Chasing dreams paying off for Millie

Featured image: @cambrownvisuals

Moving away from her family and home club at Perry Lakes Hawks was the biggest decision Millie McCarthy had to make, but it could pay off with an NBL1 South championship with Waverley Falcons as a career in corporate law also gets nearer.

By the end of 2024, McCarthy had played all of her basketball at the Perry Lakes Hawks and had amassed 93 games up to the end of that NBL1 West season to be earning more opportunities all the time as a point guard.

But she was just about to turn 22 and not only did it feel like a good time to get herself out of her comfort zone and experience a change in lifestyle, a chance opened up to continue her law studies in Melbourne at Monash University.

She then found a home in the NBL1 South at Waverley who were fresh off winning both the conference and national championships in 2024, and they again reached the semi finals with her part of the team in 2025.

Her minutes and numbers might have been the lowest of her career since the 2018 rookie season with Perry Lakes, but she still enjoyed the experience and now has taken up an increased role in 2026.

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McCarthy is up to 22 minutes a game and is producing 6.6 points and 3.5 assists for the Falcons who have now reached the Grand Final and will take on the defending champion Knox Raiders this Saturday at the State Basketball Centre.

Life in Melbourne has certainly agreed with the 23-year-old too and her boyfriend has since joined her, she's now two years into her Juris Doctor studies and she's never enjoyed her basketball more either.

"Playing at Waverley is awesome, the stands have been packed out, especially for finals, and the crowd is so close to the court it creates a great atmosphere," McCarthy said.

"Moving over to Melbourne from Perth was quite daunting, but I really felt like I’ve found a home away from home at Waverley.

"The club has such a great family feel. I joined the team last minute at the start of last year but from day one everyone has embraced me and really made me feel a part of the family. I couldn’t be more grateful to be playing here at Waverley with all of these amazing people."

Great pride in reaching Grand Final

At no point all this NBL1 South season have Waverley been at full strength and they did lose three of the first five, and five of the first nine games of the season.

But things then started to click and they closed the regular season winning nine of the last 11 matches to end up in third place at 15-7.

And even though they welcomed back their Grand Final MVP from 2024 Carley Ernst having just had her second baby, they lost a pair of bigs with injuries to Maddi Utti and Sophia Locandro.

But still, the Falcons won home finals against the Casey Cavaliers and Diamond Valley Eagles to win their way into the Grand Final this Saturday where they face the huge test against a Knox team on a 15-game winning streak.

But McCarthy beams with pride when talking about what this Waverley team has done to get this far.

"Oh, so proud for sure. It’s been a crazy season for us with the coaching change early in the season and then all the unfortunate injuries, but it’s bought us together and we all just play for each other," McCarthy said.

"Every time someone has gone down with an injury, we’ve had someone else step up and that’s something I love about our team.

"We back each other and trust everyone to get the job done no matter who is on the court. I’ve had the best time playing with this group of girls, I couldn’t have asked for a better team, I just love them all to death.

"I’m proud of how far we’ve come but we’re not content and we still have one more game to win this weekend, then hopefully a couple more at Nationals too."

The Grand Final challenge ahead

It's hard to argue against the case that Knox are the best NBL1 team in the country right now. After all, they won last year's NBL1 South championship and then backed it up by winning at the National Finals in Canberra a week later.

Now in 2026, after losing four of the first nine games, they haven't lost since going down to the Melbourne Tigers on May 3 having won the last 13 games of the regular season to finish a game clear in top spot.

Knox then went on to beat both the Tigers by 44 points and Sandringham Sabres by just two in the finals to now book their place against Waverley in the Grand Final.

McCarthy is fully aware of the challenge Knox present, but can't wait for her and her Falcons teammates to give it their best shot.

"We can’t wait!" McCarthy said.

"Knox are such a balanced, tough team and have really set the standard over the past couple of seasons, so we are really looking forward to trying to knock them off.

"We’re definitely coming in as the underdogs, which is a role that as a team we really have embraced. We’ve got a lot of fight and will do whatever we need to get the win, no matter how ugly it is sometimes.

"We’ve worked really hard to be in this position and have the opportunity to play for a championship so we’re going to do everything we can to win."

The huge decision to leave home

McCarthy had plenty of reasons to stay in Perth back at the end of 2024. She loved her club at Perry Lakes, her boyfriend was there, her family was there who she's always been close to, and she had nothing to complain about.

At the same time, she's never been afraid of challenges so moving to the other side of the country to play basketball in the NBL1 South and then to take the next step in her law study, and the move to Melbourne became a reality by the start of 2025.

"It was probably one of the hardest decisions I’ve made, leaving home, because I’m a big family person and have such a close-knit family and an amazing partner, I just love them all so much so leaving was hard," McCarthy said.

"Also leaving Perry Lakes was difficult because I had played there my whole life with some of my closest friends, that club and team was really my second family.

"But my family and my boyfriend were so supportive, they encouraged me the whole way and I’m so glad I did it.

"My sister and her partner were over here in Melbourne already and kindly let me live at their house, which made the move so much easier, I’m so grateful to them for that."

Everything has come together perfectly

And now more than 18 months after the move, McCarthy knows it was the right decision and the law studies are progressing well, her boyfriend has now joined her in Melbourne, and the only complaint really is that the beaches back home in Perth are still far superior.

"I moved to study Law at Monash but also to challenge myself in the NBL1 South and try and grow as a player and a person," McCarthy said.

"In the beginning it was difficult being so far away from everyone and everything I loved, but over time I’ve really found my feet and I love it here now, even though winter is freezing, and Port Phillip Bay isn’t quite Cottesloe Beach.

"My boyfriend has moved over here now too which has been so much fun exploring Melbourne with him. It’s hard not being able to see my family every day and I do miss home sometimes but we speak on the phone all the time and I try to get home whenever I can, which is really nice.

"Most of my family are coming for the grand final on Saturday and my dad was at the prelim last week so I’m so excited to see all of them in the stands. Unfortunately, my younger brothers couldn’t come but they’ll be watching from back home."

The move on a basketball front

In terms of the basketball, all that McCarthy had known was playing for Perry Lakes, getting to call Bendat Basketball Centre home and then being familiar with all the players she'd played against for years in Western Australia.

So it was a steep learning curve making a new basketball home at Waverley and then trying to get to know the other 18 teams in the NBL1 South and having do all that while having the responsibilities as a point guard when she was out on the floor.

"The South is such a great league, I think the biggest difference is just how deep the league is," McCarthy said.

"There are 19 teams and all of them are competitive which means every weekend is a new challenge and you always have to be locked in.

"Before coming over I had played basketball at Perry Lakes my whole life, so I really didn’t know much else, but being exposed to different players and teams has been such a great learning experience and I feel like I’ve grown as a player because of it.

"Being a point guard you are kind of forced to be a leader in some sense, so it was a bit nerve-wracking at the start, but I have been so lucky to have been here at Waverley with players and coaches that are so supportive and let me make mistakes.

"I have learnt so much from all my teammates, but I think Amelia (Todhunter) especially has taught me a lot over the past two seasons. She’s such a smart point guard and a tremendous leader and I’m so grateful I was able to play with her, she’s the best."

Hunting a corporate law career

McCarthy is now in her second year of her Juris Doctor studies that she's enjoying at Monash University with her eyes set on the corporate law world, but once she starts with some clerkships she'll get a clearer picture of the exact path she wants to follow.

"I’m trying to keep an open mind to all the different avenues, but I would love to work in a corporate law firm and am leaning towards mergers and acquisitions as an area of interest," McCarthy said.

"I’ve just finished applying for clerkships at a few different firms so hopefully something will come out of that, and I will get the chance to see what working in corporate law is like, but I still have another 18 months or so before I graduate so have some time to make up my mind."

Already locked in to head to Adelaide

The other bonus for McCarthy and Waverley with Knox qualifying for the NBL1 South Grand Final, is that they had already locked in a spot at next week's National Finals in Adelaide having won in Canberra last year.

That means that by making the Grand Final, win or lose on Saturday night, Waverley will be part of the National Finals in Adelaide next week too for a third straight year and McCarthy can't wait.

"It was a lot of fun last year," McCarthy said.

"It’s such a fast, jam-packed weekend and having the chance to play teams from other conferences is really fun.

"I’m trying to stay focused on this week and winning on Saturday night, so I haven’t thought much about Nationals yet but I’m excited to go to Adelaide, I’ve never been so it will be fun to explore the city a little if we have some free time."