WITH plenty of basketball taking place around the country, each state is showcasing the very best of what it has to offer in that department. One of the biggest and best organisations at bringing the talent to light is the National Basketball League (NBL)1 competition, which boasts a number of divisions around the country, displaying some of Australia’s best and brightest on quite a big stage.

The NBL1 North league kicked off over the last few weeks, with the men’s and women’s competitions delivering the highest quality action out of Queensland and the Northern Territory. Over the weekend, the league held its second round of action, looking to back up an entertaining opening batch of games. There were a lot of games that went down to the wire, including the contest between the Ipswich Force and the Brisbane Capitals at JBS Stadium on Friday night. Two sides with contrasting starts to the season, the Capitals were expected to get the job done with ease here, but the Force made things a bit more interesting. After Brisbane got off to a blistering start, the home side fought back in the final term to draw within one basket in the dying seconds, but the Capitals held on for a two-point triumph.

Ipswich Force (80) def. by Brisbane Capitals (82)

It was a dominant beginning to the game from a Brisbane perspective, doubling the offensive production of their opponents and taking a commanding lead early in the first term. The Capitals were firing on all cylinders with ball in hand, dropping a whopping 30 points in the first 10 minutes alone, with a number of players contributing to get them to that stage. Suddenly, Ipswich trailed by 16 points at the first term, and their chances of pulling out an unlikely win began to fade. They managed to even things up a bit in the second period, matching Brisbane on the scoreboard for the term, but the damage done in the first appeared too much to overcome.

The Force kept on chugging along in the third term, with some slightly better work on the defensive end resulting in the margin being chopped to 12 points heading into the final term, which still seemed far too high given how powerful Brisbane was in the opening term. However, Ipswich finally found its mojo in the last, storming home with their best 10 minutes of the game to draw within two points with 20 seconds on the clock. With all the momentum heading one way, the Force looked like they were going to pull off a remarkable win. Despite the one way traffic, they could not conjure a game tying or winning bucket, falling two points shy of the Capitals.

For the victors, Nicholas Stoddart was massive in leading his side to victory, delivering a game-high 28 points and scoring from all over the court in just 22 minutes. He was far and away the standout for his side and the only player to register over 10 points, which showcases the impact he had. The Force had three players score 19 or more points, with Henry Pwono at the top with 21.

Across the courts

The men’s and women’s competitions had plenty of exciting basketball take place over the weekend, with the North league as a whole set for a big year.

Men’s

Sunshine Coast Phoenix (88) def. by Gold Coast Rollers (90)
Northside Wizards (102) def. USC Rip City (94)
Red City Roar (92) def. North Gold Coast Seahawks (81)
Rockhampton Rockets (97) def. Cairns Marlins (83)
South West Metro Pirates (105) def. Ipswich Force (92)
Southern Districts Spartans (72) def. by Logan Thunder (97)
Darwin Salties (78) def. by Townsville Heat (94)
North Gold Coast Seahawks (80) def. by Sunshine Coast Phoenix (115)
Mackay Meteors (88) def. Cairns Marlins (81)

Women’s

Ipswich Force (58) def. by Brisbane Capitals (60)
Sunshine Coast Phoenix (62) def. by Gold Coast Rollers (77)
Red City Roar (71) def. North Gold Coast Seahawks (67)
Rockhampton Cyclones (78) def. by Cairns Dolphins (98)
South West Metro Pirates (73) def. by Ipswich Force (78)
Southern Districts Spartans (78) def. by Logan Thunder (82)
Darwin Salties (60) def. by Townsville Flames (79)
Northside Wizards (91) def. USC Rip City (79)
North Gold Coast Seahawks (82) def. Sunshine Coast Phoenix (70)
Mackay Meteorettes (91) def. Cairns Dolphins (90)