East Wrap | Men's Round 1

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Todd Blanchfield and Matthew Mims combined for 105 points and 25 threes in a pair of NBL1 East wins for the Illawarra Hawks while Fabijan Krslovic helped the Norths Bears to a double as did Jai Faale with the Centre of Excellence.

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SATURDAY

Manly Warringah Sea Eagles (75) lost to Canberra Gunners (80)

The Canberra Gunners were pushed all the way by the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles with a big first up showing by Emmanuel Tshimanga, but their championship mettle was on show in season opening 80-75 win.

The Gunners started their championship defence on Saturday on the road to the Sea Eagles at Northern Beaches Indoor Sports Centre.

They had to battle hard all evening only leading the Sea Eagles by four points at quarter-time, by five at the half and then eight at three quarter-time before it was just a one-point ball game with 30 seconds remaining.

However, the Gunners scored the last four points to secure the four-point win despite giving up 19 offensive rebounds to three.

The Gunners proved too strong to open their championship defence with five players scoring in double-figures led by Will Mayfield with 18 points and seven rebounds.

Evan Wardlow added 14 points and four assists while Darnell Hoskins contributed 13 points and two steals having previously played in the NBL1 out West with the Willetton Tigers in 2023, and then in the Big V with RMIT University in 2025.

Championship captain James Toohey provided another 11 points, five rebounds and three assists with Cameron Pender contributing 10 points, 12 boards and three assists, and Will Rice nine points on 3/4 three-point shooting.

Emmanuel Tshimanga was impressive first up in the NBL1 East for the Sea Eagles. He finished with 17 points, 23 rebounds and two blocks on 6/11 shooting with 5/8 at the foul line with seven of his boards at the offensive end.

Quinn Slazinski also ended up with 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists for the Sea Eagles with Jack Giddens contributing 13 points and seven boards, Stefan Valkovic 11 points on 5/9 shooting, and Oliver Hammond nine points and six assists.

Centre of Excellence (75) defeated Penrith Panthers (57)

The Centre of Excellence unveiled their impressive young depth for 2026 with a first up home win 75-57 against the Penrith Panthers.

It's a new-look CoE line-up for 2026 under the coaching of Braden Cotter as they hosted the Panthers on Saturday who are looking to improve on their 3-17 season in 2025.

It was a strong start from the emerging Basketball Australia stars too with 23 points to 12 in the first quarter before they pulled away further in the third term with 18 points to six on the way to the eventual 18-point victory.

There were plenty of strong contributors in the win too with Jai Faale showing the way with 15 points, six rebounds and five assists.

Will Hamilton added 12 points, six rebounds and three steals, Isaac Riddle 12 points on 2/3 three-point shooting, Flynn Pavely 10 points, four rebounds and two assists, and Luke Paul eight points, five assists, four boards and two steals.

Simon Krpez top-scored for Penrith with 20 points, six rebounds and three assists with Noah Webb adding 12 points and nine boards, and Ben Kearins nine points, four steals, three assists and two rebounds.

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders (77) lost to Central Coast Crusaders (89)

The Central Coast Crusaders took charge in the third quarter to set up their season-opening 89-77 road win over the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders.

Both teams missed finals in 2025 ahead of starting 2026 against one another at The Brickpit and it was the Crusaders leading by just three points at quarter-time before the Spiders turned it around to be up three themselves at half-time.

Central Coast then took over in the third frame with 26 points to 13 which set them up for the eventual 12-point victory.

Garric Young delivered 21 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks in the win for the Crusaders with Seth Chapman adding 15 points, 14 boards and two assists, Luke Cassidy 19 points, nine assists and four rebounds, and Shareef Saipaia 11 points, four boards, three assists and three steals.

Maitland Mustangs (78) lost to Illawarra Hawks (91)

Todd Blanchfield and Matthew Mims combined for 53 points, 21 rebounds and 10 three-pointers as they led the Illawarra Hawks to the season-opening 91-78 win over the Maitland Mustangs.

The Hawks are coming off a 2025 season where they finished the regular season in top spot and then lost the grand final to the Canberra Gunners as they opened 2026 on the road to the 2024 champion Mustangs.

Maitland missed finals in 2025 as defending champs and it was a tight first half battle they had with Illawarra in the first half with the Hawks narrowly leading 47-43 at the half.

Illawarra then took charge with 27 points to 17 in the third period on the way to the 13-point victory with Blanchfield and Mims the ultimate difference.

Blanchfield hit 5/9 from deep for 28 points and 16 rebounds for the Hawks with Mims knocking down 5/10 from long-range for 25 points, five boards, four assists and two steals.

Mason Peatling also had 12 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks, and Ethan Moss eight points and three boards.

Fresh off an injury interrupted NBL season at the Cairns Taipans, Reyne Smith had 21 points and four rebounds with 4/12 three-point shooting for the Mustangs with Will Cranston-Lown adding 20 points, seven boards and six assists.

Myles Cherry also had 16 points and six rebounds on 8/14 field goal shooting.

Newcastle Falcons (70) lost to Norths Bears (80)

The Norths Bears got to overtime with a huge fourth quarter and then kept the momentum going in the extra five minutes for the 80-70 road win over the Newcastle Falcons.

Both teams have high hopes of what they are capable of coming into 2026 as they started proceedings against one another at Newcastle Basketball Stadium.

The Bears made the fast start with 24 points to 13 in the first quarter but then the Falcons took charge with 17 to seven in the second, and 22 to 12 in the third to open up a nine-point lead by the third frame.

Norths hit back with 25 points to 16 in the fourth quarter to get the game to overtime and then it was all the Bears with 12 points to two in the extra frame for the eventual 10-point road win.

Fabijan Krslovic is coming off an NBL season at Melbourne United and delivered 18 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and two steals with 3/4 three-point shooting for the Bears.

Bailey Hanson added 17 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals, Iggy Mitchell 14 points and seven boards, and Lachlan Bofinger 12 points and four rebounds.

Jude Jennings finished with 17 points, five rebounds and four steals for Newcastle with Ryan Beisty adding 13 points, 17 boards and five assists, Matur Maluach 10 points and five rebounds, and Jai Smith eight points, five boards and three assists on 2/2 three-point shooting.

Inner West Bulls (93) defeated Hills Hornets (84)

Malok Majak and Kobe Shannon combined for 45 points to the lead the Inner West Bulls to the first up 93-84 home win against the Hills Hornets.

Both the Bulls and Hornets missed the playoffs in 2025 so will be looking to get in the mix in 2026 ahead of their season-opener on Saturday at Sydney Uni Sports and Aquatics Centre.

Inner West went into the half-time break leading 49-43 before breaking the game open with a 10-0 run in the third period to build an 18-point lead on the way to the eventual nine-point victory.

Majak finished with 24 points and eight rebounds in the win for the Bulls with Shannon adding 21 points and seven assists with 5/11 three-point shooting.

Henry Makeny added 17 points, four rebounds, three blocks and two assists with 4/7 three-point shooting while Jasper Rentoy added 15 points and five assists, and Max Clark eight points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Shaun Stewart has made the move from the NBL1 West to join the Hornets in 2026 and he was impressive first up with 29 points, four assists and three rebounds.

Meekness Payne added 14 points and four rebounds, Saxon Orsini 11 points and six boards, and Gum Majak four points, 13 rebounds and three assists.

Sutherland Sharks (65) lost to Sydney Comets (77)

Ahmed Barba-Bey produced a match-winning performance to lead the Sydney Comets to the season-opening 77-65 road win against the Sutherland Sharks.

The Comets season promised so much in 2025 before they lost their last six games including their two finals but they started 2026 strongly including 24 points to 17 in the opening quarter.

They turned that into the 42-29 lead by half-time and then converted that into the eventual 12-point road win to begin the new season.

Barba-Bey starred in the win for Sydney with 26 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals on shooting 3/5 from behind the three-point arc.

Obi Kyei added 11 points and eight rebounds, Akil Douglas 11 points, two boards and two steals, Chol Adup 10 points and two rebounds while Ethan Marten-Coney pulled down 10 boards.

Ryan Abbott top-scored for Sutherland with 14 points and 11 rebounds with Luke Jamieson contributing 11 points, seven boards and three assists, Lochlan Hutchison 11 points, six rebounds, four steals and three assists, and Adrian Cabrera 10 points, three boards and two steals.

Albury-Wodonga Bandits (96) lost to Bankstown Bruins (107)

The Bankstown Bruins built a 26-point lead and withstood a furious Albury-Wodonga Bandits fightback to open their season with the 107-96 road win.

The Bruins lost to open the finals to the Sutherland Sharks last year but were on a mission for a fast start to 2026 at Lauren Jackson Sports Centre.

Bankstown put up 36 points to 18 in the first quarter and then went into half-time on top 64-31 before that lead got out to as much as 26 points in the third.

Albury-Wodonga did mount a fightback from there with 55 points to 43 through the first half, but it wasn’t enough to stop Bankstown securing the season-opening 11-point win.

Six Bruins players scored in double-digits with Alex Higgins-Titsha showing the way with 21 points and eight rebounds as he returns after injury ended his NBL season early at the Cairns Taipans.

Anthony Mundine III also had 15 points with 5/7 three-point shooting with Elijah Kamu contributing 15 points and nine rebounds, Tederick Wolfe 15 points, eight boards and three assists, and Zeke Evans 13 points and eight rebounds.

Jason Cadee pulled it all together for 14 points, 12 assists and five rebounds.

Lochlan Cummings has returned to the Bandits in 2026 following a stint back home in the NBL1 West at the Perth Redbacks. He delivered 31 points, nine rebounds and four assists with 5/9 three-point shooting.

Kevion Blaylock added 23 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks, Christian Cook 21 points and four boards, and Jacob Cincurak 12 points, six assists, three rebounds and two steals.

SUNDAY

Centre of Excellence (97) defeated Bankstown Bruins (89)

The Centre of Excellence made it a double win home weekend to start the season beating the Bankstown Bruins 97-89 on Sunday.

Both teams were in action also on Saturday with the CoE beating the Penrith Panthers while the Bruins pulled off the win to start their road double against the Albury-Wodonga Bandits.

Bankstown made a solid start to be up one at quarter-time before the CoE took charge in the second period with 33 points to 18 to go into half-time on top 58-44.

That lead got out to as much as 16 throughout the second half with the CoE converting that into the eventual eight-point win with Jai Faale again showing the way with 26 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

Ajak Nyuon added 14 points and five rebounds with Luke Paul contributing 13 points, 10 boards and five assists, and Will Hamilton 11 points and four rebounds.

Anthony Mundine III made another 4/9 from three-point range for 22 points for Bankstown with Elijah Kamu adding 18 points and seven rebounds, Tederick Wolfe 17 points and two steals, Alex Higgins-Titsha 13 points and six rebounds, and Jason Cadee six points and 14 assists.

Newcastle Falcons (75) lost to Hills Hornets (78)

The Hills Hornets came from 10 points down in the second half to overrun the Newcastle Falcons and score the 78-75 road win on Sunday.

Both teams had already played on Saturday with Newcastle losing at home to the Norths Bears as did the Hornets on the road to the Inner West Bulls.

So both were trying to bounce back at Newcastle Basketball Stadium and the Falcons started on fire opening up an 11-point advantage in the first quarter.

They would complete another 13-0 run in the third term to be back out to a 10-point lead only for the Hornets to finish the better with 23 points to 14 in the fourth quarter to win by three with Shaun Stewart coming up huge with a couple of late clutch buckets.

Stewart finished with 16 points, two rebounds and two assists while Josh Pain top-scored for Hills with 23 points and five rebounds on 5/7 three-point shooting.

Jacob Foy also had eight points, six assists and five rebounds, and Meekness Payne eight points and seven boards.

Jude Jennings top-scored for Newcastle with 15 points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists with Ryan Beisty adding 14 points, seven boards, four assists and two steals, Jai Smith 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists, and Mandrell Worthy 12 points and three assists.

Central Coast Crusaders (74) lost to Norths Bears (99)

The Norths Bears made it a double road win weekend with the 99-74 Sunday win against the Central Coast Crusaders.

Both teams had played on Saturday with the Crusaders winning on the road to the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders while the Bears also won away from home to the Newcastle Falcons.

They backed up on Sunday at Guzman y Gomez Stadium and it was the Crusaders clinging to a three-point lead after one, and then still being up 49-45 at the half.

It was all the Bears from there with 54 points to 25 in the second half on the way to the eventual 25-point victory.

Fabijan Krslovic had another 18 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals for the Bears with Iggy Mitchell adding 17 points, seven boards and three blocks, Lachlan Bofinger 15 points, six rebounds and three assists, and Bailey Hanson 14 points and two assists.

Garric Young top-scored for Central Coast with 19 points and nine rebounds with Shareef Saipaia adding 17 points and five boards, Jamai Shoaib 10 points, three rebounds and two assists, and Tom Akamarmoi 10 points, five boards and three assists.

Luke Cassidy also had six points, 11 assists and five rebounds.

Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders (80) lost to Illawarra Hawks (97)

Todd Blanchfield, Matthew Mims and Mason Peatling produced 72 points, 34 rebounds, 12 assists and 16 three-pointers as the Illawarra Hawks lit it up to beat the Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders 97-80.

The Spiders opened their season also at home on Saturday with a 12-point loss to the Central Coast Crusaders while the Hawks started their 2026 campaign with a 13-point road victory against the Maitland Mustangs.

Blanchfield and Mims had already combined for 36 points and 11 three-pointers for Illawarra by half-time with them opening up a 21-point half-time lead.

That got out to as much as 30 points early in the fourth before the Spiders did finish with a flurry with 36-point fourth quarter points and six three-pointers to cut the final winning margin to the Hawks to 17.

Blanchfield had a bit more time to prepare for this NBL1 East season with the Hawks missing the NBL finals after their championship triumph of 2026, and he showed he's ready to fire once more.

The 473-game NBL veteran knocked down 8/16 from three-point range including 6/10 to half-time for 25 points along with pulling down 20 rebounds with two blocks.

Mims was his partner in crime shooting 5/10 from behind the arc in the first half and 7/13 for the game for 27 points, 10 assists, four rebounds and two blocks.

Peatling is another coming off his NBL season with Illawarra and produced 20 points and 10 rebounds while being +27 for the Hawks in his 28 minutes.

Jackson Smyth ended up making 5/13 from three-point territory for Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai for 23 points with four steals, three assists and three rebounds.

Alex Sidhu added 17 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and three steals, Mikes Connelly IV 14 points with 4/8 three-point shooting, and Nathaniel Chappell 13 points and five rebounds.