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Episode 20: Watch out for the Shak (Reilly) attack!
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We made it to 20 episodes!
This week Lachy and Squin discuss the results of the final round of the regular season, before discussing the elimination finals.
They are then joined by an absolute sweet heart of NBL1 East, Shakera Reilly, as they talk about the Mustangs WBB season and touch on Shak's aspirations. There is also a piece of Maitland Mustangs history too.
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Transcript
Podcast Introduction and Hosts' Schedules
00:00:08
Speaker
Welcome back to another episode of East Got Games where we review, preview and interview our way through NBL One East for 2023. My name is Jacinta from the Central Coast Crusaders and with me today is not only Lachie France with his basketball hat on and his commentary expertise behind him. You're in the role at the moment of hardcore FIFA Women's World Cup fan Lachie.
00:00:34
Speaker
I think I'm always in that role. I'm just finding it a lot harder to juggle this week, Squint. Having been to two games already with another five to come this week. That's a tall order, mate. But, you know, as we experienced with the, uh, FIBA Women's World Cup last year, the FOMO sometimes gets the best of you and you, and you really do want to make the most of it while it's here.
NBL One East 2023 Regular Season Recap
00:00:56
Speaker
100%. I mean, I'm off to Perth on Wednesday.
00:00:59
Speaker
I mean, that's not a bad thing. Are you going to take some personal time while you're in Perth and make it a bit of a holiday as well? No, because I'm going to Brisbane the next day for the Matildas game. And so will you get any personal time to hang out in Brisbane? No, because I'm coming back to Sydney for the Denmark England game, then going to MBLI quarterfinals, and then I have another game on the Sunday. So no personal time, just sport.
00:01:22
Speaker
Well, sometimes it's when those two worlds collide between sport and personal life, right? Because sport being a big hobby of both of ours, but also a hobby that turns into a little bit of work too. So sometimes the lines are blurred. It certainly is, but I'm definitely on the fan side when it comes to the football this week. I'll let everyone else do the work.
00:01:44
Speaker
I think that's fair. Look, I've had a massive week myself. Um, so apologies again for the delay of our last episode being released, but listen, Lockie and I both work full time. I was commentating the under 19 women's world cup. Uh, and it was in Spain. So with the time difference, I was working during the day and then commentating from anywhere from 7 45 PM.
00:02:09
Speaker
to 9 p.m. and I think the latest I did was 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. Sometimes when we live this 24-7 life something else has to suffer so unfortunately it was this episode, the last episode, episode 19 with Cherif Saipaia but it is up and hopefully you are enjoying it. We will post on socials as soon as we can to make sure that you know it's there. Thankfully we have finally finished the regular season of MBL-1As for 2023
00:02:37
Speaker
round 18 wrapping up on the weekend and really pushed teams to the limit, given that some teams had double headers. So, Lockie, you had the men to cover this week. Would you like to start us off by going through the results? More than happy to. And this was a week where with one game left in the round,
00:03:01
Speaker
there was still a chance at a five-way tie for fourth place. That's how close it was. So it all started off on Saturday afternoon with Canberra eking out a 92-87 win at home against the Sutherland Sharks. Hills just edged their way home against a manly side that pushed them all the way 86-85 on the road up there on the beaches.
00:03:29
Speaker
Penrith fell 77.95 to the Central Coast Crusaders at home. Aubrey Wodonga and Maitland went to overtime and combined for 27 points in the extra five minutes. It was Aubrey Wodonga coming away with the 117 to 114 win.
00:03:46
Speaker
Newcastle got the 88-66 win over the Bakes Town Bruins up there at Broadmeadow. Comets knocked off the Centre of Excellence in the Centre of Excellence first game for a little while. It was 95-80 there at Alexandria.
Team Highlights and Standings Analysis
00:04:03
Speaker
Inner West defeated North 87-78 in a battle of true title contenders.
00:04:12
Speaker
Centre of Excellence bounced back on Sunday to just edge home 77-74 against Hills at the hive there in Castle Hill. Illawarra knocked off Canberra 91-78 to finish their season on a high. And if this game had gone the other way, we would have had a five-way tie for fourth, but Norse were able to cement their spot in the top four with an 85-71 win over Comets.
00:04:41
Speaker
And then the late game, we had all the positions had already been decided, Inner West getting a 93-86 win over Penrith. So if we turn to the ladder, it finishes with Centre of Excellence, top of the pops, 20 and 2.
00:04:59
Speaker
in West 2nd with 18 and 4, Canberra getting the split over North who both finished 15 and 7, so Gunners there in 3rd, North in 4th, and then Sutherland, Hills, Maitland and Newcastle all finished 14 and 8, Sutherland getting the tiebreaker to finish 5th, Hills in 6, Maitland in 7th and Newcastle in 8th and interestingly, Newcastle finishing with the best 4 and it gets percentage at 109.2 but
00:05:29
Speaker
not getting the results against the teams they were tied with and dropping to eighth. Doesn't matter how much you win by, you've got to beat the right teams when it comes down to these tiebreakers. Sutherland actually having the second lowest foreign against percentage of the four teams but managing to secure that fifth spot and a trip to the beer cave for them on Saturday. So as you mentioned Newcastle Falcons finishing in eighth position their foreign against percentage is 109.2 and if the latter was purely decided
00:05:59
Speaker
on foreign against percentage, that would actually put them at fourth even ahead of north. If it was just point, yes, they got the fourth best points percentage. What's really interesting too is that I tried to keep tabs on the ladder before and after round 18 and Sutherland Sharks before round 18 were eighth and then they saw them, you know, swim all the way up to fifth spot.
00:06:22
Speaker
Would you rather be playing North or would you rather be playing Centre of Excellence, given that Centre of Excellence had quite a wobbly weekend? Yeah, Centre of Excellence a bit low on personnel as well. I think they only ran with eight on the weekend. So, yeah, ordinarily you wouldn't say, oh, yeah, I'd rather play first than fourth. But if you look at just the last week alone, those Centre of Excellence boys had a lot of bit of game time. They had to go to those Global Academy games. I think they played
00:06:52
Speaker
six games over there maybe more and they were split across two teams some of them filled in for the NBA global academy so plenty of play time under their belt plenty of travel maybe a week just getting their legs back underneath them on home turf was what they needed. And traveling with a smaller roster a roster that is missing the likes of Alex Condon, Ben Henshaw, Jensen Brideke. We haven't seen Rocco Zukaski for weeks
00:07:18
Speaker
Uh, so we, we did anticipate that COE's roster was going to change, but we, I think we were still hoping that they'd have some stability in their leading scorers like Tui going into the finals. So it's a big question mark to see who's suiting up for the elimination final next week. A hundred percent. But I tell you what, if, uh, Johnny Furphy's on the court, I've got every chance because he is on fire at the moment.
00:07:43
Speaker
Get out of his way. If you value your safety, just get out of his way. Definitely. He almost did structural damage to the caught up there. Was it a Hills that he did it? Correct. Yes, that monster dunk. And it was a lot of people on Twitter.
00:08:02
Speaker
They caught their attention, that big dunk, people calling for FERFI to be in the next star's program with the NBL and considering Zukarski and Tui have headed in the same direction, I wouldn't be surprised if that was in FERFI's fate at some stage.
00:08:18
Speaker
you know, the level of college offerings getting as far as, you know, what we've heard. MBL probably got their eye on him as well. Probably have for a little while. So you mentioned with that four way tie for fifth to eighth place. I think what was really interesting for me, particularly with those teams that were caught up in the tie is that with the exception of Newcastle and Maitland, those teams only played each other once during the season. So just showing how valuable and how important those one-off games are.
00:08:47
Speaker
in the long run when you want to get, you need to get a split. You say you're lucky enough to play with all due respect, Hornsby or Penrith or Manly twice and get a couple of wins. But if it comes down to the end of the season, you haven't got the wins against the teams around you, can I come back to bite you? Fortunately, nobody missed finals on a tiebreaker, but they certainly haven't given themselves the easiest road.
00:09:08
Speaker
And I've got to give a quick shout out to the Aubrey Wodonga Bandits men's team who made a real kind of comeback at the end of the season. They beat Maitland Mustangs in overtime at home. So a fantastic way for them to finish their season, winning that game 117 to 114.
00:09:26
Speaker
and there were some big numbers in that game, Locky. So I think the Bandits fans would have really enjoyed that as well. It would have been a big showcase, a great high to win, an overtime game, a bit of a fairy tale to end a season. It's been a tough old season for the Bandits. For the second season running, you know, it hasn't really fully clicked for them. I think we expected more from the last season and maybe this season as well. But yeah, finishing
00:09:53
Speaker
on a high at Maitland. Both men's and women's team finishing 14 and 8. Very solid program up there in the Hunter. Yeah, making the case very strong for New Year basketball to have a WMBL and NBL team as they've been pying for for years now.
Women's Team Performances and Finals Preview
00:10:11
Speaker
But this weekend I was responsible for covering some of the women's competition
00:10:16
Speaker
And it all kicked off on Friday, the 21st of July, where Aubrey Wodonga Bandits hosted the Sydney Comets in a makeup game that was postponed from earlier in the season due to health and safety protocols. So Aubrey really needed to win at least one or two of this weekend. And the first game they went, they lost to Comets also in overtime, 95 to 101. Then Manly hosted Hills Hornets and they won at home 93 to 36.
00:10:47
Speaker
Penrith Panthers hosted the Central Coast Crusaders and lost 53-68. Bandits backed up again in their tough weekend and had to play Maitland Mustangs with this time getting the win 71-67. Canberra Nationals played Sutherland Sharks at Belconnen and lost 78-92. Newcastle Falcons had the Bragstown Bruins at home and won 79-63.
00:11:15
Speaker
Inner West Bulls had a tough day at the office at home against North's Bears, losing that one 33 to 100. North's Bears then backed up with a tough game against Sydney Comets on the Sunday, and they won at home 101 to 80. Inner West Bulls were back at home again for the final game of the season against Penrose Panthers, and also finishing on a high note, winning 57 to 47.
00:11:43
Speaker
And then to cap off round 18 in the women's competition for 2023, Illawarra Hawks versus Canberra Nationals at the snake pit, the Hawks going down 56 to 104. So the latter as it stands after round 18, again mentioning that Sydney Comets and Aubrey Woodonga had must win games to ensure they made the top eight.
00:12:05
Speaker
Manly Warringa still at number one top position, winning 20 games and two losses. Newcastle Falcons are second with a record of 19 and three. North Spares finished third with a record of 18 and four. Centre of Excellence a fourth with a record of 16 and six. Sutherland Sharks
00:12:27
Speaker
A fifth with a record of 15 and seven. Maitland Mustangs are six with a record of 14 and eight. Comets getting in there at seventh with a record of 13 and nine. And Aubrey Woodonga Bandit's getting that spot in the top eight with a win-loss record of 12 and 10.
00:12:46
Speaker
After all those tiebreakers in the men's, not a single tiebreaker in the women's top eight. In fact, the only tiebreaker in the entire ladder was for 14th, Pendreth and Hills. Interesting the results, because that Aubrey Maitland game and Newcastle Bankstown game were played at the same time. And if Bankstown had won that and Aubrey had lost, Bankstown would have qualified for finals. So it really came right down to the last half of the season for both teams at the same time.
00:13:15
Speaker
And you'd have to really focus on, if you're playing for Bankstown or playing for Aubrey, you'd have to just focus on getting your game done and as much as you can to win your game without worrying about the results because you can't afford to put your fate in someone else's hands. And we, you know, we talked about that all season, you know, you had, we talked about that in the men's with teams like, um, you know, Illawarra and to a lesser extent Aubrey, Wodonga and Comets, you know,
00:13:41
Speaker
they had to rely on someone like Newcastle or Hills dropping games that they just never dropped. In fact, I think Newcastle went off and won a couple of upset games in the end to keep themselves in finals. Control the controllables, do your own job, make finals. So for this episode, we decided we're not going to review any of the games from round 18. So instead we decided to spend the episode discussing some of the elimination final matchups that we can expect next week.
00:14:10
Speaker
Lockie, do you mind taking us through the quarterfinals for next week and then maybe we'll have a bit of a chat about each one.
00:14:19
Speaker
So in the 1v8 game is the Center of Excellence hosting Newcastle at the AIS Basketball and Netball Center at 4pm on Saturday. The 2v7 matchup is Inner West taking on Maitland at 7pm Saturday at ELS Hall Park up there in Ride. The 3v6 matchup is Canberra versus Hills at 7.30 on Saturday at what will be a noisy Belconnen basketball stadium.
00:14:46
Speaker
And then the 4v5 matchup, it is North v Sutherland there at the Bear Cave at 4pm on Saturday afternoon. Some very tantalising matchups coming up. Centre of Excellence and Newcastle Falcons, we did just quickly mention about how Centre of Excellence, a little bit of instability in their roster, a lot of travelling and playing leading up to this quarterfinal. Oh, I should also mention actually,
00:15:13
Speaker
Last, in round 18, Centre of Excellence, the shooting percentage from the three-point line dropped to about 24% on average, which is, yeah, your face says it all, which is very unlike them. I think that was certainly an issue. So given the instability or the changes of roster,
00:15:35
Speaker
the intense couple of months that athletes have had. I think I feel like they might be lacking in a little bit of size and experience now with this new roster. Do you feel like Newcastle have a chance to really take it away from Centre of Excellence? They finished eighth, but they're a win away from third, really. Canberra and North finish 15 and seven and Newcastle finished 14 and eight. That's just how close it is.
00:15:59
Speaker
The interesting thing is, COE, last time, they only met once this season, COE beat Newcastle 112-83, but Miles Cherry was out that game for Newcastle. So if you talk about size,
00:16:12
Speaker
The one time they've played, Newcastle didn't have their Premier Big Man in there causing havoc. I would put very little stock in the result the last time these teams faced off. Interestingly from Newcastle, they've started going with Komiakamamoi in the starting lineup the last couple of games, which we hadn't seen for most of the season. So that move up from Central Coast, paying dividends.
00:16:39
Speaker
Still, I mean, COE still had Henschel in the lineup, Johnny Furphy going well. Kai Savage is so annoying. He had a 27 point game early in his stint. So still plenty of talent there on that COE roster. It's just, yeah, if they, how they're recovering from, you know, such an intense, you know, travel, big few games come
Men's Quarterfinals Matchups
00:17:00
Speaker
back. Are they actually back and settled and, you know, into their routine? Yeah, that's right. And for COE,
00:17:06
Speaker
Uh, Bowen Beatty last time these two teams met played 28 minutes and had a double double with 10 and 10 and four assists. But I don't think he suited up this weekend either. Maybe he was on the bench, but nursing an injury perhaps. So hopefully a week's rest means that he can come back onto the court as well. Yeah. I mean, he's the kind of player they're going to need if they want to stop a miles cherry going, you know, at full strength.
00:17:33
Speaker
Potential for an upset, but certainly won't count out the COE whatsoever. For second and sixth, it is Inner West Bulls versus Maitland and I'm pretty confident that the last two times these teams met, Inner West was pretty much had their way with them. Inner West got up against Maitland on the back of Blake Morrow's 36-4-9 last time these teams met. It was 97-91, Inner West got up.
00:17:57
Speaker
over Maitland. Blake Morrow, can he do it without the mullet? I forgot to mention that when I was preparing for the episode today, I forgot to put under news. Blake Morrow is mulletless. Has he not heard the story of Samson? Exactly. That was my point exactly. It didn't look like it had the Samson effect in round 18.
00:18:16
Speaker
And so hopefully his strong performance continues. But maybe, maybe he got his haircut because it's business time now. We're getting into finals. This is business. Show up. You got to suit up. You got to look professional. Dress for the job you want. Yeah. And he wants the job of a champion. So maybe hence the haircut. We'll have to ask him when we see him. In a Westverse Maitland, two teams that we've reviewed throughout this podcast.
00:18:43
Speaker
are two teams that have potential for high scoring power and sometimes a little bit of passiveness on defence. When they put it together at defensive end, they're alright. Hopefully knowing what's at stake, I'll ratchet it up a bit, but not always the most defensive teams out there. Really looking forward to watching Will Cranston loud and Blake Morrow there in the backcourt.
00:19:06
Speaker
I just like the way these teams match up against each other. You know, they've got guys who love to compete in the paint, you know, CB, Higgins teacher, Matt Gray, James Hunter. None of them mind a contest and some of them really like getting up high. So it should be a lot of fun. James Hunter, he doesn't strike me as someone who likes opposition players getting the better of him in the paint. Then third versus six, Canberra Gunners hosting Hills Hornets.
00:19:34
Speaker
This one for me will heavily depend on who heals Hornets. If that heals Hornets have their full roster, they've also had quite a changing roster during the season, especially in the front court. Who is going to lock down Glenn Morrison?
00:19:49
Speaker
Well, it's funny you mentioned that because it was only a few weeks ago that I actually reviewed that Canberra Hills game that finished 88.65 in Canberra's favour, but the one shining light for Hills was the battle between Campbell Glorine and Glen Morrison, where Glen didn't have his usual massive stat line.
00:20:11
Speaker
But as you mentioned, Hills not always with their full lineup and they've had Josh Carley in the starting lineup a couple of times lately. Interesting to see if Brotherson gets the start there or if they stick with Carley, depends how they feel about the matchups. And also in that last game between Canberra and Hills,
00:20:34
Speaker
That was the game where Sean Montague injured himself after 40 seconds and only played nine minutes. So yes, it finished 23 point advantage to camera last time they met, but Sean Montague, he might not be worth 23 points, but he's probably worth enough points to have kept that game very, very close.
00:20:53
Speaker
Or perhaps even defensively challenge someone on Canberra Nationals to limit their touches and scoring opportunities. Because it looks like Sean Montague is back in action. He had 19 points against COE on Sunday. So he could be an X-Factor for four-heels against Gunners this time. And as we know, finals basketball is completely different from regular season basketball.
00:21:16
Speaker
Oh, 100%, especially when you're coming up against the team that you only just played a couple of weeks ago. You know, it's fresh in your mind. You don't need to go back and think, oh, you know, it's been two months since we played them. Like if you're, you know, some of those match ups, like if Sutherland played Newcastle kind of thing at some point, haven't played them since round one.
00:21:37
Speaker
So, you know, Canberra and Hills, they'll be fresh in the mind exactly how they want to approach this game, especially Hills who are looking to overturn the result that they had last time.
Women's Quarterfinals Discussions
00:21:48
Speaker
Then the final matchup for the elimination final is 4th place North Bears, 5th place Sutherland Sharks. This one, understandably being 4th and 5th, I am probably most anticipating. I feel like this can go either way. There is something about particularly the Sutherland Sharks men's team that when it comes to finals time,
00:22:09
Speaker
Some kind of magic happens, I don't know if it's morale, bravado. You of all people can perhaps give me insight as to something special happens sometimes at finals time for the Sharkies. Although last time I was up at North Sutherland watching them play.
00:22:25
Speaker
in the semi-final didn't end well for the Sharkies but that's uh ancient history at this point of course these teams met once this season. Norse got up 78 76 in a game they led by 20. We actually had Angus Burke on the week after that game.
00:22:41
Speaker
And yeah, so I think they were up there by 21 in the second quarter. Sharks came back and almost completed the comeback. That was also first game after Brennan Reimer was injured and out for the season. And they also didn't have Junior Medut who is now back for North.
00:22:57
Speaker
And how do you think having this game at Norse is going to be an influence? Do you think it will have a big impact on the sharkies or do you think they'll brush it off? Not concerned about them going into a way environment. It's more, I've seen what the sharks crowd can be for big games at home.
00:23:17
Speaker
They're not going to be concerned about the environment up at North. It's just that they won't have the subtle and crowd behind them that really gets up and about in those big games and those big moments. They've been around the traps. They can play in hostile environments and regularly do so. Players who play aggressively, whether they're not dirty, just aggressively in general,
00:23:41
Speaker
often get the crowds offside, you know, that's the player the crowd wants to rile up and the Sharks have got players who love to take it to the rack, get a little bit of contact and opposing fans don't always like that very much. And one of the few matchups for the elimination finals in the men and the women is that Centre of Excellence and North's
00:24:03
Speaker
are both hosting double headers. Yes, so the only two teams to have both their, only two associations or clubs, I guess, to have their teams finish top four. So congratulations to both of those teams.
00:24:16
Speaker
Really interesting. So whether you're in Canberra or whether you're in Crow's Nest, you're in for absolute treat with a double header of elimination finals. So, you know, Locky, I think I might have to take a trip to North Sydney Indoor Sports Centre this weekend. I'll see you there then. Excellent. Let's do something fun. Freddie Webb said when we interviewed him, don't let us finish eighth. And unfortunately, well, if you're the rest of the teams, they didn't
00:24:43
Speaker
let Illawarra finish eight. But who in the men is the team from the bottom four that you think people are like, I wish we didn't let them make finals? Who's who's who's your sneaky from the fifth to eighth? That's a tough question. And I say this as objectively as possible, but probably Hills. Hills? Well, they have they've snuck. I mean, they got the split on North this season and they beat Maitland and they ran in at COE close this week. So.
00:25:13
Speaker
I like it. Well, same question to you. Who do you think? I think Maitland is a sneaky one. Burnt after last year's grand final fourth quarter. Sutherland, I feel like they were up around top four. It doesn't feel the same.
00:25:30
Speaker
feels like everyone's like, yeah, they're making finals, but Maitland down in seventh now, people are like, ah, we finished second and we got to play them. We finished top and we got always, you know, we finished third next week and we got to play them. That's a, that's a good point actually. And if I look roster to roster now, I think about it, Maitland to Hills. I think Maitland have a lot more depth and perhaps could have gone further. Whereas Hills
00:25:54
Speaker
had definitely had a talented roster and I think we're just coached well enough in a way that got them a top final spot. So I will retract that against Hills, but maybe it's probably because I underestimated them for that fact that I'm like, yeah, you've got some good players, but it was just how they put the pieces together. So props to them for that actually. I mean, if you were in a league where you got a three game series,
00:26:19
Speaker
that coaching could be the deciding factor where you get the chance to go against the team again and again and learn. It's gonna be tough, yeah, for every team really, that step up on one night against the team. Keep your season alive. Whether you finish 20 and 2 or 14 and 8 or was it one of the women's teams finished with 12 wins and made it?
00:26:37
Speaker
Doesn't matter in the end, does it? If you end up, like you said, with 20 wins or 12 wins, you're all kind of like relatively on the same playing field now. And it doesn't necessarily mean that you can't make it to the final.
00:26:51
Speaker
like to the grand final. It's kind of like when you go to uni and you just get passes the whole way through and then you interview against someone who gets HDs the whole way through. It doesn't even matter in the end. It depends who performs the best on the day of the interview. Anyway, tangent. That metaphor for me worked in my mind. I think that works. Yeah. Yeah. So shall we move on to the women's elimination final matchups? I think we should because there are some cracking matchups this week.
00:27:19
Speaker
Correct. So again, starting with Centre of Excellence purely on the top of the list going by time, Centre of Excellence finished fourth. So fourth place Centre of Excellence playing fifth place Sutherland Sharks in Canberra. Centre of Excellence haven't played a game for a while because they went to the Under-19 World Cup last week and have now literally come home after a steep learning curve.
00:27:43
Speaker
from the under 19 women World Cup. If you're unfamiliar, the Australian gems with a roster that was the majority of Centre of Excellence athletes went to the World Cup. Personally, I think they were going to they were tipped to get top four. They unfortunately for the first time ever didn't make quarterfinals, but they did turn it around and managed to finish ninth, which was the highest possible placing they could have achieved.
00:28:09
Speaker
straight into elimination finals against a Sutherland Sharks team who are kind of jelling at the right time and Lauren Nicholson is just on fire. She certainly is and she was on fire last time these teams played. She dropped 31 in a 33 point win for Sutherland over the COE last time these two teams met. That was down in Canberra as well.
00:28:29
Speaker
So she'll be back in familiar territory where she's played a hell of a game. I mean, she's already so accustomed to playing at a high level, given that she's played for the Opals already this year. I'm really excited to see her just get stuck into finals basketball.
00:28:45
Speaker
But it'll be really interesting to see from COE who matches up against her. I think something that COE, like we've said in previous episodes, have an advantage over other teams is that inside presence. So the matchup between Ila Jafferman and Olivia White is going to be really cool. In terms of strength and Olivia White is still very high IQ under the basket. But Ila just having the edge in terms of footwork and scoring ability.
00:29:13
Speaker
That's going to be very exciting. We talk about Suri having not played a game of MBL1 in a month. I mean, who's going to be there? Is Jess Petrie available? Is Lara Somfi going to get more playing time after absolutely killing it at under 16's Asia Cup? A few questions to be answered there when they are
00:29:36
Speaker
trot out on Saturday afternoon? Yeah, there certainly will be a big question mark around their roster as well, actually. And I don't think we'll be able to get any early indication about what that's going to look like. So the next game is third versus sixth, Norse Bears versus the Maitland Mustangs. Also one that I think is going to be very close contest. But I think the Norse will have the edge on this purely based on playing experience as individuals and as a as a unit.
00:30:07
Speaker
Yeah, teams play, they, again, another team that's a, another matchup that's only played each other once this season, seems to be a running theme. North's got up by 23 last time these teams met, but that was before Matty Washington had even joined Maitland. So they had Sydney Hunter, but they had not yet got Matty Washington. Big change there for Maitland since the last time these teams played. Did North have Jolene Anderson when they played last time?
00:30:35
Speaker
I don't think they would have because it was back in round three. No, there you go. So last time they met, you mentioned they didn't have Maddie Washington and North didn't have Jolene Anderson either the last time they met.
00:30:48
Speaker
Yeah, so in fact, they haven't had them for, yeah. Because those two players have both been, they were very late signing, especially Washington, who actually signed pretty early, but just couldn't arrive until later on. I remember her being announced and then not being there for about another six weeks after she signed.
00:31:08
Speaker
Yeah lots of change in the rosters and of course since that time they've gained Matty Washington of Maitland but they've of course lost Mila Woskovich over in San Diego. Very important changes in both rosters that are going to heavily influence that game. And then we've also got second versus seventh. Now this one I think of the elimination finals is the most interesting to me. This is.
00:31:32
Speaker
This is so big because the only reason Comets are seventh is because of how many games Shyla Hill and Vanessa Penoose have missed. It's literally the only reason they're seventh instead of third or fourth or second. Or even first, to be honest, because even their loss to Manly came when Penoose wasn't available.
00:31:57
Speaker
But I will say that Newcastle defeated Comets when both Heel and Panusis were playing 86-70 very early in the season. That is correct. I did have that in my notes that they have played twice and Newcastle have won both times, both with and without Panusis and Heel. I'm unsure if Heel is going to be there because she last round
00:32:22
Speaker
She played one of two games. The round before that, she didn't play any games. Penooses, I'm pretty confident will be there, but big question mark around heel. Yeah, Newcastle really going in with the edge, but also potential for an upset because it's a pretty close matchup. Oh, 100% is. You know, that crowd up in broad meadow will certainly bring it, but it's not just Penooses and heel, it's Croucher, K. Rooze and Piper Anderson of both
00:32:49
Speaker
improves as the season's gone on, particularly Piper Anderson. I'm just going to come right out and say it. She's probably one of my favorite players in the league to watch at the moment with her athleticism and her hustle. They keep saying, or we keep saying, everyone probably keeps saying that their roster looks a little, you know, threadbare. Doesn't seem to bother them.
00:33:08
Speaker
No, not at all. They're always that tough Newcastle as a club. And I wonder in terms of match-ups, like you said, Jada Croucher, he's just been relentless on the boards the last few weeks, but so has Nicole Munger and Abby Curtin certainly has that capability. So those match-ups are going to be really interesting dominating the rebounds. But then the match-ups and the guards against Heal and Penucis, I think their skill set offensively might outmatch
00:33:38
Speaker
so who would be matching up with them against Newcastle one-on-one.
Team Strategies and Defensive Matchups
00:33:42
Speaker
But given that the COE did such a good job on Penucis when they blitzed the pick and roll screen, I wonder if Newcastle are going to do something similar and just blitz all pick and roll with Penucis and where Penucis and Heal are involved, just to push him as far away from the basket as possible and to chew up some time on the clock.
00:34:02
Speaker
If you know that those two, stopping those two players is such an important part of the strategy to get the win, and you've seen something that works and you think your players can execute it, go for it. And the last time, because I mean, they may even just throw in the old triangle and two. That was the defence that North, when North played Sutherland in the Waratah Championship Final years ago, what was it?
00:34:27
Speaker
19? The Chelsea-Schweer-Schuyler-Heel team. Correct. So they played the Chelsea-Heel, the Chelsea-Heel. The Schuyler-Heel-Chelsea-Schweer team versus a Norse team that didn't have Renee because she did her ACL in the semi. They went to a triangle and two and beat them. And Muffy Loda just had a breakout game. She was amazing. So I wonder, triangle and two against Penucis and Heel.
00:34:54
Speaker
As I said, you got to do what works. If they come out in a triangle in two, well, thank you Newcastle Falcons for listening to the podcast. I'm sure Marty McLean has a pretty thorough plan. He doesn't need us. Um, and the final match up is one verse eight, manly wearing a seagulls versus Aubrey Wodonga Band at Saturday at 7pm. That's when I'm having a shower and putting my jammies on.
00:35:19
Speaker
7, sure, 7pm. Um, slight exaggeration by the way, I'm not that sad. This match up could go either way. This doesn't feel like a 1-8 match up. Um, I remember, was it, it was before Aubrey Comets at Comets, which I commentated. Sammy Mack, Emma Mahade, I was milling about with them. Mahade was like, I would just, she was just grumbling, oh yeah, we lost to Hills and we lost to Illawarra. We should already have finals wrapped up.
00:35:44
Speaker
And it's like, they're a better team than their record states. They just need to stop losing these games that they should win. They're in a good position here because this isn't a game they're really expected to win, so they can't mess it up. Yeah, that's true. It's all or nothing. Just put it all out on the floor.
00:36:01
Speaker
You're right. Aubrey Wodonga Bandits have all the pieces to really go all the way. It's just about how to manage those pieces. And I think I have mentioned this in a previous episode. I think some people in that team are going to have to make sacrifices. They might not want to. They might not be able to take as many shots as they would want. They have to refine their decision making skills, I think, especially when you've got someone like Michaela Pivich, who has had four triple doubles now.
00:36:31
Speaker
You just need to feed her the ball and let her go to work. Everything should be going through her and you should be secondary. I mean, she had not even arrived last time these teams met, which was, uh, mainly defeated Aubrey up there on the beaches, 86, 61, no Mallory Bates, no Michaela Pivak. They did have Molly Rice and Brodie Page Theodore at that time, who no longer haven't seen them for a few weeks. I imagine out for the season.
00:36:57
Speaker
Yeah, I think they're both injured unfortunately. And KTR Dern was injured at some stage too. Yeah, so a few missing but they have replaced those with Mallory Bates and Michaela Pivik who have been absolutely inspired signings for the Bandits. So a lot of previous results here that probably maybe not to put a lot of stock in because the lineups have changed significantly whilst
00:37:21
Speaker
Manly Warringa have had the most stable lineup of any team in the competition. Alex Delaney had a couple of weeks out, but apart from that, what have they done? They added Gracie Lee midway through the season. And aside from that, it's been the same team every week. Yeah, that's a really, really good point. They have had a very stable roster, but they will be meeting a brand new, essentially a brand new to them, Aubrey team.
00:37:46
Speaker
I'm really interested to see hopefully this will be a match up in the game. I can't guarantee it. We talked so much about Michaela Pivich being the offensive asset that she is. And just an episode ago, we were talking about Antonia Henderson as the unsung defensive hero.
00:38:04
Speaker
I mean, next to Kate Seaborn, but that's a given. She's cemented. She's cemented in history. But Antonia Henderson, unsung defensive hero of the league. I really hope those two match up at some stage. That would be so much fun. It would be ridiculously good to watch. I do want to talk about, you know, when they throw Nicholson, when merely played sub when they threw everyone in Nicholson. But, you know, he gets put on these players where, you know, with WMBL credentials or higher honors than that, even.
00:38:32
Speaker
it makes life absolute hell for them for 35 minutes a night. And another matchup I'm really keen for is Ash Hannon and Kim Hodge.
00:38:43
Speaker
or Mallory Bates, Kim Hodge. We always talk about how Kim Hodge isn't a true center and well I guess a lot of people talk about how Kim Hodge isn't a true center but plays there and plays above her height and can she do it against you know someone like Ash Hannon you know probably has the physical advantage over her or Mallory Bates who
00:39:02
Speaker
Just with the touch, around the basket, so much length. If she gets the ball up high, she gets bigs and they bring the ball down. Mallory Bayes doesn't do that very often. She gets it up high and it stays up there. If the shot doesn't get you in, so be it. But at least you're not bringing it down and getting those pesky little guards get their hands in. Little pink pockets. Yeah, you know how that feels, don't you, Squirt? I do. That's why I had to learn to put out my elbows and everyone stays away. You don't have to swing them. You just have to put them out.
00:39:29
Speaker
and it's enough to protect you. Match up center of excellence sharks. Is there any team putting your question from when we're discussing the men's elimination finals, any teams in this top eight of the women's where you're kind of like, yeah, kind of wish they didn't make it.
00:39:47
Speaker
Yeah, Comets. Not the fact that they made it, just the fact that they're down there in seven. Underperforming. Yeah, or not. I mean, they didn't really underperform that much. It was just a matter of, you know, Shyla Heel went to Asia Cup, Penusis was away for a couple of games, you know, they lost games there.
00:40:07
Speaker
Like that weekend, they played Newcastle and Aubrey Wodonga. If they had Shyla and Ness for both those games, considering how well the team played in their absence, they'd probably be sitting there on 15 and 7 instead of 13 and 9. Ness and Shyla are both there. It's, yeah, it's a whole new ballgame. Yeah, 15 and 7 would have put them up equal fifth with Sutherland.
00:40:34
Speaker
And they would have had the split on Sutherland because they absolutely mauled us in one game. They would have been fifth in Sutherland six. Well, hotly anticipated elimination finals. I cannot wait for finals to start. There is just something in the air at finals time that makes it feel so much different to regular season, but also it's been a long season and I'm ready for some outcome.
00:41:00
Speaker
three weeks, everyone go hard, get to Sydney Uni, leave it all out there. Yes, and make some noise when we're there. I'm looking forward to that day, very much so. All right, it's that time of the show where we have our All-Star Five and the last All-Star Five for the regular season now that round 18 is wrapped up.
All-Star Selections and Player Recognitions
00:41:20
Speaker
So Lockie, what does the men's All-Star Five look like this week?
00:41:23
Speaker
Well, it's a bit of an interesting one because there are a lot of players who started big and then fell away or had a slow start and then came up massively in their second game of the weekend. So, we'll start off with a man who's making his first appearance of the season. Brody Schwartzer from Penrith.
00:41:43
Speaker
So he started, he started slowly against Central Coast, had just 10 points to rebound and assist and three steals. But then he put the team on his back and almost got his Panthers boys a win against Hills, dropping 35, six rebounds, five assists and three steals in a narrow 86 to 93 loss.
00:42:04
Speaker
So great effort by Brody Schwartzer and another young man making his first appearance. It is Johnny Furphy from the Center of Excellence, starting out with 18 points, 10 rebounds and a steal in an 80 to 95 loss to Comet.
00:42:21
Speaker
and then against Hills, 30 points, 10 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and a dunk that probably set off seismographs around the Hills district in a 77-74 win. Next tab off the rank, it's your boy AJ Lawton with 29 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists,
00:42:47
Speaker
and nine steals in a 95-77 win over Penrith. That is almost a double-double with points and steals. That's out there. And he would have been annoyed he didn't get that 10th deal as well. He would have been annoyed. He would have seen that and was like, why didn't anyone tell me?
00:43:07
Speaker
just out there flying around for the ball at every opportunity. Exactly. And then a regular feature in the All-Star Five, Will Cranston-Lown from Maitland. 28 points, four rebounds, nine assists, also one off a double-level, and five steals of his own in a narrow overtime 114-117 loss to Aubrey Wodonga. And then I could have picked any one, I could have picked Mike Parkes, I could have picked Lockie Cummings,
00:43:35
Speaker
But I went with Jamir Coleman from Aubrey Woodonga for his 26 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks filling up the stat sheet in that 117-114 overtime win over the Maitland Mustangs. And you know what's really interesting stat actually from that game I forgot to mention earlier?
00:43:57
Speaker
The Aubrey-Wodonga Bandits got to the free throw line 36 times. That is a lot of free throws. A lot. And I think they shot like, I think they were like 26-28 from 36. They shot really well. So over to the women's screen. All right. This week for the women's All-Star Five, we have some regular names and also a player who will be in the All-Star Five for the first time and technically the last.
00:44:27
Speaker
So first we've got Michaela Pivik from Aubrey Wodonga Bandits. In her game against Comet, she had 18 points, six rebounds, nine assists, almost another triple double. But she saved that instead for the next game against Maitland Mustangs, where she had 16 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, and three steals. This week, another player who had a very big double header, who was Vanessa Penussis from Sydney Comets.
00:44:56
Speaker
She had 26 points, three rebounds, three assists against the bandits. And then the next day against the North Spares, she had 26 points again and five rebounds and five assists on that occasion.
00:45:10
Speaker
Also from the Comets this week is Shyla Hill. Against the Bandits she had 30 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals. Coming back into the All-Star 5 after a long absence is Jolene Anderson from Norse Bears who had 31 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 6 steals against the Sydney Comets on Sunday.
00:45:34
Speaker
And the player who has made it to the All-Star Five for the first time, and technically the last, which will make sense when we do News & Gossip, is Bianca Dufoumaya. Against Illawarra this weekend, she has 30 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals, which is a hell of a stat line. And a perfect segue into the News & Gossip section locky zone. Well, actually, first things are really the end of the regular season, Squian. Yeah.
00:46:05
Speaker
Let's do a countdown of the players who we've featured most in the All-Star Five. Give everyone their due. That's a great idea. Let's do it. I'm excited. So we'll go with players who have four or more appearances this season. So on the women's side, Emily Simons and Shyla Heale with four appearances apiece. Emma Mahade, Michaela Dompkins and Michaela Pivock with five appearances apiece.
00:46:31
Speaker
on six appearances a piece, Lauren Nicholson, Violet Morrow, and Vanessa Penussis. And Squint, can you guess who has eight appearances? Oh, eight appearances? Nicole Munger. It is. Our very first guest, Nicole Munger from Newcastle. Eight appearances in the All-Star Five. Whilst on the men's side, four appearances a piece, Hayden Blankley and A.J. Lawton.
00:47:01
Speaker
5H, Will Cranston-Lown, Dave O'Hickey, Ryan Beastie by Name, Beastie by Nature, and Chris C.B. Bryant. Jameer Coleman edged into outright second this week with his sixth appearance and seven appearances squint. Can you guess who it might be?
00:47:21
Speaker
Seven appearances in the men. Glenn Morrison, the Brenda Bell Finkin. No! Glenn has three. Oh, okay. It is the stunning mullet, Blake Morrow. Blake Morrow, of course. The stunning mullet, the now mullet-less Blake Morrow.
00:47:41
Speaker
Yeah, it's Glenn Morris. So Glenn Morris and I had with Miles Cherry, Noah Pagotto, Brendan Reimer, Ben Henschel and Ali Teigen's teacher on three. We were all players who feel like a lot of weeks they just miss out. They're always, you know, unlucky to miss. They're the consistent players. Might not always put up the big numbers, but you know they're going to drop something good.
00:48:04
Speaker
I love that you put that together, Locky. That's awesome, because I bet there's probably people who listen that were thinking the same thing. But anyway, we can have our own MVP awards based on our All-Star 5s. That's awesome. I'm so glad you put that together. Thanks for doing that, Locky. That's really cool. So that's rounding off the All-Star 5 for round 18. Will we do something similar for the finals? Oh, I think we might.
00:48:31
Speaker
We'll have to figure something out for finals. We'll figure something out, figure something out. Okay, so it is now the last segment of our regular programming, I guess I could say, before we head into our player interview, which is the news and gossip section.
Bianca Dufoumaya's Retirement and Commentary Opportunities
00:48:45
Speaker
So as I just quickly mentioned with Bianca Dufomaya, indicating that it will be her first and last time in the All-Star Five, can you shed a little bit more light, Loki, as to why it will be her last time? She's hanging them up.
00:49:01
Speaker
Can't believe it. Can't believe it. No, so yeah, all over socials. Um, if you follow pretty much any Canberra Nationals player or Canberra Nationals adjacent person, you would know that, yeah, Bianca Dufomaya retiring after her 30 piece against Illawarra. I think if you're going to drop a 30 piece, maybe you need to reconsider.
00:49:24
Speaker
Yeah, I think so. Like, at least she got to go out on a very high note with a near 50 point win and a huge stat line like she did. But Bianca Dufoumaia, for those that don't know, Canberra native, she spent two years at the University of Alabama of Birmingham. And she also spent some time playing WNBL and I think Seaball for Bendigo. Yes.
00:49:46
Speaker
And I did reach out to her today because I wanted to feature her, feature her retirement on the NBL One show and get a comment from her. But unfortunately I got a little bit too late. So I'll read it out now. But Bianca said, as a Canberra local, it's pretty incredible coming home to finish up my career in my hometown under the guise of Natalie Hurst. It's been a rocky few years trying to hold onto the game. I love with a body taped together every which way, but it's time to hang up the shoes
00:50:16
Speaker
and see what else is out there. I've been immensely blessed in the opportunities basketball has provided me over the past two decades and finish up against an old rival at the snake pit alongside the women in the 2023 Canberra Nationals team made for a sweet, bittersweet ending. So there you go, official statement. Official statement. Yeah. Yeah.
00:50:43
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, when I first really started getting into college basketball and writing about it, that was when Bianca was at UAB. So, I mean, we interacted a bit on Twitter. Yeah, always been really cool person.
00:51:01
Speaker
So yeah, best of luck to you Bianca. I know that you've commentated in the past. We'd love to see you back in the commentary box because we very clearly need a lot more female commentators and broadcasters, not just in our league, but in the NBA one in general. So hopefully we'll see you next season in the commentary box. Same with our Sarah McCappian. She had a, had a go at this commentary box for the nationals this year. So I hope both of them give it a go. It would be great to see because, um,
00:51:31
Speaker
national finals commentators drop this week and not a lot of women on the roster unfortunately and that's as much I think that's more to do with the quantity of women commentators out there than the quality.
00:51:44
Speaker
Yeah, I agree. I think we have to work on the quantity first and then refine the quantity, the quality. Uh, so yeah, as Lockie mentioned, those who applied to commentate at NBL One Nationals have been informed whether they made the cut or not. Unfortunately, Lockie and I didn't make the cut this year. To be fair, they only picked one person from each conference outside of the host, which is Western Australia. So.
00:52:10
Speaker
Correct. So they picked eight commentators altogether for understandably being from Western Australia, given that A, they're the host city and also there's going to be four teams from
00:52:24
Speaker
NBL1 West because the two title holders from the inaugural NBL1 Nationals are playing in this year's Nationals and they just so happen to both be from Western Australia. So it makes sense that half of your commentary crew are from Perth, but also this year NBL1 are actually paying for commentators flights and accommodation. So the other four spots went to one person per conference.
00:52:51
Speaker
And someone from East has been picked. We won't say who it is because we want them to have the opportunity to share the good news with people and let them enjoy the moment of sharing their good news. But to you, lucky commentator who's going to nationals, congratulations and best of luck over there. You're going to have the best time and the best experience and go and represent East well. And speaking of other commentary news, actually,
00:53:21
Speaker
The NBA won East Finals, and those who are the successful applicants have been approached. So the Basketball New South Wales are just waiting to see if they will confirm and commit. And then there may be an announcement in the next couple of weeks of who is commentating, or at least maybe we might be able to share the news. Also, it's not me because I'm going to the soccer World Cup. Yeah, so it's not Rocky because he's going to the soccer World Cup.
00:53:49
Speaker
Um, have you got any other news before I continue, mate? Um, I got two pieces of news. Uh, so if you remember a few months ago, Squint and I were lucky enough to commentate the Uni Sport 3x3 Nationals in which Sydney Uni did the double.
Youth Achievements and Viral Moments
00:54:09
Speaker
Well, they've gone one better and done the double at the Oceania Championships and they'll be off to the 3x3 Uni World Cup, which is in October. Host is not yet named for that. But on the men's side, there were three NBL1 players, Mitch Smith from Hills, Mikey Jung from North, and Maddie Wachar from Comets.
00:54:34
Speaker
Whilst on the women's side, we had Penrith's Meg Jefferson, Alex K. Roos from Comets, Carla Pittman and Holly Wills both from Norths. Yeah, so good luck to both of those teams over in wherever it ends up being held. University of Wollongong women who had that magical run at Nationals ended up finishing
00:54:58
Speaker
4th so that was Sutherland's Mia Bruce and then Illawarra's Maddie Delaney and Mel Kirby. Ella Dent was also part of that team but I don't think know if I saw her play of course she had that injury earlier in the season which has kept her out of MBL1. 4th at Oceania Championships isn't too bad. Playing against teams from New Zealand and New Caledonia.
00:55:22
Speaker
But yeah, that's excellent work from UCID. They also had a successful season in the UBL. I think both making the finals for the regular five on five competition. Can't remember if they, I think they both got silver. I think they did both get silver in the end. But nonetheless, a very successful season for that UCID basketball program. So congratulations to those talented MBL one East athletes.
00:55:47
Speaker
And what else have you got for me? I'm excited to see what the next piece of news is. Well, last week we were talking about
00:55:56
Speaker
the kids at Under 12's div three girls Sutherland who made a wonderful sign for me and then won their semi-final. Well, this week they did one better. They were one of two Sutherland Under 12 girls teams to win their grand final because not only did Under 12 girls D1 get up, so did my Under 12 D3 girls get up in their grand final with a 59-48 win over Comets and
00:56:26
Speaker
One player had an absolutely monster game in the grand final. So in a 59-48 game, Harper Skelsey dropping 33 of a team total of 59 in a grand final. 33 for a 10-11 year old is insane. There we go. So congratulations to my new favourite team, the Sutherland Under 12 D3 girls.
00:56:55
Speaker
Oh, that's awesome. I really hope one day that we see them playing NBL1 East or even further and they can reflect on this moment. That would be cool. The only other piece of news I've got is just on the side note, Noah Pagotto this week also posting another big dunk on social media and getting the attentions of people who work at Hoops Capital. I had a bit of a Twitter exchange about said dunk informing
00:57:23
Speaker
the people at Hoops Capital that Noah has signed to go to Texas. And they said, well, maybe he should just be a DP in the NBL instead. And I said, you know what, I think you're right. So I thought that was a nice little piece of gossipy conversation about Noah, because we're big fans, big fans of how he plays.
00:57:43
Speaker
We love Noah. We love Noah. And I mean, all the Hoops Capital guys are from Illawarra, so. You know, that's actually a really good point. Yeah. So they should be keeping an eye on some Illawarra talent, even though Noah is originally from I think Port Macquarie, but yeah, that's okay. Uh, and the only other thing I want to mention is that Michaela Pivock and Maddie Washington from Aubrey Wodonga Bandits and Maitland Mustangs respectively.
00:58:10
Speaker
They both went to Oregon State University and were both freshmen in the 2016-2017 season. And now they have cross paths again, Lockie, in the game over the weekend where they did, I guess, a little bit of a singlet swap in inverted commas on social media. Yeah, a temporary jersey swap after their game. I think they're going to need those jerseys back for finals, but maybe they can do a permanent swap after the season.
00:58:39
Speaker
Yeah, it's great to see because they were actually both that that period for Oregon State was such a good period for Oregon State basketball I mean they built up into one of the the bigger programs over there particularly in the Pac-12 And yeah, two players that I'm sure all Oregon State fans look upon fondly and I'm sure so do Aubrey Wodonga and Maitland Mustangs fans look upon each one of their Biebs quite fondly too
00:59:07
Speaker
Excellent. And we love those full circle moments, especially given their two imports. I mean, of all the leagues in the world, you can play and of all the colleges that you could come from. It's so nice that they could cross over in MBL One East. And what I really liked and who actually brought this to my attention was Oregon State's Instagram themselves. They recognized it and put up a lovely post on their social media pages. And that was what brought my attention to it. And I
00:59:33
Speaker
I really liked that they did that considering both Michaela and Maddie had played so long ago, but they're still part of the Beaver family. It wouldn't surprise me if they were alerted to it because Aubrey Wodonga have done a really good job at, you know, keeping the college teams in the loop, you know, tagging the colleges of their imports. When I got my photo with Michaela after the Aubrey Comets game, they actually shared it and tagged Oregon State in it. So, and that's such a good way to keep
01:00:03
Speaker
people like to get exposure for the league because American college fans will ride or die with their players forever. People who were watching Michaela Pipping in 2016, there are going to be people getting up at all hours of the night to tune into Aubrey Wodonga games if they care, because it's just, that's just what the culture is. You know, if a player goes to your college and becomes a fan favorite, that doesn't end when they walk out the door for the last time with a degree. That stays for their entire career.
01:00:33
Speaker
But anyway, that wraps up the regular programming for Eastcott Game.
Shakira Riley's Basketball Journey
01:00:38
Speaker
Also, congratulations to us for making it to 20 episodes, because as Freddie Webb said a few episodes ago, apparently podcasts very rarely make it to 20 episodes, but here we are. That's the advantage of covering a league that has 18 rounds plus finals, so we didn't really have a choice.
01:00:55
Speaker
Um, but I guess we could have quit at any time, but we chose to stick around. And, uh, coming up next, we have a really great interview with one of the, I think just one of the most wholesome sweethearts of the league, Locky. And I think you would agree. I 100% agree. So, uh, stick around for that because I'm sure you enjoy it. And, uh, yes, we'll be back soon.
01:01:18
Speaker
And welcome to the interview portion of eScott Game this week. We have a very special guest and someone who is a guest probably at a very important time of the season. So this athlete is a regional based female athlete who has gone from anywhere from the Maitland to the Central Coast to Mount Gambia to Canberra and back. She has been a standout since a junior. She played for New South Wales in under 20s.
01:01:48
Speaker
and she's also a WMBL champion. It is none other than Shakira Riley. Hi, chef. Hello. How are you guys? Very good. Thank you. How are you feeling today? Monday after a big road trip to Albury, did you have a chance to recover most of the day today?
01:02:13
Speaker
Yes, I was lucky enough to have this Monday off, so can't complain about that. It was a big weekend though, so much needed. In finals now, so definitely time to rest up and go gung-ho for the last three weeks of the season. Big road trip, certainly a tough way to finish the regular season.
01:02:34
Speaker
Yeah, big time. And coming to the finals, it's very exciting. It's very different basketball now coming into finals. Team stepped up that bit more. So it was a nice one to finish on that little road trip. But yeah, it's time to get into the sticky end now. And of course, it is your first season back at Maitland after your time away down at Canberra and then Mount Gambier for a couple of years. So why was the time right for you to come back to Maitland this season?
01:03:04
Speaker
Well, my time down South, I did love it. Mount Gambier loved the place, the people, everything about it. It wasn't anything, I guess, specific that made me decide to come home other than just my personal and mental health reasons at the time. I knew where I was at that point in time wasn't where I wanted to be. Helped make the decision to come home and reset the right one at that point in time. I think and now mental health being such a big thing in sport,
01:03:34
Speaker
obviously making that decision was for mine. Yeah. You can have a support group around you when you're interstate, but I guess it's not the same as having, you know, the family and friends you've known forever around you as well. 100%. And I'm very much a family person, so having my family around is a big, big thing for me. And I've got myself a little dog now, so having her with me as well at all times is needed too.
01:04:02
Speaker
How is that dog mum life treating you in Maitland? Good. I love it. She's so cute. I actually can't love her enough. She's so, so gorgeous. I actually took to the beach today, so I think she's happy with me. And because as we mentioned in the introduction, you also spent some time with the UC caps.
01:04:22
Speaker
like I mentioned, WMBL champion, which is pretty good to have on your resume. And at the start of the year, you and I were talking when we went to a Flames game about some other WMBL opportunities you had. But like you said, just wasn't the right time for you right now needing to return home to look after yourself. But is WMBL still a goal of yours to return to? Big time. Yeah, it always has been a goal, especially since
01:04:50
Speaker
experiencing down with the caps with the group that I did last time. You sort of just get that little rush and you just want to keep going and chasing that goal. So it definitely is. And once season rolls back around, you sort of get the touch of it a little bit again. And you're like, Oh yeah, I want to, want to strive for that again. So definitely is what I'm hoping for again. Cause going from MBL one to WNBL looks easy on paper, but when you,
01:05:17
Speaker
are playing at that level from a top tier MBL1 player to a DP in WMBL. Physically and skill-wise, it's actually quite a big jump. So what were some of the things you were surprised by when you started playing and training in WMBL level?
01:05:36
Speaker
Yeah. Just the, um, the constant effort, I guess at training, um, and needing that a hundred percent all the time, mentally and physically, I think mentally it's a lot harder. Um, physically, like we all know how to play basketball and things like that, but, um, being around like such professional athletes and how they do things so differently to that level under, it's just, yeah, great to be around. You learn so much.
01:06:01
Speaker
Of course, we can't really talk about WMBL, especially with someone from where you're from without talking about the rumours of a Newcastle WMBL team to keep floating about. There are drivers, but they're still close by. Does that excite you, the idea that there might be a team close to home one day? 100%. I think that room has been gone for quite some time now.
01:06:22
Speaker
I hope it's getting closer and closer to the time. And we say rivals, I guess. We've all grown up with each other in this area, so it's that friendly rivalry now, which is nice. But yeah, that home, close to home, WMBL team would be unreal. And I think especially for people, I guess, like Izzy Palmers and things that are currently over in the States killing it, for them to come home and have somewhere like that would be also, I think, a good thing for them and the young ones looking up to.
01:06:49
Speaker
Yeah, I think I've interviewed over my years five or six Newcastle players and the response is either yes or if they're playing for another WMBL team, it's like no comment, but kind of. They can't really. Yeah, that's fair.
01:07:05
Speaker
Um, because, and you mentioned as well, it would be really important to have like a WMBL team in Newcastle and Newcastle being the club, I think with the most members, Newcastle also being a regional team, but also a massive basketball club who have access to people who are even more regional like Taree and around those types of areas. Growing up in playing in Maitland, you actually had to come to Crusaders and Rebels for a little while, um, to play 18's. Was that correct?
01:07:36
Speaker
Yes yep so I was doing my last junior year with Rebels and playing seniors for the Crusaders at the time too but then I was also doing my NITP with Newcastle and Marty. He was awesome enough to let me jump in with them as well down there so they're all great down here and all the clubs have all sort of stuck together with a lot of different things and I think having that
01:08:03
Speaker
that senior program as a WBL or even NBL around this area would definitely bring a good crowd and people around for sure. Cause was that just not available for you at the time when you were doing 18s and 20s? At Maitland, like having NITP and stuff? It was at that time in 18s. I think I just needed that, that bit more at the time.
01:08:30
Speaker
uh, to sort of grow. I hadn't made a state team or things at that point in time. And I knew that was my goal and what I wanted to do. And to get better at that point in time, I think that's why that choice was made for me to go that next step. And having Drew Fenton at the time as my coach, he was amazing. Uh, and he really helped me grow as a player as well. I mean, Drew just won, MBL won North coach of the year, didn't he? So a bit of pedigree there.
01:08:57
Speaker
Yes, I did see that. Definitely well deserved. There's no doubt that he got that. So that's really, really awesome for him. And I think in other interviews on other podcasts, I think Jazz Forker Dill has even gone on record saying that Drew Fenton was a big part of her development as a junior.
01:09:18
Speaker
Definitely. He, so I remember before I actually made the decision to go to Gosford, I was traveling down there beforehand, just doing individuals with him because I just found him such a good coach. Um, and then the opportunity came up to trial under him for the under 18s team. And I just thought at the time, like, why not? Yeah. And it was probably the best thing I did at that time. Definitely grew a lot. And you won a state championship, didn't you?
01:09:43
Speaker
We did. We went through and won all the CPL rounds and the State Champs. I think our names are on the little board at the stadium still, which is nice. So you talk about having to, you know, bounce around, turn to a coast, Newcastle, but you're back at Maitland now. And what does it mean to lead your hometown team, especially to finals, given, you know, the team struggled a bit over the last few years?
01:10:09
Speaker
Yep, homes, yeah, Maitland's always home, so it's always really nice to come back and play in front of that home crowd and with people with the likes of Rachie Williams and things who I've grown up playing with since under 12. It's awesome to be able to come back and play with all those girls.
01:10:25
Speaker
I think obviously where we are right now, I think it was a little bit unexpected going into finals. But I think once we got to a point in the season where we were getting wins under the belt, mindset sort of switched and we're like, oh, we can do this. So now we've got that opportunity. We're just going to run with it. And it's it's really awesome to do that with the girls that we've got in the group.
01:10:44
Speaker
Because that group and the women's program, senior program at Maitland have a history of being successful in the state league competition. But is this the first time the women's program have reached the finals for Warrata slash MBL1 level? Yes, we've actually had a lot of talk about that this season with Mark and the girls. We've made a lot of history this season coming into the senior females program in Maitland. I believe it's the first time the girls made finals
01:11:14
Speaker
or get the amount of wins that we have in 22 years or something. It's a pretty cool achievement to be a part of that. Yeah, because I think the last success they had was as a netball team during the pandemic.
01:11:28
Speaker
when they went and played Maitland A great netball. Yeah, that's correct. Yeah, you're right. They killed that. That's so funny, Lockie. I completely forgot about that. I'm so glad you brought that up. They were all banned from netball this year, that's for sure. Clubs got more important things to worry about now. You didn't take the opportunity to introduce netball to your imports, Sydney Hunter and Marty Washington.
01:11:54
Speaker
Not yet. That might be an off-season thing for them. We'll wait till finals are done now, Squinny. But they've heard a lot about it, that's for sure. But yeah, keep them around for a little longer for the off-season. We'll introduce them maybe. And just a side note too, because your men's team have also reached the MBL1 East Finals for this year. Is there any rivalry or any bets placed between your team and the men's team to see who will go further?
01:12:23
Speaker
No there hasn't. There has been a few fans though I will say that have commented on they've enjoyed watching the women this year quite a bit so I'll take that. We'll take that any day of the week but the men are doing awesome as well so I think that everyone's just happy for each other and the community's happy for both of us to do so well so it's really awesome. But you knew Miller was going to leave for college and at the time you were just inside the top eight
01:12:50
Speaker
So did the team have any discussions about stepping up in her absence given her key role in the team? I think from the start of the season knowing the date and things of when Mill was going to go sort of allowed us that time over the season to build
01:13:07
Speaker
our roles and know where we were going to have to step up and things like that, knowing we're going to lose such a big role in Mill. So there wasn't, I guess, any big discussions when she left. It's just been an overtime of the season, knowing where we're going to have to start, especially defensively for us with that extra length with Mill and things she does so well there for us. So missing that little bit there, we've all had to sort of step up.
01:13:28
Speaker
I mean, you have really stepped up. You've knocked off Sutherland, you've knocked off Comets without her. The team really looks locked in. Yeah, I think, like I said before, I think during the season it just got to a point where something's flipped.
01:13:45
Speaker
and we were like okay no we can really do this so we've had a lot of things thrown at us but with the mentality of the group and the culture it's been great and I think we just believe in each other so much and we've still got Mill with us watching all the games and you know giving her little pep talks and things so she's still still here for the ride it's just um she had to leave a little bit sooner but yeah
01:14:10
Speaker
And you mentioned the really good team culture. It's very obvious on and off court that you guys have a great bond. So was that something that was cultivated in pre-season or something that happened naturally over the course of the season?
Maitland Team Dynamics and Preparation
01:14:24
Speaker
I think it's sort of been built across the season. Each year, I think Madeleine's always had a good culture. All us girls have always gotten along so well. This year, though, we've just been lucky with our two imports as well. They've just gelled so easily with the group.
01:14:39
Speaker
Um, so they're just great humans on and off the court. Um, so that just allowed it to sort of gel a lot more naturally as well. Uh, and you'll probably see sometimes down these last couple of games, especially I think in the new castle game, the commentators might even commented, but we're all just still smiling. We're in a huddle and we're all telling each other to just smile. And it was just so nice and, um, wholesome at that point in time. Like it was a pretty close game, but for us girls to have that mentality and just still to enjoy it at that time was, it was pretty cool.
01:15:09
Speaker
And I mean, speaking of the imports, you know, as you said, Maitland, you've got those girls who have all played together forever. And now the club's gone out and helped you get those two imports. Does it really feel like the association, I guess, from the business side is really getting behind the team? Yeah, definitely. I feel a lot this year that they're really pushing the female teams along. And a lot of our junior teams are getting a lot more involved on game days and things, which has been a lot of fun. But a lot of credit to Mark too on, I guess,
01:15:39
Speaker
finding those two girls at the start of the season. He did a lot of work in getting them to come with two hour clubs, so big credit to him there and obviously allowing the club, the club allowing him to get them here as well. When Sydney and Maddie arrived, your two imports, was MBL one what they expected and what do you feel like they have enjoyed the most about the league so far?
01:16:05
Speaker
I think it was obviously they both played college basketball so they're used to that high level of intense sort of basketball and then Sid also played over in Turkey for a little bit. So I think the level and standard of the MBL-1 they definitely were ready for it and I think they just enjoyed honestly they're both
01:16:27
Speaker
I think a lot of, you know, our social events is probably makes them enjoy a lot of the off the court stuff. And like I said before, on court, we just play so much as a team and especially now coming into this back end, we've had that bit extra time to gel and things. I think just how we are as a team now on court with that.
01:16:47
Speaker
I think that just is what they're enjoying and going that bit further than what we expected now into finals as well. And talking of finals, it's got Norse this weekend. Big game, so traveling down to the Bear Cave. Lost to them heavily last time. You've had beaten some other, like you've knocked off Newcastle, as I mentioned earlier, knocked off Sutherland in comments. How do you come into this game? How do you approach it?
01:17:14
Speaker
Uh, look, if the last game that we versed them, I think it was the second game of the season. So it was very early days when we did have North last time. And I think now we're a very different team to what we were then just, um, in growth wise, obviously now we've added the likes of Maddie.
01:17:32
Speaker
in and things like that as well. I just think it's whoever's going to turn up on the day. I think obviously North are always a very strong side and they always have been throughout juniors and everything. But I do think this top eight coming into finals, anyone we've sort of seen throughout the season can sort of
01:17:52
Speaker
knock anyone off on the day, it just depends who wants to turn up and do what they're going to do on the day. So hopefully that's us on Saturday, but just in for a good game and respect all the teams. Like I said, North are amazing and always have been. So it'll just be if we can follow the scout and do the things, little things right.
01:18:11
Speaker
It's funny you mention Maddie, because on my notes for the game, the first thing I have written down is previous meeting, 7350, pre-Maddie Washington, who she wasn't there at the time. No, that's right. Yeah, we'll have her, hopefully, a little secret weapon. Not so secret, because everyone knows she's here now, but...
01:18:31
Speaker
Yeah, something a little different to spice it in there. Yeah. And what about your personal preparation? I imagine that sometimes you must feel a little bit of pressure in these situations. So how do you mentally prepare now that you've matured a lot over your career? I'm probably my hardest critic. I'm very hard on myself when it comes to my personal game. So there's always times where people ask what I can be better at. And I always say that
01:18:58
Speaker
can be always improving. So leading into finals, I just think having the girls and being around each other this week and keeping that culture and that sort of relaxed feel to it is what's going to be best instead of, yeah, sort of getting too hyped up and playing the game before we get there just to keep that relaxed sort of feel within the team.
01:19:17
Speaker
is what's needed, I think. And for me personally, I need to stay relaxed otherwise I'll get too hyped up. What about physical preparation as well? Because some people going into finals will like to do some extra work, you know, get up extra shots, do extra injury prevention, do extra recovery.
01:19:35
Speaker
Um, for a big game, but then others like to do completely opposite. So it is, you know, like you said, it doesn't psych them out too much. Do you have the same physical preparation or do you change it up for finals? I like to keep it the same. So we've been lucky enough this year to have drew as our strength and conditioning coach. And a few of us see him throughout the week, quite a few times a week, and he's helped with like injury prevention and, um, our strength and conditioning. Like I said,
01:20:01
Speaker
So we'll have our sessions with him and we also had our team sessions like normal. Then that individual extra shooting is up to you. For me, I'll just try and keep it as same as possible. So like I said, I don't overdo it and sort of play the game before we get there or sort of go into the game thinking, oh, I should have gone in and shot that extra half an hour after training or something. So just sort of keep it the same as I have throughout the season, but yeah, not change it up too much.
01:20:26
Speaker
And so if not Maitland to win the NBA One East title for 2023, who are you tipping for the women's competition? This is going to be one of the hardest questions, I think, to answer. I'm always a country girl through and through. So I think it's always nice to see one of the country teams get the dub. Honestly, I've got a lot of mates throughout the whole crew. So even seeing like Manly, they've done so well all season.
01:20:51
Speaker
and they play so well as a team. I think they would also be very deserving of it at the end. But I think, yeah, like I said, I'm a country girl, so I like to see the country teams, but no one specific. I love everybody. Maybe you should have framed this as who are Maitland going to beat in the grand final. Yeah, I'm like, I want to see Maitland so bad, but you said not Maitland. But yeah, no, I'm happy for whoever ends up winning. I think all the teams this year, like they've all been great games to play.
01:21:19
Speaker
And everyone's been great sports. So at the end of the day, I think whoever gets it is very deserving of it.
Personal Training Passion and Community Involvement
01:21:26
Speaker
Away from basketball, you've started working at a new gym in Maitland. Social media tells me that you're enjoying it. What's the story? What's the story with the new gym? Yeah, so I was lucky enough. So while I was away, I did my personal training studies at three and four.
01:21:43
Speaker
Um, and then when I got home, I was lucky enough that this gym was opening, uh, sort of stems down from Queensland. So fit stop is a franchise and a lot of them are based up in Queensland and they've moved down. One of the first ones to open was actually in Maitland. So lucky enough when I got home to get a gig there as a group training, uh, PT loved it ever since. Like I love meeting new people and the new members that are always coming in and.
01:22:07
Speaker
The stories and just building that relationship with people is definitely something I'm very passionate about. You learn so much off other people. So yes, it's very much a job that I enjoy. So when when you did your cert three and four, was that because of your passion or did you just want to get a qualification and develop the passion from there? No, so I've always loved the gym personally, like for myself and own training. And then while I was away, I just thought that being like the best time while I was away playing
01:22:36
Speaker
for myself and things to do that little bit extra on the side. To have something obviously that qualification helps to have it to fall back on as well, but definitely stem from the passion of wanting to sort of obviously loving it myself, but then also wanting to help people and grow in that aspect too. Do you feel like it keeps you more accountable as an athlete? Absolutely, yeah.
01:22:56
Speaker
Don't tell someone to do something you can't, definitely. So I'm really glad that you're enjoying that and fighting your niche a little bit at home back in Maitland. As you mentioned earlier in the episode, the decision to come and return to Maitland for lots of reasons and mostly off court. But can you give us any hints about how you plan to spend your off season?
01:23:16
Speaker
Uh, so there's some fun things getting like in the talks at the moment, but no locked in plans as yet is all I was saying. Exciting times. I think we'll just have to watch this space for you as well, Shaki. Yes, it's exciting. The unknown is scary sometimes, but it's...
01:23:33
Speaker
It all seems very
WNBL Aspirations and Maitland Mustangs Legacy
01:23:34
Speaker
positive, so. And do you have people working for you to help you reach those WMBL goals in terms of, you know, have you got agents or do you kind of trust the universe to decide for you? So it's not only this year that I thought to sort of reach out to someone.
01:23:51
Speaker
like in regards to an agent. I'd never really understood how all that stuff worked before. It was always sort of my own conversations or yeah, the universe working in my favourite times. But this year I had actually reached out to somebody and sort of got that assistance a little bit there as well, yeah.
01:24:08
Speaker
And has it put you in the right direction? I'm hoping so. Yes. Um, Shaq, before we finish up, do you want to give anyone a shout out? I guess just a shout out to the girls. Let's get these finals. The Stangers. The Stangers. And the guys too. And the guys team as well.
01:24:29
Speaker
Well, Shaq, thank you so much for taking time to be a guest on eScott game, especially as we head into the elimination finals. We really hope to see you go all the way with the Maitland Mustang women because you've already had such a dream season and it sounds like
01:24:46
Speaker
A lot of positives on and off court have been achieved for the women's program this year. And so I'm looking forward to see how you guys go again next year and if that can continue on. Otherwise, can we expect to see you at the MBO1 East Finals either way? Yes, I'm sure I'll be around at some point either way.
01:25:06
Speaker
I hope to see you guys in person very soon. Us too, Shaq. But yeah, thanks again and we'll definitely keep in touch. And yeah, best of luck for your elimination final against North's this weekend. Awesome, guys. Thank you so much. And just before we wrap up this episode, NBL One East fans.
01:25:24
Speaker
We had a very loyal listener contact us in regards to some information from Episode 19 when we suggested that it was the Maitland Mustangs women's team first time reaching the finals for an MBL1 equivalent competition. And before I share this information, I do have permission from this person to share on the podcast.
01:25:47
Speaker
They said, from about 1999 to 2000, the Mustangs were consistently top eight in Waratah League, which is equivalent to MBL1. However, playoffs used to be top four, not top eight, so it made it very difficult to make finals.
01:26:02
Speaker
In 2000, we finished third and lost a close semi by three to a Nat Hirst-led Canberra Capitals. But I think it was still the Nationals. The team had myself, Amy McGregor, near Amy Boyle, and daughters of club legends Amanda Bendyke and Elianne Denilides.
01:26:23
Speaker
For me the season in the year 2000 was personally pretty special. I was league MVP and had two years following in All-Star 5. In 2004 I had Miller, then Henry a few years later so my playing days were up and down on and off from there. Perhaps now that I've mentioned this person's kids names you might know who this is.
01:26:45
Speaker
They go on to say that now that their kids are playing for Maitland Mustangs as juniors and both their kids have represented New South Wales and led the junior Mustang's teams now into seniors, they believe that they've done their part producing four great players for the club and between their great players and coaching, I certainly agree. So a massive shout out and a big thank you to Christa Wasco, aka Christa Washkowicz,
01:27:12
Speaker
Thank you for sharing this part of the Maitland Mustangs history, particularly because it's part of the women's program. And most of all, thank you for listening to East Scott Game and for supporting the local game as much as you have. Otherwise, NBL One East fans, that is the show for this week. Thanks again for tuning in. Remember, you can always share our podcast with any of your friends who also enjoy the NBL One
01:27:41
Speaker
Now, more than ever, as we head into the MBO1 East Elimination Finals, you need to remember, don't sleep on the East.