THE NATIONAL Basketball League (NBL)1 National Women’s Final took place on Sunday, with the Waverley Falcons producing a dominant display to defeat the Bendigo Braves and claim the 2024 Championship.

The matchup showcased the strength of the South division, with both teams hailing from the competition. The Championship game took place at UniSC Arena on Sunday afternoon, with the Braves looking to make it back-to-back National titles, but having to go through a Falcons side which took out the South Championship earlier this month and looked far and away the best side in the nation.

Despite missing the playoffs in the 2024 South Women’s season, the Braves booked a spot at the National Finals as last year’s Champions, defeating the Flames and the Central District Lions to make it to a second consecutive decider. On the other hand, the Falcons came into the National Finals in some seriously good form and knocked off the Flames and Newcastle Falcons to advance to the National Finals.

Although it was shaping as an enthralling battle, it was a completely one-sided affair as Waverley jumped out to a commanding lead early and never looked back, en route to a 48-point thumping.

Waverley Falcons (97) def. Bendigo Braves (49)

It was the perfect start to the game from the Falcons, who showed exactly why they were considered title favourites coming into the National Finals. They stormed out of the gates in the opening minutes of the game, and in the blink of an eye led 17-2 as a stunned Bendigo side was forced to call a timeout to slow things down. Rebecca Cole had 15 points in the first quarter alone, starting an emphatic performance in style as Waverley took a 15-point lead into the first change.

Although the lead was pushed out to 20 in the second term, the Braves were doing just enough to hold on and not let the deficit get too messy. However, McKenzie Forbes caught fire to close out the half, knocking down four triples just prior to the main break to help the Falcons out to a 33-point half time buffer, essentially sealing the result with two quarters to play.

The 2024 South Champions were not done yet, starting the third term on an 8-0 run to pile on the pain for Bendigo. A triple to Cole to close out the term saw the Falcons lead by a whopping 39 points and the Braves looked helpless to slow down a rampaging opposition that was firing on all cylinders on both ends of the floor.

The Falcons kept the foot down in the final period, with Cole posting five quick points out of the fourth to ensure Bendigo had no patches of momentum. Then it was Meg Crupi who checked in late in the piece to deliver eight points in the final minutes to show just how deep the team is. In the end, Waverley proved deserving winners in an enormous display of class.

Cole was the star of the show with 33 points on 12/20 shooting to go with six rebounds, two assists, one steal and two blocks to be named MVP. Forbes was also impactful with 20 points, five rebounds and five assists, while skipper Renae Mokrzycki posted a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds, doing all of the required dirty work in the paint.

On a tough day for the Braves, Megan McKay fought hard to post a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds, although she struggled with efficiency by shooting just 4/17 from the field.