah i've it was a name i knew but i haven't seen her play in forever so but yet again more man more homegrown locals coming through yeah Yeah, which is very nice.
00:37:16
Speaker
Now, the import that they have signed this season is Taylor at Wirtz, and I'm not sure if you've managed to see the announcement on Instagram, but it is a true love ah love and basketball kind of a moment, which I really, really like. Yeah.
00:37:31
Speaker
Taylor has signed for the women's team and it says that ah the final pairing, you know, final announcements for ah the manly teams this season. We're finishing with a married dynamic duo.
00:37:44
Speaker
So her husband, Preston Purifoy, is playing for the men's team. How cool is that? Two for one. That is so cool. That is awesome. I don't know if we've had that since NBL 1 East was in existence.
00:37:59
Speaker
I...
00:38:02
Speaker
Or you could argue, actually, no, um the Moss, the Liam and... But that were both already at Hills. They were both already at Hills. That's true. That's true. i haven and I don't think we've had a couple come from, an import couple sign. No, where they were both imports.
00:38:21
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. So i have had ah I've checked out some footage of Taylor online. ah She's a six-foot combo guard.
00:38:32
Speaker
She's played in Euro Cup. She's definitely a drive first, shoot second kind of a guard. Like she's very quick. She has great handles, but she wants to get two feet in the paint. um So my question, Mark, is with this current roster, they've already got such talented guards.
00:38:50
Speaker
Does that mean Dickinson's going to have to play... In the five again, even though she's probably better, more suited for a four? ah Well, I mean, yes.
00:39:03
Speaker
I mean, that's all I can say. Yeah. I mean, looking at the roster is yes, I would i would say so.
00:39:11
Speaker
there's it yeah There's no one else on that roster you'd prefer to have at the five spot than Honey Badger. Yeah, that's true. ah That's true. I just really like what she can do from the high post when she's in a bit more of a four spot. so um And, look, we know that Antonia Henderson and Josie Boorman can guard one to five, so that's certainly in their favour.
00:39:34
Speaker
But I just hope that that's not going to be, you know, Brooke Flowers was such a great presence for them last season because she had just had such great length And she was so unassuming if you would drive towards her, but but she would be ready to swat.
00:39:50
Speaker
um So, yeah, hopefully that's not going to be to Manly's detriment. But very excited to see what Taylor can bring to the already existing, very talented squad.
00:40:01
Speaker
Very much so. And, I mean, it's worth remembering that for the majority of the season, they didn't have both Brooke and Kim. Kim Hodge only played Tim Dickinson only six games last year because she was injured.
00:40:16
Speaker
ah So, yes, you'd probably prefer Kim to be at the four spot. But we've seen what she can do at the five spot. And last year they played the majority of the season with, I mean, they could basically have the same starting lineup, but Dickinson for flowers.
00:40:34
Speaker
Although Dickinson didn't even start every game. No, she didn't. So whereas the vast majority was de lineney two Delaney's, Zoe Miller, Josie Ballman and Annie Henderson.
00:40:49
Speaker
So they're going to be just fine. by Just fine. Just fine. garand i I'm confident they'll definite they'll make top eight. Hopefully. Oh, the top eight. i would Top four again.
00:41:00
Speaker
Yeah, they should be. Right in the mix. for to Although, I mean, top four was a battle last year to get into, but, yeah, they should be pushing for it once again. Yeah, definitely, definitely. Okay, now up the freeway we're going to Newcastle.
00:41:19
Speaker
ah the NBL1 East Women's Champions for 2024 with a record of 16-4, finishing fourth overall um champions.
00:41:31
Speaker
Nicole Munger just amongst everything going back-to-back, NBL1 East MVP as well, top scorer, top rebounder, top assist. She just loves it and Newcastle loves her and you'd be silly not to love Nicole Munger.
00:41:44
Speaker
She's just an absolute gem. ah Does anyone not? No, that's correct. No. I think, and if anyone did, that's a reflection on them. yeah yeah I mean, she could rip your teeth out on court and you'd want to go have a beer with her afterwards.
00:41:58
Speaker
Oh, she'd probably apologise. Yeah. She'd be like, come look I'm just really, really sorry. This is the situation. I hope you understand. And you'd be fine with it. Yeah. ah But, yeah, let's have a look at some of these more so statistical strengths and rooms to improve. Yeah.
00:42:16
Speaker
Interesting. I think a c assist rate for me is the most interesting one in rooms to improve, but what is standing out for you? ah i think ah
00:42:30
Speaker
probably might be might even be bench points. It's like to win a championship last year with your bench point. Like it's it's just playing those extra games.
00:42:46
Speaker
and getting win after win. Like, they finished the season on, like, a nine-game winning streak. um And to not be getting massive contributions scoring-wide from your bench says a lot about the players that did contribute and did get minutes. Like, the starters obviously had to put in big minutes. But...
00:43:11
Speaker
um ah I mean, when you've got, like, Munger's just so good at getting to the basket. You had Isla in there as well. It doesn't surprise me that their three-point rate wasn't that high last season. I mean, play to your strengths.
00:43:26
Speaker
ah So i that doesn't really, it doesn't really fade. And that's the thing with these, um some of the some of these room to improve stats for these higher teams are,
00:43:41
Speaker
and they can sometimes just be tactically based. Might not be even what they're bad at. It's just, you the way things happen. Like, they're blocks two per game. Well, how many people even take on someone like Isla in the paint in NBL 1 East?
00:43:55
Speaker
But, you know, it's still the high, turnovers the low, plenty of extra opportunities, and they put up 17 points per 100 possessions more than their opposition. You know, when they were on, they were brilliant, and they proved it down the stretch just how good they can be.
00:44:12
Speaker
Yeah, definitely. And I think that's a really good point to make about when you're listing and talking about these so statistical strengths and rooms to improve. It can also be a reflection on very good coaching and very good players buying into the systems of playing to your strengths and the rest, you know, as long as you get in the W's, the rest doesn't matter.
00:44:35
Speaker
right theres a well In terms of breaking down the game, there's a lot of stats that matter. but At the end of the season, there's only one stat that matters, who won the last game. Yeah, that's right. That is correct.
00:44:47
Speaker
They've got a pretty, i think um the teams that they play twice, I think are going to be really good for them. Crusaders, Illawarra, Maitland, they're all going to be relatively challenging, but I think both Newcastle and the teams that they play with maybe exception of one or two, probably have a good opportunity to get a split.
00:45:11
Speaker
um And then at home, Albury, Bankstown, Canberra Hill, Sydney. Yeah, pretty pretty good for Newcastle, I think. Pretty good um that they get Albury at home as well and they don't have to make the long trip.
00:45:25
Speaker
Yeah, that's right. Well, I think Albury will do the distance double this year, in Newcastle, Maitland on the one weekend. Yeah. Yeah, very good. So let's have a look at the roster.
00:45:38
Speaker
So, so far they've just announced the two, four, six, eight players so far, but it is a really, it's a pretty outstanding eight as it stands. A lot of TBAs, but that's okay.
00:45:51
Speaker
ah But let's focus on who is here. Munger is, of course, back and she's brought her friends from the UC Caps in Meg Jefferson and Claudia Wahape Andrews. ah Good to see Hannah Chicken back because I thought she was going to college.
00:46:07
Speaker
After this season she's committed to Portland State. Very good. Portland State. Got a Portland State T-shirt. i got to remember to wear it. Yeah. All right. So good. So we can make sure we can help Hannah Chicken prepare as best as possible for her college career, hopefully, heading over there also with another championship.
00:46:28
Speaker
Fingers crossed for them. Sophie Brennan, you were very excited to see back in the fold. And now I can't remember. Now, when we spoke about this other big signing, we knew was coming based on what we saw on social media and it wasn't officially announced yet.
00:46:44
Speaker
ah I'm not sure if I actually ended one of our recordings before I said this name or if I safely did. But here it is nonetheless. Susanna Wormsley.
00:46:55
Speaker
She's coming home, Lockie. She is. ah Do you want to bring my screen up to the full screen if you can? Yes. Yes, I can. um Let's go like this.
00:47:09
Speaker
There we Oh, my gosh. Now, for those watching at home that may not know what that is in the background, give us a briefing. That is the player pull-up banner for Susie Wormley, obviously, from the Sydney Uni Flames Championship season.
00:47:29
Speaker
And you can't see it. It probably has almost faded away by now, but Susie did sign it. So they had an auction. they had an auction
00:47:40
Speaker
um You know, while everyone was paying four figures for Asia Taylor and Leilani Mitchell's banners, I went and got Susie Wormley's and Lauren Sparks.
00:47:50
Speaker
But I gave Lauren Sparks's to her mum. So I still had the Susie Wormley one back.
00:47:56
Speaker
Very good. Looks awesome. ah And yeah, and that's a really great piece of memorabilia, I think, to have as well. I was going to ask, is it signed? It is. So I i actually, i've worked for the team that season.
00:48:10
Speaker
I did all their match reports that season. So yeah, ah way that was a good season to work for the Flames. Yeah, definitely. i remember going to that final with a couple of my friends who are sports journalists and hadn't been to a WNBL game for a long time and um were just blown away. it was such an exciting final. That was such a unique team playing for Sydney that season. um Yeah, it was a very exciting final. That's the same season, Ali Wilson. You you mentioned Ali Wilson, didn't you?
00:48:41
Speaker
Ali Wilson was in that team. We had Tylee Tupiah and Lauren Nicholson coming off the bench.
00:48:50
Speaker
Yes, that's right. And was Michaela Roof in that team, but she broke her hand over the final? No, that was the season before that. Ah, okay. Yes. So Roofie and Parrish Johnson, two seasons prior, got us to the prelim final when we beat Penny Taylor's Dandenong.
00:49:09
Speaker
Penny Taylor and Kathy Pondexter's Daniel. And then the next yeah was when next season was when Rufy broke her hand. And then the season after that, we had Aja Taylor and Jen Hampson and won it all. Yes, that's right. Jen Hanson. Good memory. Very good memory.
00:49:23
Speaker
But yeah, love that Susie Wormsley is back. Another one that is, you know, just adding to this theme for 2025 of homecoming. Homecoming. How good is it? It's it just so many players back in the East, just making it stronger. And they come back and then players don't feel like they have to leave to go to a stronger conference.
00:49:44
Speaker
And then we don't have homecomings. We have home stayings. We just have homebodies. Yeah. But then oh when was in my notes, I was like, Susie Wormsley and Munga together. Oh, RIP everyone else. Like, especially I think especially on the defensive end, like they're just if they get their chemistry right.
00:50:05
Speaker
um they're just going to shut people down when they work together on the defensive end. I can see them trapping people, just being causing absolute chaos to the to the scouts of their opposition. So, yeah, they're going to complement each other really nicely. Then another big, I think the import for is Rio Yamazaki, who has also played college in Canada and the US.
00:50:30
Speaker
Have you had much time to... um Have a look at Rio Yamazaki's game and what she's going to bring to the Falcons? I haven't really, but as I understand, she's a bit of a prototypical Japanese player, i think I think I saw. Is that correct?
00:50:49
Speaker
Yeah, so she is ah she's very quick. She has a solid outside shot, but she also has a really nice light touch when she's finishing under the basket. The thing that I was most impressed with with the footage I saw online about her game was how active she was off the ball.
00:51:08
Speaker
um So are even in half-court offence, if she's on the weak side to say a two-man game or three-man game that kind of breaks down, she's able to very quickly read and react and cut into a gap, curl cut to the middle, and start to create something when her defense starts to fall asleep. So whoever's guarding her is going to have to really keep an eye on her at all times because her her activity off the ball is very, very good in her anticipation.
00:51:38
Speaker
So, yeah, she's going to be very handy for them. Yeah. I think we say the prototypical Japanese player, but I think that's a that's a product of how they have instilled a certain type of play in their development pathways rather than it just being you know culture thing.
00:51:57
Speaker
oh It probably has become part of the culture over there because of the way they've instilled it in the development pathways. watching I mean, you watch the... They call themselves the Akatsuki Five, especially when they were coached by Tom Hovas.
00:52:09
Speaker
I mean, they were just... Like, watching them against Belgium,
00:52:16
Speaker
the 2020 game, during lockdown, I must have watched that game 20 times. I just kept watching it and picking it apart because they were just two such good teams to watch. Yeah, they are.
00:52:29
Speaker
They're really two good teams to watch. And I think internationally they're all almost developing their own rivalry because then at the Paris Olympics, I think Belgium beat Japan by such a large margin, which then added the extra pressure for the Opals to beat France for us to make the medals.
00:52:46
Speaker
Oh, drama. Too much stress. So much stress. with this is This is why we love sport. Okay, rolling on now to Norse Bears.
00:52:59
Speaker
as the roster stands so far. We're going to get into that before that. We're going to get into some season stats and facts from 2024. They finished the season with a record of eighteen and two finishing second overall losing the preliminary final to the Sutherland Sharks.
00:53:19
Speaker
ah Last season, they were led by Matty O'Hare in points and assists and Sarah Schicker leading the side in rebounds. Lockie, talk me through the statistical strengths and room to improves.
00:53:36
Speaker
This was, i mean, I only got only found four stats in the room to improve and um
00:53:45
Speaker
And three of them were opposition play. um Opposition points in the paint was 47%, and free throw rate was 21.4%, and the fast break.
00:53:55
Speaker
So they were right down the bottom in fast break points conceded as well. But um I feel like that's almost a product of teams figuring out that that's the only way they're going to get points against Norths.
00:54:12
Speaker
is if they go in, draw some fouls, and get out and run. Because teams were averaging, if I can just take a look, teams were shooting 24% from three-point range against North last year.
00:54:29
Speaker
So North were... killing teams on the perimeter with their perimeter defense. So I feel like that's just more of a what teams had to do. And it's the net rate, the net rating was 23 plus 23.2. They, you know, and I'm pretty sure and their defensive rating was second in the league. So it's,
00:54:52
Speaker
just teams trying things to try and beat them more than an actual issue. When you're only giving up 70, what, less than 0.8 points per possession, um you're obviously doing things pretty well defensive end.
00:55:07
Speaker
um Yeah, absolutely. I think that's their brand, especially under Coach Gallup, that North women's side. Even when Renee was still playing for the side, I think that really strong perimeter half-court defence was their brand almost.
00:55:21
Speaker
Well, I mean, remember there was one season when their backcourt was Kate Seabom and Izzy Morgan. i just I just walk back out the stand, I just be like, no, I'm done. I'm not doing this.
00:55:34
Speaker
Yeah, no, thank you. I think I've all of it all of a sudden got an injury. yeah Yeah. um But, yeah, let's look at that roster because I feel like it's still in developmental in developing stages. They certainly announced a lot of players, but there's certainly a couple TBAs that we may need to talk about as well.
00:55:53
Speaker
So Maddie O'Hare was the first to be re re-signed or announced anyway. Carla Pittman coming back on a very successful WNBL season with the Sydney Flames. Like, such a great season for her. She was promoted from development player to full roster spot.
00:56:10
Speaker
and she legit contributed consistently all season she was so impressive and then she earned i think players player and coaches award at their end of awards season some presentation as well so she's just going to be like booming coming into nbl1 east she was already ah such a consistent threat in the league and now um my gosh strength to strength same with caitlin martin she's coming off another dp season with the flames and And then Ruby Perkins is now stepping up into a permanent roster spot for NBL One East. What do you think of that?
00:56:44
Speaker
I actually, i I went down to Sutherland for their ah Youth League Invitational on Saturday, Saturday night. And there were two games on. There was Sutherland-Dillawarra on Court 1 and North Comets out on Court 3.
00:56:59
Speaker
I'm not going to lie. I spent more time watching the North Comets game so I could watch Ruby Perkins up close for free. And... Honestly, get to and North.
00:57:10
Speaker
It might even happen in NBL 1, but definitely get to a North Youth League game and watch Ruby Perkins and Peggy Schell work together. Chef's kiss. So I'm looking forward to the day when, I think I've said this last season, we're looking forward to the day when we can buy Ruby Perkins Opals jersey at some stage.
00:57:28
Speaker
Yes. I wonder as well, though, if she'll have to spend some time away. ah no, she's she's too I think it's under-17s World Cup this year or is it under-19s? I m can't quite remember.
00:57:43
Speaker
But she was definitely announced in an Australian squad recently. I can't keep up. But Holly Wills is back, which we love to see. Jess Bygate is back after a season season off, as well as Jolene Anderson and Emma Donnelly coming back from college for a wee bit.
00:58:00
Speaker
But, yeah. TBA, Emily Simons and Meg Jeffs and Sarah Schicker. So I did notice that the North Bears announced Mikey Young is returning for the men's team, which we were holding out for. And then we throw him on the we saw him on the media day video as well.
00:58:21
Speaker
We did actually, yeah. We love those media day videos, especially before the full roster is announced because then you've got the likes of us and a couple of our friends just screenshotting and zooming and analysing everything to be like, who's that? Who's that? Who's that? Let's complete this roster. yeah um So do you think it's a case of a similar case of just leaving some of the hometown heroes as the last announcements? Yeah.
00:58:47
Speaker
I hope so, because I really like those players and I'd like to see them play. Yeah, i mean, Emily Simons is just one of the best players in the league. That's just flat out it. And especially for a player who's not a WNBL player.
00:59:03
Speaker
I mean, she is. And she's he's so versatile as well. she's not just yeah she's among She's not just among the best and can play multiple positions. She is among the best in multiple positions.
00:59:16
Speaker
And then Sarah Schicker led them in rebounding last year. So, um i mean, they got, and they brought back Anderson and Bygate, which are going to be massive. Emma Donnelly back in the roster as well. I mean, I'm so psyched to have Joel and Anderson back, especially after what she did in the grand final two years ago.
00:59:34
Speaker
You can't, I mean, in a way, use you kind of can walk it off like that. But in another way, can't. You got to come back and,
00:59:45
Speaker
Give everyone another taste. Yeah, definitely, definitely. And so as we are speaking about Ruby Perkins, she announced 50 minutes ago on Instagram that she has verbally committed to the University of California, Berkeley for her college career, to start her college career.
01:00:05
Speaker
So Perkins versus Somphite in the Cal-Stanford rivalry. o that's going to be very interesting. Very interesting. So congratulations to Ruby. I'm sure that decision would have been very difficult to make.
01:00:23
Speaker
It did come on. its Oh, that's what I was going to give Emily Bessel. A shout out. I briefly spoke to her today, actually. And as we know, she's over at Davidson as well.
01:00:37
Speaker
She and her classmates or teammates, you know, or both, um i started an app called SportsSpark. So you can find them on Instagram at sportspark.app.
01:00:51
Speaker
It is the they're aiming to create an app that has is designed to help college athletes ah re-spark their game ah with mental health services and sports psychology perhaps.
01:01:04
Speaker
um So it's it's just in its preliminary phases. I think they're looking to develop the app and launch it this year. So go and check it out on Instagram and give them a follow so far.
01:01:15
Speaker
But what an incredible initiative from some young athletes. 100%. I don't think I can show it. I'm like, where's that tat? I can only see little bit of it. All I get is the ring light. Yes. Davidson tattoo.
01:01:31
Speaker
Yes, there we go. Very good. There you go. good diamond hi Anyway, we better be moving on because we don't want to show them too much favouritism or someone will shut us down. Why not? they we yeah show them They don't think I show them enough favouritism anymore.
01:01:46
Speaker
But here we are, Penrith Panthers. Last season, their season, 2024 season, their record was 7-13, finishing 11th overall, which meant they obviously didn't qualify for finals. But we got to see Talia Tupai with some huge games in the season last year for Penrith. So obviously she was their top scorer and dished out the most assist with Mia Haider. Top rebounder, 14.1 rebounds per game incredible.
01:02:16
Speaker
quite is outstanding. that is beside the least That is mammoth numbers. that's That's up near unique Thompson numbers. ah Yeah, definitely. Yeah, that's huge numbers.
01:02:28
Speaker
ah Talk me through some of their strengths and limitations, Lockie. Well, we already mentioned that Talia Pupire is off to inner west um and I Those first three statistical strengths, I feel like are based a lot on Talia Tupaya.
01:02:50
Speaker
Because she shot 146 out of 160, 91.2% from the line. So there's a lot of free throw rate and a lot of free throw percentage and a lot of fouls drawn in there.
01:03:03
Speaker
So...
01:03:07
Speaker
Yes, they have three strengths based around, you know, drawing fouls and converting them, but a lot of it comes from Talia, who is no longer there. Get a fair bit from... Actually, Mia Heider and Chloe Williams had 109 and 76 free throws attempted, respectively. The next best on the team was 21.
01:03:29
Speaker
So it's at 285 between those three and maybe 90 between the rest of the team. So ah
01:03:40
Speaker
definitely something to look at there. um I guess just, you turnover rate.
01:03:51
Speaker
Turnover rate is high, but they don't give up a lot of fast break points, which I found interesting. And um it's just... The net rating, you know, just, I mean, when you finish 7-13, you're going to be scoring fewer points than you're giving up. um ah But 13.9 is tough. You know, that's a lot to bring back. um But I think, as we'll see in the next slide, I think they've made some improvements to the roster that could really, really help them.
01:04:22
Speaker
Absolutely. Let's get stuck into it. I have to say ah that they've done a great job recruiting in the offseason. the rosters you know They've got a lot of numbers on the roster, which is already good, and they've got a lot of good ah versatile talent in terms of skill set and experience as well um to round out this roster. I think they're going to be more successful. I think they they've got potential. I think they're going to get more than seven wins this season with this roster.
01:04:50
Speaker
um The one that we were really excited about before East Scott game made a return was Sarika Shillingsworth. We love seeing her back on court. We certainly but certainly do.
01:05:03
Speaker
Yes. yeah Multi-sport athlete extraordinaire. Yes, I'm really glad that she's back playing. ah Jolene Imprezo has made the move from Inuos to Penrith, and I wrote in my notes, Justice for Jolene.
01:05:18
Speaker
Give us some more time. She's got so much potential. She's represented the Philippines at a fever level. Like, give us some more time. um Zoe Jackson is a huge signing as well for Penrith coming out of COE.
01:05:32
Speaker
quite Quite literally. Yeah, yeah. Standing at 194 centimetres. Yes, that's right. um And so obviously there's a couple of more names. Mia Hyder's returning, which is also a really, really big get, and a couple of other new ah names on the roster.
01:05:49
Speaker
Have you had a chance to look into some of these new signings for Penrith just yet, Lockie? So Jordan Vasquez is one of their new signings. She's an import signing, so second import along Hyder.
01:06:02
Speaker
Six foot forward, played her... College ball at Cal State San Marcos and Fort Lewis College.
01:06:14
Speaker
So started at Fort Lewis and then moved to Cal State San Marcos, which is D2 score, obviously, in San Marcos. Average 16.7 points per game in her senior a year of college and 11.8 rebounds.
01:06:27
Speaker
i rebounds So, yes, D2 height is not as big of a thing as it would be in D1. But still, you out in there and get 16.7 and 11.8 rebounds per game.
01:06:42
Speaker
we We know what you can do. We know you're going to be on the glass. um Shot one three-pointer for her entire college career at San Marcos. So, definitely look for her to be more around the basket where she shot fifty five percent 55% from the field, all from two-point range for the season, for her senior season, where she just just came on in leaps and bounds that final year.
01:07:05
Speaker
um Just emerged as a real leader for but her college team. And, I mean, Pedrith, they've got some players who have been around a while, but you can never have too much leadership on the roster, especially from your imports. You really want imports are going to, you know, really stamp their mark on the team.
01:07:27
Speaker
Yeah, so the two imports, I mean, we mentioned Mia Hyder averaging 14.1 rebounds per game. Sounds like the two imports are just going to have potential to dominate the boards. In a similar way, we were talking about the Canberra Nationals ah earlier with Kettles, McAllister and Bourne.
01:07:44
Speaker
ah It looks like Penrith are going to be able to... match them quite nicely with their rebounding caliber. And if I looked at some of Jordan's footage online from what I could find and she looks like a traditional back to the basket type post player. She's definitely has the handles and the footwork to still go coast to coast when she needs to.
01:08:06
Speaker
but ah very and a very nice textbook post player from the high and low post, which we love to see. We don't want to see that dying from the game. What about Kelly? Chase, did you get to look much into her?
01:08:19
Speaker
like couldn't find much on her from very recently. Yeah. she's She's from France and has played in their second division, but doesn't look like it's been for a while. And I'm kind of wondering if they've got Haida, Vasquez, and then a French player as well. Maybe she's been in Australia long enough to not count as an import anymore.
01:08:41
Speaker
Yeah, the only footage I could find was, again, another club we need to shout out for their announcements and providing extra footage of their new signing is Penrith Panthers. So the only footage I think I could really find was the footage that the Panthers had provided on their Instagram page. And she's tough.
01:09:01
Speaker
She's really, really tough. she Little pocket rocket. So she's also very quick, but she's ready to use her body to compensate for her size both off on offense and on defense.
01:09:13
Speaker
There's footage of her taking charges against people that are double her size. She's taking on anyone off the dribble. ah you You know, you get a bump when you're playing one-on-one and she's able to absorb it and still find a way to the basket.
01:09:26
Speaker
She's going to be really exciting to watch as well. Yeah, and also what I like about this roster is they're named 14, and there's a few players that might pull double shift with Youth League, but they're not going to be burning out half their roster in Youth League, which is good to see as well.
01:09:44
Speaker
and There's a couple, I think, Kaylee Martin and Kaylee Davies, who are in the TVA list, I think were named in Penrith's Youth League squad, if not roster. So...
01:09:57
Speaker
Good stuff. Invest in local talent. And also, ah just sorry one, I just want to shout out because she's played for Bathurst, Malika Jenkins because we've got to shout out the Western New South Wales players.
01:10:12
Speaker
Oh, yeah. While we're at it, we've got to shout out Teagan Edwards, who used to be formerly known as Teagan Burke. Who also played for... I watched her win a Waratah 2... What was Waratah Div 2 championship for Bathurst up at Maitland in 2014? Wow. Oh, yes. Actually, i do remember that as well. Was Paul Masters the coach?
01:10:36
Speaker
Was it that year? That was my first season in watching Waratah League. Yeah, so you were fair enough. And it was Waratah too. So Tegan is originally from Bathurst and then her and her family moved to the Central Coast ah back in the day. She's the same age group as Molly Rice from All Rewodonga Bandits and the two of them used to play together and were just outstanding in their age group. So Tegan has a ah really varied skill set and I'm glad that she's still involved in the game too.
01:11:05
Speaker
So shout out to Western New South Wales. But, yes, let's move on to our last team. It is now the Sydney Comets women. Last season they had a record of 10-10, finishing seventh, and they lost the elimination final to the Central Coast Crusaders.
01:11:22
Speaker
Last season we saw the likes of Shiloh Hill, Janine Kemp, and Davida Dow leading the way in their Significant statistics. All three players, unfortunately, haven't been announced for the Comets for 2025.
01:11:35
Speaker
ah But tell me a little bit more about their stats from last season, Lockie. Well, I mean, you should know I should almost just put most steals instead of one of the other stats because Davida Dale was at five and a half assists. I think she had more steals than assists per game, but those assists numbers are pretty good.
01:11:52
Speaker
But ah obviously Davida Dale is now at Bankstown. So that statistical strength of steals and fast break points, well, that's going to be have to be made up by committee because you don't just go out and find another Davida Dale at the defensive end.
01:12:07
Speaker
um ah yeah Steals, fast break points, points off turnovers. No wonder they've led the league in that. um But they kept the turnover rate low, which is good. um But just defensive rebounding rate. just I hate things that allow the opposition more opportunities than you.
01:12:31
Speaker
You know, how many times has a team shot... We've watched it in Melbourne East and talked about it Has a team shot a worse field goal percentage by a decent clip, but the turnover numbers and the offensive rebounding numbers have just swayed so far in their favour that they put the ball in the basket more times.
01:12:51
Speaker
So, yeah, de defensive rebounding rate, something they need to pick up. And the free throw percentage, if it ever starts with a six, I'm not impressed. Oh, and for me, I'm sorry, but if it starts with a seven, it's got to be at least a 75, then I'm okay with it. But come on, this is the semi-pros. You've got to be 75 and above.
01:13:11
Speaker
But if it starts with a six, no, ma'am. I also wonder as well that field goal percentage, just reflecting on the times when we watched some of the Comets games. Now, to be fair as well for the Comets team last season, I think they had quite a,
01:13:29
Speaker
Like their roster and their team chemistry was probably hard to adapt to a lot because I think they had a lot of late admissions to the squad as the season went on. So I i don't think they actually started the season with people like Keel, Camp and Dale straight away.
01:13:48
Speaker
um i think they kind of, or Davida Dale was the first to arrive. um But I think their field goal percentage was sometimes reflective of, perhaps limit of like poor decision-making in certain situations or people trying to fight for more shots than the other person. Or I think there was a lot of those kind of unknowns and question marks that you could only, you can't really stat properly, but you could see when you play like the disharmony, I think was sometimes reflected in field gold percentage. Is that how you remember it or am I remembering it? No, I think sometimes you just get,
01:14:29
Speaker
those plays happen where things just sort of break and you someone just has to take a shot. And I'm not talking about it gets to 23 in the shot clock. It's just sometimes you just realize that nothing is developing and someone has to shoot the ball at some point. And that's when you don't get good shots.
01:14:48
Speaker
um Whether it's a function of, you know, people work, you know, people acting as though they're the first option in the offense when they're not, or, know, yeah trying to make their mark on the team. Sometimes a bit of a lack of chemistry, especially earlier in the season, just yeah it just leads to maybe not poor decision-making. I think forced decisions might be a better term for some of them.
01:15:17
Speaker
and i don't think anyone I don't think anyone out there is completely innocent of not making a bad decision once or twice in their career, but um sometimes they were I think they were forced forced decisions. Forced decisions is a much better way to describe it. Yes, I agree.
01:15:32
Speaker
ah So let's have a look at the new roster for 2025 for the Sydney Comets women's side. Again, seeing a lot of local talent returning with the likes of Kay Roos, Oliver and Anderson. And it also Piper Anderson coming off a successful season as a development player for the Sydney Flames in the WNBL.
01:15:51
Speaker
um Bigger sightings that we've talked about in previous episodes being Abby Curtin and Michaela Perini, but I'm going to be honest with you, Lockie. I don't recognise a lot of the other names.
01:16:02
Speaker
I'm going to have to lean on you to tell me some intel. Okay. Well, um some of these are not announced in like your fancy Instagram graphic. Some of them are on the club website as a team.
01:16:15
Speaker
So Emily Nguyen, Gabby Neal, Nina Baker, Sam Bedwell, all coming up from, I think all coming up from Youth League.
01:16:27
Speaker
Elle Fletcher was on Hills roster last year. Don't think I saw a lot of her. um Talon Alexander is... ah Don't know if she... was shot she wasn't she mustn't have She was around the program. I don't think she was ever actually on a game night roster.
01:16:44
Speaker
So they're all coming up through coming out through Youth And... Gabby Neal, I watched her in that game against Ruby Perkins. She's former she's from Queensland, so she's formerly out of Ipswich, and she she looked good running the offense um against North, the Comets. I mean, North pulled Ruby Perkins out of the game pretty early, but it finished, I think, 59-52.
01:17:09
Speaker
And um Comets Youth League, I mean, Ruby Perkins going to do that to just about what she did to Comets the other night in Youth League. She's going to do to just about every Youth League team. in just tear them apart but yeah um yeah i rated gabby right running yeah running a bit of the offense for for comments um so it seems like she's got a bit of toughness about her as well and i think having been ah she was in ipswich's nbl1 um program as well so she's been around uh environment for a while but um i mean
01:17:47
Speaker
I'm psyched for these young players that have been around a while, your K. Ruses, your Olivers, your Andersons, to just keep... elevating and just get more consistent.
01:17:58
Speaker
I think that's what they could all do with is just more consistent. And that'll come with time. It's time you get better. You get better technically, you get better physically, you you make better decisions and you just improve. And I mean, especially Piper Anderson after a year with the Sydney flames, um, learning from those players on that roster, those coaches, uh, can't wait to see what she does this year.
01:18:26
Speaker
Yeah, that's great. So, well, look, it sounds like a very young and exciting team. ah The only other background I wanted to give was Michaela Perini, who if some people in the East haven't heard the name before.
01:18:39
Speaker
um But basically she's got a Wikipedia page, so, you know, she's legit. ah love it But she has played ah most of her career, whether it's semi-pro in NBL 1 or equivalent or WNBL in WA, where she's originally from.
01:18:58
Speaker
um I think once upon a time she was in the mix of some Australian junior teams or a COE equivalent. ah But she most recently in the WNBL had a season with Adelaide Lightning.
01:19:12
Speaker
Has been ah still a standout performer over in NBL 1 East. And actually this year, saw sorry, not this year, last year the WNBL preseason comp hoops fest that was held in Perth as well.
01:19:29
Speaker
ah Perini suited up for the Townsville Fire and that squad that they took over there and was just like, It looked like she was having so much fun. She was just balling out, having a great time. um Yeah, full skill set a set on show. So this is a huge signing for Sydney Comets. And I think, Lockie, we're going to have to try and get more to this story, hopefully perhaps get her on as a guest you know in our season for 2025 for East Scott game, perhaps, and find out a little bit more about what attracted her to coming to sign over in the East.
01:20:04
Speaker
Yeah. it's It's funny, I ah went up to Comets on Saturday. Great new roof they've got at Comets, by the way. It doesn't leak. Which is ah basically the only thing that was wrong with the roof before. um And ah to we were talking about Perini. And I've been outdone on um my old school knowledge because I was saying that I remember Perini when she was with the West Coast Waves.
01:20:27
Speaker
And Kiara Leovai drops, well, I remember playing against her when she was playing for WA Metro. was like, ooh! Okay. Yeah, well, that's not very often that you that someone one-ups you, Lockie. I know, right? ah You are pretty much the go-to for any deep-cut information, so that's um that's a rare occasion. i had to I had to admit defeat on that occasion.
01:20:55
Speaker
And now just before we wrap up on tonight's episode, let's just quickly recap um the NBL1 blitz that is happening this weekend. And then we've also got a little bit of extra news about ESCOT game that I'd like to share before we finish up. So what I'm going to do is try and bring up.
01:21:14
Speaker
I'm going to share my screen. Just let me share my screen. Just let me share my screen. so They say in corporate parlance, oh, Hills Resign Paper Moisture in the men's. well, that's good.
01:21:28
Speaker
So there you go. Another signing for Hills. Now, here we go.
01:21:35
Speaker
whoops, I need to remove this. And here we go. Here is the NBL1 East Blitz tournament for 2025s tipping off at Penrith Valley Regional Sports Centre on Saturday the 15th of March starting at 11am. Now this is the women's draw as it stands.
01:21:57
Speaker
So you can see Penrith, Penrith obviously, pretty appropriately tipping off the tournament. Playing against Hornsby, which will be interesting yeah given that they still haven't announced any athletes from either men's or women's side.
01:22:12
Speaker
um Then we can see Hills, North, Inner West as well. Interestingly, they have entered a women's team, again, only announcing one player. um Sydney, Central Coast Crusaders, Illawarra, Canberra, Bankstown, Manly Warringah, Newcastle, Maitland and Sutherland. So that is a...
01:22:31
Speaker
Good spread of teams. That is the majority of the teams. Is that everyone except Aubrey and COE? Yeah, looks like it, actually. pretty much what I would, so I mean, yes I am legitimately never going to blame Aubrey for not coming up to the Blitz if it's in Penrith.
01:22:48
Speaker
Yeah, so you're right. It's every every team other than COE and Aubrey, which is awesome. That's a really, really great turnout. Yeah. Yeah, so I would have loved if it was televised somehow. I was hoping to come down for the weekend and naturally have left it way too late. um but it looks like it looks like everyone only has two games per weekend, which is good.
Upcoming NBL1 Games and Scouting
01:23:14
Speaker
I mean, we don't want any pre-season injuries, but plenty of opportunity to go and watch some of the other games and perhaps start your scouting reports. And so that's for the women. And let's have a look at the men.
01:23:29
Speaker
First game on Saturday will be at 3 p.m. Canberra versus Bankstown. Then we've got Manly, Newcastle, Central Coast and Illawarra, Inner West and Sydney, Maitland and Sutherland, Penrith and Hornsby and Hills and North. So, again, Hornsby obviously taking a score despite not having announced any names yet.
01:23:51
Speaker
Well, we have we have seen some players. They just won't announce them yet. Yes, that's right. We have, again, our super sleucing online, <unk>m trying to find things from stories and ah media day promo shoots and things like that, trying to piece the clues together of who's on these rosters.
01:24:10
Speaker
ah Between us and some of our peers, I think we're going okay so far, but we would prefer the official
Eastcott Game's New Logo
01:24:16
Speaker
announcements. but Let's just say my my local spreadsheet on my computer has a lot more names in it than the NBL1 East roster tracker on eastgottgame.com.
01:24:25
Speaker
Yeah.
01:24:29
Speaker
ah So it looks like, again, Aubrey and COE are the only teams not coming for the men's fixture, if I'm not mistaken. Yeah, that's correct. Yeah, seven games, 14 teams.
01:24:41
Speaker
Yeah. Thought I'd better give it a like while we're here. ah So, yeah, if you're able... yeah and you've got nothing on on the weekend, head to the Penrith Valley Regional Sports Centre for the NBL1 Blitz this weekend starting at 11am with Penrith and Hornsby.
01:24:59
Speaker
So there you go I'll be up bright and early. Yeah, yeah, I would be really keen to go and see. I love a pre-season tournament like a Blitz because it just starts the hype, it starts the chatter, builds the atmosphere and the excitement heading into a new full season. So ah for those that are going, please enjoy.
01:25:19
Speaker
And report back. Send us a DM on Instagram at Eastcott Game. If you happen to go to the Blitz and you've got some thoughts that you want to share, send us a DM. We'd love to hear about your experience.
01:25:32
Speaker
um Now, the last bit of news that I've got, Lockie, is we've got a new logo. We We've got a new logo. I'm going to try and bring it up now.
01:25:44
Speaker
you can see it up in the corner. I'm not too sure. What I might try and is let's see if I can bring it up. Oh, no, that's just you. Hey, Lockie. Hang it with the new logo. What um Yes, but you can see it there in the corner, our new ESCOT game logo very kindly ah submitted to us by um actually someone from NBL1 North. So I'm just going to bring up their details to make sure, again, that I'm representing them properly.
01:26:19
Speaker
So ah new logo, it's going to be featured out from now on on our social media platforms, et cetera. It was designed by an online personality per se named Deej Wiz. So D-E-E-J, new word, W-I-Z-Z.
01:26:36
Speaker
So they are the NBL1 game day DJ at the Northside Wizards up here in NBL1 North. They do a really good game day as well to the Wizards.
01:26:48
Speaker
They do. They do a very good game day, top to bottom. I mean, they always have talented teams, so the games are always going to be entertaining. The DJ's always great.
01:26:58
Speaker
And look... They've got proper stadium lights as well, in like arena lights. Like when they darken the stadium, they can probably put on earth on a show. On a light show. And they have great chicken nuggets and chippies at the canteen.
01:27:13
Speaker
They do! They do. Yeah. I've I've been there once. So, yeah. So, yeah, we've got a brand new logo. Thanks for Deej Wiz ah for designing it.
01:27:27
Speaker
Honestly, he he also designed the Ball Don't Lie podcast new logo as well. But, yeah, he just very kindly um sent us a message on Instagram and say, hey, here's some suggested logos. Yeah.
01:27:45
Speaker
we We both liked really liked this one. We had two options. ah They gave us permission to use it ah for none other than for nothing other than a shout-out. So we're very, very appreciative there.
01:27:59
Speaker
Deej is very supportive of podcasts like this and other podcasts homegrown alternative media outlets that are going to promote basketball at the local level. and So, yeah, we really appreciate it. Thank you. We love it. So, yeah, we've got a new logo.
Replica Jersey Sales
01:28:15
Speaker
best Thank you, sir. Yeah. So um for those that are going to be listening to this later, yeah, check it out. Our new logo online. Let us know what you think. um but but Before we wrap up, Lockie, have you got anything else ah to share that you need to get off your chest before we say goodbye?
01:28:33
Speaker
Bates Town are selling replica jerseys. They are selling replica jerseys. Yes, we put it on our Instagram story today. So make sure you head to either their website or their social pages to find the appropriate link.
01:28:47
Speaker
yeah And you can get a name and number on them. So make sure you figure out. i but Maybe DM your favourite player. Well, if if you know if you're on good terms with them, don't just go randomly DMing players. But, you know, if you know someone, you know a player, you want to know what number they're wearing. So...
01:29:03
Speaker
you can get your jersey all right and proper. Yeah, I think that's good. luck If you're going to sell replica jerseys, go all the way by letting people get the name, whatever name and number that they want.
01:29:17
Speaker
You know what's funny? I have a Manly jersey with Alex Delaney's name on the back and her jersey number, but Manly didn't put names on the actual jerseys the players wore.
01:29:29
Speaker
could get personalised jersey, but the players didn't get one. oh Oh. So I want two things from Manly this season. One, personalised Indigenous jerseys for the players.
01:29:41
Speaker
And two, please sell them again because I've got like three or four more players I want to get jerseys on. Or at least like do a pre-order because I feel like ah Crusaders, you know, when we had an Indigenous round or pink round coming up, we used to have a pre-order we used to be able to buy them and I've still got them. They're some of my favourite jerseys and then it stopped. But you know Indigenous rounds coming up, mental health round, heritage round, you know those rounds are coming.
01:30:07
Speaker
Let us make a pre-order because I'm sure if you can get so however many minimal order using a pre-order, you'll be sweet.
Podcast Streaming Expansion
01:30:13
Speaker
You don't have to worry about losing money. And Illawarra are selling jerseys as well.
01:30:19
Speaker
Oh, great. They sold them last year too. So plenty of teams. And last year, Dublin had jerseys available at every game. So more and more teams are selling jerseys, which is great to see.
01:30:33
Speaker
Yeah, excellent. Very good. Very good. Again, any news, gossip, information you think is going to be worthwhile sharing on the podcast, please send us a message at escottgame on Instagram.
01:30:47
Speaker
You can also still find us now on Facebook and also on YouTube where a lot of these episodes are streamed live. I shouldn't say a lot. All of them are streamed live on YouTube.
01:30:58
Speaker
They'll soon be streamed live on Facebook as well and we're streaming live on Instagram. But if you can't catch us live, you can still listen to our episodes on all of your regular streaming platforms or you can catch up the on the recordings on YouTube as well.
01:31:15
Speaker
But otherwise, Lockie, I think it's about time we bid goodbye. Next week's episode, we're going to be covering the final eight men's rosters for the 2025 season.
01:31:27
Speaker
Well, as much as we can, given that it's still two weeks that Hornsby haven't announced officially any players, do you think we're going to get lucky that they're going to hear this and go, oh, hey, we'll announce a couple ahead of next week's episode? Or is that a little bit optimistic and maybe arrogant of me to think that?
01:31:45
Speaker
ah just Well, at the very worst, we might get an idea of the Blitz. Correct. That is correct. We will get an idea at the Blitz. so So that's probably going to have to be our way of figuring out the roster.
01:32:03
Speaker
it's It's the same as if you put a media day video up. If you don't announce the players and the players get, like, comments, who have they not announced that was in their media day video?
01:32:14
Speaker
Mm-hmm. mean, I know the boys at Two Feet in the Paint kind of let that slip on their Instagram story the other day, but it was someone that we had a big question mark over in our first episode called Believe the Hype. Let's just wait till we talk about that next episode, hey?
01:32:32
Speaker
I think so. Yeah, let's do that. But, yeah, next episode we're going to go through the final eight men's rosters for 2025 NBL1 East season. Remember to find us on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.
Preview of Next Episode
01:32:46
Speaker
But what do we like to say to close out all of these episodes, Lockie? Don't sleep on the East.
01:32:57
Speaker
And a tiny, tiny bit of music to play us off. See you all later.