Tasmania's Jewels enter WNBL with debut win over Geelong

Tasmania's Jewels mark WNBL debut with win over Geelong at sold-out season opener In short: In the WNBL's season opener, the league's newest team, the Tasmania Jewels, burst out of the blocks, overcoming the Geelong Venom in front of a sold-out crowd in Hobart. It has been 30 years since Tasmania and its Hobart Islanders team dropped out of the league. What's next? The Jewels will play the Southside Melbourne Flyers next Thursday. Tasmania have ended their 30-year wait for a WNBL team by beating Geelong Venom 103-90 in the season opener. In front of a sold-out Derwent Entertainment Centre crowd on Thursday night, all eyes were on the competition's ninth franchise as the Jewels became the first team to represent the Apple Isle in Australia's top women's basketball league since the Hobart Islanders in 1996. Forward and Tasmania captain Darcee Garbin sent a warning shot when she produced a fiery block in the opening seconds, before scoring the side's first-ever points moments later. The two-time champion didn't slow down, playing an inspirational role (20 points, and six rebounds) helping the Jewels lace slick passing along with prolific defence and sharp shooting. Tasmania certainly didn't look like the new team on the block either, as six players hit double-digit scores, including former Adelaide Lightning guard Brooke Basham (19 points, eight rebounds, four steals) and Opal Steph Reid (17 points, eight assists). "[Steph] had two trainings with us," coach Claudia Brassard said. "I thought the way that she just picked apart some of the defensive stuff and stepped up after not having much training and a hard time recovering from sickness … was really good. "It [a sold-out venue] is not something that I've had many times in my career." Brassard said the atmosphere was unbelievable. "To have that with our first game with the Jewels I think just speaks to Tassie and the people here and just how supportive they are," she said. Geelong entered this season with a new coach, Cheryl Chambers, and a largely transformed team compared with its last campaign. Opal Maddison Rocci looked at home in her new colours, registering a career-high 33 points, while guard Bec Cole played her first match since foot surgery and was busy with 11 points and four assists. However, along with 18 turnovers and a sub-par first half, the Venom missed their star recruit Han Xu, who was left out of the squad as she recovers from her WNBA campaign with the New York Liberty. Chambers confirmed Han would be back for the Venom's next match. "We've got some real pieces to the puzzle that we've got to work on," she said. "I've never gone through a season and not lost a game, so it is a normal part of a season. You do lose, and it's how you respond." In an intense opening period, both teams produced moments of brilliance, but the Jewels went on an 11-0 late run to lead 29-20 at the first break. Tasmania continued to up the ante as they mixed dominance in the paint with heroic defence to balloon their advantage to 19 points at half-time. Geelong began to make inroads as Indiah Bowyer made a flurry of baskets and Lilly Rotunno scored on the buzzer to give them a glimmer of hope. But the Jewels kept ticking the scoreboard over despite Rocci's clinical shooting to earn a treasured first victory. The Jewels' coach said she was incredibly proud of the team's first performance. "Every athlete that stepped onto the floor contributed, whether that was defensively or offensively," Brassard said. "And like you can see on the scoresheet multiple different scorers for us, multiple people with over five or six rebounds, so it's really a group effort." AAP/ABC