South Spotlight | Wilson lifts Braves in shootout

Featured image: @craigdilksphotography

Kelly Wilson might have just missed the triple-double but that's all she didn’t do in her 26-point, 19-assist, nine-rebound performance to lift the Bendigo Braves to the 113-97 shootout home win over the Nunawading Spectres.

After winning their first four games of the season, the Spectres lost twice last weekend and were trying to hit back when they arrived at Red Energy Arena with Bendigo also attempting to respond to a last up loss to the Dandenong Rangers.

The two teams combined for 67 points in a spectacular first quarter and it wasn’t until the last quarter when the Braves confirmed the win and it was all on the back of the heroics of Wilson in the absence of Kelsey Griffin.

In the fourth quarter alone Wilson had 15 points, two rebounds and three assists with the Braves going on to win by 16 points to improve to 3-2 on the season with Nunawading now 4-3 with three losses on the trot.

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The Braves finished the game with the 113 points on the back of 59 per cent shooting with 15/33 from downtown and 16/21 at the foul line with the Spectres also shooting at 47 per cent with 13/39 from deep and 14/16 at the charity stripe.

It was just a remarkable individual performance from Wilson to lead Bendigo to their third win of the season finishing with 26 points, 19 assists, nine rebounds and four steals on 11/13 shooting from the floor and 3/3 from beyond the arc.

Olivia Pollerd top-scored for the Braves with 28 points and five rebounds on 11/19 shooting with Ahlise Hurst adding 18 points on 4/8 shooting from downtown, Mia Harvey 18 points and five assists, Jess Smith 12 points and five assists, and Isabel Whitelaw 11 points on 3/6 shooting from behind the three-point line.

It might have been a third straight defeat for Nunawading but they got right back to a lot of the basketball that saw them win their opening four matches in 2026.

Riley Lupfer was back to top-scoring with 21 points along with four assists and four rebounds on 5/12 three-point shooting with Rachel Antoniadou delivering 20 points, seven assists and six boards with 4/12 shooting from behind the arc.

Kylee Blacksten added 17 points, six rebounds and three assists, Eliza Hollingsworth 14 points and six boards, Kate Tanner 13 points and four rebounds, and Keeley Frawley 12 points and seven boards.

It was quite the spectacular opening quarter shootout from both teams as they combined for 67 points with 10/20 three-point shooting with Bendigo leading 37-30 by the end of it.

Olivia Pollerd and Mia Harvey combined for 19 points for the Braves and Riley Lupfer and Rachel Antoniadou for the Spectres in what might have been the best first quarter of basketball to watch this season.

The two teams still managed another 51 points in the second quarter too and the Spectres had 26 to 25 with Bendigo still leading 62-56 by the half-time break.

The Braves were still shooting 61 per cent with Pollerd having 14 points and Harvey 12 while Kelly Wilson was already up to nine points six rebounds and 11 assists.

Nunawading were shooting 53 per cent with Antoniadou and Lupfer combining for 26 points and 6/12 three-point shooting.

Even after Bendigo got out to a 13-point lead in the third stanza the Spectres weren’t going away and had pulled it back to just a five-point margin by three quarter-time.

It was in the fourth quarter when the Braves were finally able to break away from Nunawading and they put up 29 points to 18 including Wilson scoring 15 of them to cap her monstrous performance in the 16-point victory.

Bendigo now head to Tasmania next week to play the Northern Force on Friday and Hobart Chargers on Saturday with Nunawading away to the Frankston Blues on Saturday night before hosting the Diamond Valley Eagles on Sunday.

NBL1 SOUTH 2026 SEASON | ANZAC ROUND

BENDIGO BRAVES 113 (Pollerd 28, Wilson 26, Hurst 18, Harvey 18)

NUNAWADING SPECTRES 97 (Lupfer 21, Antoniadou 20, Blacksten 17)