NOTHING stings more than losing a grand final, but for Knox Raiders, they applied extra salt in the wound with a 20-point thrashing of a previously undefeated Geelong United for the 2025 NBL1 South Women’s Championship.

The Raiders entered the match winning the past 13 games, so were hardly out of form themselves, but Geelong had been a different beast this year. Despite what the numbers might have told, it was the second placed Raiders who kicked it up a notch on Saturday evening at the State Basketball Centre.

Knox Raiders (84) defeated Geelong United (64)

Following a tight opening quarter where Geelong actually took a one-point lead, it was all the Raiders after that. Gemma Potter scored the first basket of the second term for United to stretch the lead to three points, but an immediate response from Kiera Glover, followed by an and-one chance from Katelyn Young gave Knox the lead. In a quarter of missed opportunities, it was Knox who took more of them, and raced out to a seven-point buffer at half-time.

Once the Raiders had that early second term lead, they never rescinded it, pouring on 44 points to 31 in the second half to storm to victory. Even though Geelong had a sniff heading into the final term, it soon proved insurmountable in the 84-64 result.

Geelong’s shooting all night had been poor and ran at just 34.15 per cent for the night, and went at sub-30 per cent for the first three quarters, and 19.2 per cent from long-range across the four. By contrast, Knox shot at 70 per cent in the second term when it mattered most, and finished strong as well even with the sting out of the game for a 59.09 per cent field goal shooting percentage.

Paige Bradley scored 20 points, five rebounds and seven assists to be a menace on offence, but it was the double-double performances of Alicia Froling (15 points, 13 rebounds) and Agnes Emma-Nnopu (12 points, 11 rebounds) who really put Geelong’s offence to the sword. Rachel Bell (12 points, four rebounds) was the other Raider in double-digit points.

For Geelong, skipper Jazmin Shelley was on top in the scoring, putting up 19 points, eight rebounds and three assists in an industrious performance. Hannah Hank (13 points, 16 rebounds) did all the defensive work, while Lily Rotunno (11 points, six rebounds and four assists) battled hard too.

Knox Raiders’ victory marked the first time the women’s side had lifted the trophy, following on from the men’s title in 2023. It also meant the Raiders became the first side to both lift two trophies and of course, one of each division. Unfortunately for Geelong, a near-perfect season meant very little as United’s trophy cabinet remained bare from the NBL1 South.