North Wrap | Men's First Nations Round

Featured image: P2DK Photography - @p2dk_photography

Cairns Marlins stayed undefeated in the NBL1 North with Kobe McDowell-White and Amarco Doyle shining in First Nations Round while Shaun Bruce and Cal Dalton came up huge for two Logan Thunder wins, and so did Jensen Bradtke and Preston Le Gassick for Gold Coast Rollers.

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FRIDAY

Brisbane Capitals (99) defeated Sunshine Coast Phoenix (92)

The Brisbane Capitals had lost their past four games and couldn’t afford to make it five if they wanted to stay in the finals hunt and they got the win they needed beating the Sunshine Coast Phoenix 99-92.

The Caps were back home at Auchenflower Stadium needing to snap that losing slide against a Phoenix team in third place and having won their last couple but also without a couple of key players.

Jamaal Robateau was again unavailable while Earnest Ross was in Perth at the same time representing Guam against the Australian Boomers, and the Caps were in control most of the night.

The home team led by as much as 29 points in the third quarter but Sunshine Coast came storming back to get within three through the final term before Brisbane did steady enough to win by seven and improve to a 7-7 record with the Phoenix now 9-4.

Kai Bloom already had 12 points in the first quarter and finished with 28 for the game for Brisbane along with six assists, five rebounds and five steals on 12/15 field goal shooting.

Brendan Teys also delivered 22 points, five rebounds and three assists with 4/9 three-point shooting with Kai Woodfall contributing 21 points on 6/11 shooting from downtown.

Jarred Bairstow had another 16 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals as he gears up to be part of the Australian Gangurrus 3x3 team at the Commonwealth Games.

The Phoenix were missing Earnest Ross and Jamaal Robateau with Luke Anderson into the starting line-up and top scoring with 20 points, five rebounds and three assists on 9/12 shooting.

DeShawn Ross-Paiwan also had 15 points, five rebounds and three assists, Darnell Robateau 13 points, 10 boards, five assists and three steals, Nelson Kahler 12 points, five rebounds and two blocks, and Erik Kafritsas nine points, four boards and four assists.

South West Metro Pirates (85) lost to Logan Thunder (112)

Logan Thunder consolidated their playoff position with the 112-85 road win over the South West Metro Pirates now dealing with reality without Flynn Cameron once again.

The Pirates were back home at Hibiscus Sports Stadium with the sugar hit of Cameron's four-game before he headed off for NBA Summer League wearing off as they hosted a Logan need who could all but lock in a playoffs spot with a win.

It was a dominant start from the Thunder with 31 points to 18 in the opening quarter before that lead got out to 20 in the second frame and by half-time they were leading 55-35.

It was then a monster 39-point quarter from Logan with the lead getting out to 31 points and it was 36 in the fourth term and still 27 by the final buzzer.

The win improves the Thunder to a 9-3 record to be solid inside the top six with Zac Tripplett top scoring with 25 points, eight rebounds and four assists with Tyrone Fui adding 24 points, five boards, four assists and two blocked shots.

Cal Dalton added 21 points, 10 rebounds and three assists, Tane Kirisome 15 points, three boards and three assists, Hunter Marks nine points and 12 rebounds, and Shaun Bruce 11 assists, eight rebounds and three points.

South West Metro are now 4-10 and having lost all 10 games when Cameron hasn’t been available with Deng Mayot finishing with 13 points and eight rebounds with Tyrell Mason adding 11 points and five boards, and Dominique Keyes 10 points, 11 rebounds and three assists.

Louis Jones also had 11 points and three rebounds, Harrison Huber nine points and three assists, and player-coach Darryl McDowell-White Jr seven points, three rebounds and two assists.

Southern Districts Spartans (83) lost to Cairns Marlins (99)

The Cairns Marlins put another dagger into the hopes of the Southern Districts Spartans defending their championship in 2026 with the 99-83 road win to remain undefeated themselves.

Cairns arrived at Rowland Cowan Stadium two games clear in top spot while the Spartans needed to win if they wanted to stay a chance of reaching the playoffs in what was their second last game of the regular season.

The Marlins were narrowly leading 27-26 by quarter-time before stretching that advantage to five by half-time and then they took control from there with 27 points to 19 in the third frame, and 22 to 19 in the fourth.

That saw Cairns improve to a perfect 13-0 record on the season with Amarco Doyle starring with 25 point and 12 rebounds fresh off signing in the NBL for the first time with the Illawarra Hawks.

Luca Yates added 21 points, 10 rebounds and two assists, Kobe McDowell-White 19 points, eight assists and seven boards, Kyle Leslie 14 points, six rebounds and four assists, and Kody Stattmann 13 points and seven boards.

Southern Districts are now 6-9 and would need a minor miracle to play finals with Tamuri Wigness finishing with 17 points, 13 assists, seven rebounds and two steals.

Ben Hastings also had 12 points, Darcy Ryder 12 points, Cameron Thew 10 points and five rebounds, Isaih Tueta nine points, two boards and two assists, and Max Kerle eight points, five rebounds and two assists.

Mackay Meteors (95) defeated Townsville Heat (77)

The Mackay Meteors maintained their hold on a playoff position with the 95-77 win over the Townsville Heat with 40 points and 10 rebounds between Jalen Johnson and Cameron Goldfinch.

The Meteors were back home at Mackay Basketball Stadium needing a win to stay solid in the top six as they hosted a Townsville team out of the playoff hunt but who are still dangerous.

The Heat started well on the road to lead 20-18 by quarter-time but Mackay worked on top in the second period with 28 points to 20 on the way to the half-time lead of 46-40.

That lead for the Meteors got out to 10 points in the third quarter and then they dominated on their home floor with 25 points to 13 in the fourth quarter on the way to the 18-point victory.

The win improves Mackay to an 8-5 record with Cameron Goldfinch finishing with 20 points, five rebounds and two assists with 3/4 three-point shooting, and Jalen Johnson 20 points, five boards and three assists.

Derek Emelifeonwu added 16 points, three rebounds and two assists, Maurice Calloo 12 points and two boards, and Khobie De Haan 10 points, three rebounds and two steals.

Townsville are now 3-10 having lost five in-a-row with Steven Richardson Jr finishing with 15 points, four rebounds and four assists with Nathaniel Pollard Jr adding 12 points, 19 boards, four assists, three steals and two blocks.

Richard Peachey also had 13 points, three rebounds and three assists, Ethan Betts nine points, four boards and two assists, and Chris Kann nine points, three assists and two rebounds.

SATURDAY

Ipswich Force (108) lost to Gold Coast Rollers (111)

The Gold Coast Rollers put up 65 points in the second half on the way to the 111-108 win over the Ipswich Force that keeps them solid in a top two spot and leaves their opponents fighting for their playoff lives.

The Force were back home at Ipswich Basketball Stadium tying to consolidate a playoff position with the Rollers looking to stay in the top two and remain a chance to snatch top spot also from the Cairns Marlins.

Ipswich were on top for a lot of the first half including leading by as much as nine points but Gold Coast then got going with a 36-point third quarter before ending up completing the three-point victory.

The Rollers outscored the Force 65 points to 55 in the second half to secure the win and improve to an 11-2 record to stay solid in second with the Force now 7-7 and locked in a fight with the Brisbane Capitals and Southern Districts Spartans for sixth position.

Preston Le Gassick continues to shine as point guard ahead of his first NBL season with the New Zealand Breakers. He produced 29 points and five assists with 12/23 field goal shooting.

Jensen Bradtke added 23 points, 11 rebounds and three assists, Brodie McGregor 21 points and five boards, James Whitt 18 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals, and Boston Mazlin 14 points, six assists and four boards.

It was a tough loss for the Force who now have just two games left and they are fighting for their playoff lives despite the impressive basketball they are playing to a large degree.

That's no surprise given the talent and experience they possess with Sam McDaniel producing 33 points, seven rebounds and four assists with 5/8 three-point shooting.

Lamar Patterson also had 23 points, nine rebounds and nine assists with Merrick Small adding 16 points and six boards, Will Mahoney 14 points, and Lachlan Anderson 13 points, three rebounds and three assists.

North Gold Coast Seahawks (83) lost to Cairns Marlins (96)

The Cairns Marlins continued their perfect season with the 96-83 road win over the North Gold Coast Seahawks with Kobe McDowell-White and Luca Yates combining for 59 points and 18 rebounds.

The Marlins started their road double with the 16-point win over the Southern Districts Spartans on Friday night ahead of taking on the Seahawks at Runaway Bay Indoor Stadium who were trying to get out of bottom place.

North Gold Coast made a flying start with a 10-0 run before Cairns responded with a 12-0 run and by quarter-time the scores were all level at 23-23.

Cairns had opened up a five-point lead by half-time and then took over in the second half further with 25 points to 18 in the third quarter, and 25 to 24 in the fourth for the 13-point victory.

The win improves the Marlins to a perfect 14-0 record with Kobe McDowell-White putting up 33 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals with 5/8 three-point shooting.

Luca Yates also had 26 points, 11 rebounds and three assists, Kyle Leslie 12 points and four boards, Kody Stattmann 11 points, nine rebounds and three assists, and Ky Stattmann 10 points, five assists and four boards.

North Gold Coast remain in last place at 2-11 with Zahn Agosta finishing with 27 points on 9/14 three-point shooting.

Isaiah Oste-Pinder added 22 points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists, Sean Murphy 12 points, six boards and four assists, and Jasraj Gill nine points, six rebounds and two steals.

Rockhampton Rockets (90) lost to Townsville Heat (102)

The Townsville Heat put up 66 points in the first half to wrap up their road double with the 102-90 win over the Rockhampton Rockets with Nathaniel Pollard Jr finishing with 25 points and 17 rebounds.

Townsville started their double on the road with a loss to the Mackay Meteors before arriving at Bravus Arena taking on a Rockets team on a six-game losing slide.

It was a blistering start from the Heat with a 35-point first quarter to open up a 13-point lead before having another 31 points to 19 in the second period on the way to leading 66-42 by half-time.

Rockhampton did fire back with 31 points to 15 in the third quarter but the deficit proved too much to overcome and Townsville ended up the team to snap their losing streak after five in-a-row to improve to a 4-10 record.

Nathaniel Pollard Jr put up 25 points, 17 rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots with Ethan Betts contributing 18 points, nine assists, four steals and four rebounds, and Steven Richardson Jr 15 points, six assists and four boards.

Chris Kann added 14 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals, Richard Peachey 13 points, four boards and two steals, and Declan Condon 11 points, two rebounds and two assists.

Rockhampton have now lost seven in-a-row to be 2-11 with Jalen Graham finishing with 25 points, 20 rebounds and six assists along with two blocks and while shooting 10/18 from the field.

Junior Madut added 23 points, six rebounds and two assists with 5/11 three-point shooting while Treauhn Williams had 21 points, 11 boards and two blocks, and Jack Tweedy 11 points.

Logan Thunder (101) defeated Northside Wizards (86)

Shaun Bruce had a monster triple double as Logan Thunder made it a double win weekend beating the Northside Wizards 101-86.

Logan were back home at Bendigo Bank Cornubia Park Sports Centre coming off the Friday night win over the South West Metro Pirates while the Wizards were making their only appearance of the weekend and needing to win all four remaining games to be any hope of sneaking into the top six.

The Wizards were the fresher of the two teams and started strongly with a 10-0 run to open up a nine-point lead and to still be on top 24-20 by quarter-time.

Logan turned things around with 27 points to 20 in the second frame to go into half-time on top 47-44 before the Thunder ran away with the win with 31 points to 21 in the final period on the way to the final 15-point victory.

The win improves the Thunder to a 10-3 record to stay in touch of a top two finish with Shaun Bruce producing a remarkable triple double consisting of 30 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds.

Cal Dalton also had a monster night for Logan with 33 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three blocks with 16/24 shooting from the field.

Zac Triplett added 22 points and five rebounds, Jordan Kaesler eight points, five boards and two assists, and Hunter Marks four points and nine rebounds.

The Wizards are now 4-9 following the defeat with Quintin Dove putting up another 24 points and two assists with Jed Richardson adding 18 points, 10 rebounds and three assists, Durrell McDonald 13 points, nine assists and six boards, and Tyler Williams 11 points and four assists.