BOASTING a famous Australian sporting name, Anthony Mundine III produced a strong performance for the Sydney Comets over the weekend, despite the fact that they were eliminated by the Sutherland Sharks in the NBL1 East Men’s semi-finals over the weekend.

The Comets finished in the top four at the conclusion of the 2025 season, but were convincingly beaten by the Illawarra Hawks in the qualifying final. Luckily, they had a double-chance and would get another shot at moving onto the preliminary finals with their matchup against a Sharks side that was fresh off a knockout win over the Bankstown Bruins in the first week of the postseason.

Although Sydney was in the box seat heading into the fourth quarter and leading by seven points at the final change, the home side was overrun by the Sharks at Comets Stadium on Saturday night. Sutherland outscored the Comets 31-18 in the last, and ended up sneaking home to a gutsy six-point road triumph to put an end to Sydney’s title hopes.

Although it was a disappointing end to the Comets’ campaign, emerging talent Mundine III was a shining light in the starting lineup for Sydney, showing he will be a serious player in years to come if he continues to develop.

Sydney Comets (66) def. by Sutherland Sharks (72)

Anthony Mundine III – 14 points, three rebounds, one assist

Doing everything he could to get his side into a preliminary final berth, the son of a former professional boxer showed why he has promise to forge his own path within the basketball world, looking right at home despite being just 20 years of age.

The first quarter was not one to remember from Mundine III, who missed all of his attempts from the field in a slow start to the match. The youngster simply could not get himself going in the opening 10 minutes, although the Comets still managed to chalk out a three-point margin at quarter time in what was a scrappy affair.

He showed his smarts to record his first assist of the match in the second frame, kicking the ball out to Shareef Saipaia on the perimeter, who nailed the triple to help Sydney retake the lead after the Sharks made a run. However, Mundine III still struggled to find the bottom of the net in a quiet half from the exciting talent.

He finally found the bottom of the net at the start of the third quarter with a long-range bomb that gave his team a one-point lead, showcasing how much confidence he had in his shot despite a tough first half. Although it was his only make of the term, it was a promising sign in his offensive game for a big last quarter.

Mundine III was a one-man army in the fourth quarter, fighting to keep his team alive as the Sharks began to get on top on the scoreboard. He showed his craft around the basket with a nice finish at the cup off the dribble, before nailing his second triple less than a minute later to put his team up by 10.

Strangely, Mundine III was taken to the bench for a few minutes, and by the time he returned, Sutherland had truly taken control of the match. Although he nailed another two three-pointers in the final minute, the Sharks had already done the damage.

He finished the contest with 14 points, shooting 5/15 from the field and nailing four of his nine attempts from three-point territory, with Mundine III showing an excellent sharpshooting ability and a bright future in years to come.