Geraldton Buccaneers celebrate NBL1 West title

The Geraldton Buccaneers now have two NBL1 West championships to show for four straight years of brilliance with Johny Narkle (199-G-2001) shining along with clamping the high-scoring Warwick Senators to win the Grand Final 81-78 at RAC Arena. The Buccaneers lost a heartbreaking Grand Final back in 2022 after leading the Rockingham Flames most of the way before reversing that the next year to come from behind against the Joondalup Wolves and claim a third championship after previous triumphs in 2000 and 2019. They then finished four games clear at the end of the 2024 regular season but were stunning in a home preliminary final by the Willetton Tigers, but they have now got a richly deserved championship and did it on the back of sheer heart and spirit. Narkle was brilliant to win a second Grand Final MVP award ahead of joining the Illawarra Hawks in NBL26. He finished with 21 points, nine rebounds, four steals, three assists and three blocks, including two that were massive on Elijah Pepper (193-G-2001, college: UC Davis). But where the Buccs won the championship was on their trademark heart, grit and spirit. That was exemplified by Liam Hunt (201-F/C-1995, college: HIU) returning after a nasty rolled ankle to win a third championship, but it was the defensive job that is where they won it. The Senators have been averaging 109.5 points all season but the Buccs held them to 78, While Warwick stuck to their season average of 47 three-point attempts, they only made nine of them to go at 19 per cent when they have been going at 41 per cent all of 2025.
Courtesy of: nbl1.com.au