ONE OF the brightest basketball talents in Australia has brought home the top Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL) honour, with Isobel Borlase claiming the Suzy Batkovic Medal as the competition’s most outstanding player on Monday night.

At just 21 years of age, the Bendigo Spirit young gun took home her first ever WNBL MVP award in dominant fashion, recording 99 votes for the 2025/26 season, which was 41 more than second-placed Anneli Maley, who herself had another strong campaign for the Perth Lynx. Townsville Fire captain Courtney Woods rounded out the top three.

Throughout the home-and-away fixture, Borlase posted averages of 22.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists per game, all while shooting 45.6 per cent from the field, continuing her rise as one of the best players in the country over the past few years.

Beginning her career with the Adelaide Lightning, Borlase made the move to Bendigo over the off-season, just months after being selected by the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA Draft after impressing in the early stages of her professional journey.

Now, she has led the Spirit to a playoff berth, and will be one of the biggest factors in their upcoming postseason campaign, where they will begin by taking on the Lynx in a best-of-three semi-finals matchup in the coming weeks.

She is the youngest player in over a decade to win the award, and joins Lauren Jackson and Penny Taylor as the only players to win the award at such a young age. Borlase already has international experience as well, having represented Australia at the 2024 Olympic Games and won bronze with the Opals.

Borlase put together a career-best season throughout the 2025/26 season, showcasing her talents as a scorer and how she has developed as a number-one option on the offensive end. Much of the Spirit’s gameplan on that side of the ball ran through their young gun, and their success throughout the fixture demonstrated that it was a winning strategy.

She was also able to showcase her ceiling as a scorer in Round 15, when she dominated a matchup against the Southside Melbourne Flyers. Borlase dropped an astounding 42 points in an offensive masterclass against the Flyers, becoming the first WNBL player since Taylor in 2002 to post 42 or more points in a remarkable scoring feat.

Winning an MVP award at just 21 years of age is a clear showing of excellence, and Borlase is no exception to that rule, stamping herself as one of the most exciting talents Australian basketball has seen in quite some time. Now, her attention will turn to adding to her trophy cabinet with a championship as a member of the Spirit in the coming months.