THE BEST NBL1 sides in the country will come together in Canberra over the weekend, as the National Finals pit the winning sides from each division against each other in a bid for the ultimate prize on the biggest stage.

With all state competitions wrapping up in the past couple of weeks, the winning sides – as well as last year’s National Champions – will lock horns throughout the upcoming weekend to determine who is truly the premier side in both the men’s and women’s competitions.

Last year’s instalment was held on the Sunshine Coast, with the Knox Raiders taking out the Men’s competition, while the Waverley Falcons emerged as winners from the Women’s fixture, in what was a winning weekend for the South division.

Unfortunately, the Raiders have been forced to withdraw from the Men’s fixture in 2025, unable to field a team for the tournament. Instead, the Illawarra Hawks will join the Finals as the minor champions of the hosting state, having finished atop the standings in the East Men’s.

The National Finals will coincide with the NBL Blitz preseason tournament, which is also set to take place in Canberra in what will be a bumper weekend of basketball in Australia’s capital city as the bookends of the two competition fixtures.

The action begins on Friday at Southern Cross Stadium in Tuggeranong, with the first round of games set to take place on the same day in a massive start to proceedings with some massive matchups that could shape the remainder of the weekend.

The Women’s competition will kick off with a massive clash between the Logan Thunder and Waverley Falcons as the North champs look to put a stop to the latter’s quest of claiming back to back National titles.

Another intriguing matchup in the Women’s fixture for day one will see the Cockburn Cougars face off against the Woodville Warriors in the early afternoon. The Cougars have been unbeaten throughout 2025 and will undoubtedly be one of the biggest contenders to the championship, so it will be interesting to see how they fare against another state winner.

In the Men’s draw, the Sandringham Sabres will be locking horns with the Canberra Gunners to kick off the weekend’s action in that competition, in a matchup that will be full of familiar faces for NBL and NBL1 fans.

Fresh off their breath-taking win over the Willetton Tigers, the Geraldton Buccaneers will be looking to continue their winning ways when they take on the West Adelaide Bearcats in a cracking first-day clash that could go down to the wire.

NBL1 National Finals
Southern Cross Stadium, August 29-31

ROUND 1 FIXTURE

Men’s:

Canberra Gunners vs. Sandringham Sabres @2:00pm
Geraldton Buccaneers vs. West Adelaide Bearcats @3:30pm
Illawarra Hawks vs. Southern Districts Spartans @4:00pm

Women’s:

Logan Thunder vs. Waverley Falcons @11:30am
Knox Raiders vs. Manly Warringah Sea Eagles @12:00pm
Cockburn Cougars vs. Woodville Warriors @1:30pm