IT WAS a promising first match from the Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence (BA CoE) in the opening round of the 2026 NBL1 East Women’s season over the weekend, with Jay Sebasio impressing in a massive win over the Penrith Panthers.

As is the case every season, it was a different looking CoE team to the one that last took the court in 2025, full of exciting young talent coming through and developing at the Australian Institute of Sport against professional teams in the NBL1 East, and their first opponent was the Panthers.

At the AIS, the CoE set the tone from the get-go, essentially deciding the result in the first 10 minutes with a 37-9 opening frame, before backing it up with a 27-6 second term. The team of youngsters continued to put the foot down in the second half, before cruising home to a 70-point thrashing to start 2026 in style.

In her NBL1 debut, the 2010-born Sebasio was one of the biggest positives for the Centre of Excellence, putting together a terrific performance off the bench and catching the eye in her first game at a professional level.

BA CoE (112) def. Penrith Panthers (42)

Jay Sebasio – 17 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, three steals

The six-foot-two guard was one of the standouts for the CoE in the big win over the Panthers, stuffing the stat sheet with one of the most impressive debuts in recent memory and showing how high her potential truly is.

Sebasio came into the game midway through the first quarter, and wasted no time getting involved, showing her in-game instincts with a nice offensive rebound and tip-in to officially open her account in the NBL1. Less than a minute later, she was able to pull down the defensive board, cruise down the court and knock down her first three-pointer with the team.

The young gun maintained that aggression with ball in hand, driving to the lane for a nice finish shortly after, while her defensive instincts were on show as well with a nice steal to disrupt the play as the Centre of Excellence took a commanding lead into the first change.

Although Sebasio was not as productive in the second period on the shotmaking front, she still showed plenty of game awareness and skill with some nice passing. Her vision and timing opened up scoring opportunities for teammates around the court, and she was still able to contribute for a barnstorming CoE team.

After starting the second half on the bench, she returned to the fold five minutes into the third quarter, and demonstrated more of her scoring input from the first quarter. Sebasio showed nice touch and timing with a smooth turnaround jumper over her opponent, before delivering another nice finish on the drive to show one of her biggest strengths on the court.

She started the fourth quarter with a nice defensive board and dish to her captain in Zara Russell (25 points, six rebounds, eight assists) to keep the CoE rolling offensively. She continued to put pressure on the rim and finish in the paint, capping off an excellent performance in her NBL1 debut, signalling she will be one to watch in 2026.

She ended the game with 17 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and three steals in a terrific debut for a side that is loaded with young talent. Sebasio produced a memorable performance in her first outing, and should be a key contributor in 2026.