PERFORMANCES in the National Basketball League (NBL)1 North competition caught the eye once again as another weekend of action wrapped a few days ago.

The premier basketball league in Queensland and Northern Territory has been extremely exciting over the first four weeks of play, and delivered another batch of mesmerising clashes with some big names posting huge numbers.

The men’s and women’s divisions both held some tense match-ups, with several games decided in the dying stages, while other sides delivered blowout wins to flex their muscles to the rest of the competition to start the 2024 season.

With that in mind, Rookie Me Central will be taking a look at the standout performances from both divisions, after some big numbers were posted over the weekend. This time, Nighael Ceaser and Miela Goodchild take out the honour, with a pair of emphatic outings in huge wins for their respective sides in Round 4.

Nighael Ceaser (Rockhampton Rockets) vs. South West Metro Pirates

32 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, three steals, one block

Caeser stuffed the stat sheet in a massive performance as the Rockets convincingly got the job done against the Pirates at Hibiscus Sports Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

After a hard-fought first quarter in which the Pirates held a one-point buffer, Rockhampton broke the game open with a 31-10 second term, completely restricting South West Metro on the defensive end and taking a match-winning lead into the main break.

Although it was a stronger showing from the home side in the third quarter, the Rockets slammed the door on any sort of a comeback with a dominant fourth quarter, cruising home to a 30-point win.

Ceaser was everywhere for the winning side, leading from the front with an enormous statline in a huge road victory.

In just 27 minutes of court time, he posted a game-high 32 points on 12/16 shooting from the field, having his way against the opposition’s interior defence, and even stretching the floor for a three-pointer as well.

On the glass, Ceaser took full advantage of the fact that the opposition shot just 37 per cent from the field, and pulled down 14 rebounds. However, nine of these came on the offensive end, cleaning up the mess to generate second chance points.

It was a season-best performance from Ceaser, who showed exactly how dangerous he makes this Rockets side when he is fit and firing.

Miela Goodchild (North Gold Coast Seahawks) vs. Brisbane Capitals

40 points, eight rebounds, five assists, one steal

One of the biggest names in the NBL1 North produced an outstanding scoring performance as the Seahawks bested the Capitals at Runaway Bay Stadium on Saturday evening.

North Gold Coast won all four quarters in the clash against Brisbane, always keeping its nose in front to slowly build a buffer on the scoreboard. The Capitals simply let the game slip away as the Seahawks claimed an 18-point victory in front of their home fans.

Goodchild was a massive part of the result, accounting for over half of her team’s total score in a serious display of heavy lifting on the offensive end.

Of North Gold Coast’s 74 points, the team’s star was responsible for 40, putting the team on her back and proving a giant factor in the game. From the field, she shot 13/22 in an accurate display of shooting given her high usage.

She could score from all three levels, as she had proven in the past, and even knocked down six shots from behind the arc on nine attempts. The defence tried to contain her red-hot scoring ability, but to no avail.

Goodchild was simply outstanding on the scoring front for the Seahawks, and showed why she is one of the most dangerous players in the competition.