Posted on Saturday, July 25th, 2026
Game Preview: Saints vs Sharks
The race for the top of the table of the Sal’s NBL ladder reaches a creshendo today when the Mills Albert Wellington Saints host the SBS Bank Southland Sharks at TSB Arena.
Southland enters its regular-season finale at 16-3 and can secure the number-one seed with a victory. Wellington is 14-5 and remains capable of climbing from fourth into the top three if results fall their way
The Sharks controlled the first meeting between last year’s finalists, using a blistering perimeter performance to claim a 104-90 victory in Invercargill. The Saints now have an opportunity to reverse that result on their home floor and potentially reshape the order of the top four in the competition’s final weekend of the regular season.
Game Details
Mills Albert Wellington Saints vs SBS Bank Southland Sharks
When: Saturday 25 July
Where: TSB Arena, Wellington
Rapid League: 3:00pm
Sal’s NBL: 4:00pm
Watch in New Zealand: Sky Sport 3
International: ESPN+ in the United States and FIBA YouTube internationally
Commentary: Brenton Vannisselroy and Troy McLean
Box Score
Tickets
Player Status Report
The Saints core of Hyrum Harris, Donte Ingram, Elijah Pepper, Carlin Davison and Akech Aliir is expected to start.
Aubrey Chunga returns to the rotation alongside Sam Gold, Mercury Nonu, Arthur Pilcher, Arana Robertson, Jordan Hunt and Hassan Munir.
But they aren’t at full strength with Braydon Iuli unavailable with an Achilles injury and Izayah Le’afa is sidelined by a foot injury.
The Sharks group of Rylan Jones, Sam Timmins, Keylan Boone, Caleb Asberry and Brayden Inger is expected to start once again, while Max Darling and Tobias Cameron are both out.
Quake Webster, Tautoko Wynyard, Riley Snow, Tukaha Cooper, Dane Bertinshaw, Cairo Lee and Jack Ramage are available to form Southland’s wider rotation.
Finals Ramifications
All four leading teams have one regular-season game remaining.
Team
Record
Points percentage
Final opponent
Southland Sharks
16-3
105
Saints
Auckland Tuatara
15-4
116
Taranaki Airs
Canterbury Rams
15-4
108
Franklin Bulls
Wellington Saints
14-5
109
Sharks
Wins as a percentage are considered first, followed by points percentage as the tiebreaker between teams finishing with the same record.
If the Sharks win
Southland finishes 17-3 and secures the number-one seed outright. Neither Auckland nor Canterbury would be able to match 17 victories.
If the Sharks lose
Southland finishes 16-4 and must wait on Sunday’s results.
If both Auckland and Canterbury lose, the Sharks remain first outright.
If one of Auckland or Canterbury wins, that team also finishes 16-4 and Southland drops to second on points percentage.
If Auckland and Canterbury both win, the Sharks finish third behind both teams on points percentage.
Auckland and Canterbury hold stronger points percentages than Southland, and those advantages would increase if they win while the Sharks lose.
If the Saints win
Wellington finishes 15-5 and keeps alive the possibility of climbing as high as second.
If Auckland and Canterbury both win, the Saints remain fourth.
If Canterbury loses, Wellington will move above the Rams and finish at least third.
If Auckland loses, the Tuatara and Saints finish level on 15 victories, with points percentage deciding their order, where Auckland have a serious advantage.
If both Auckland and Canterbury lose, the Saints, Tuatara and Rams all finish 15-5. Points percentage would determine second through fourth.
Auckland enters the final weekend with a substantial points-percentage advantage, while Wellington begins slightly ahead of Canterbury.
If the Saints lose
Wellington finishes 14-6 and is locked into fourth place and a Thursday night home game in the elimination final.
First Matchup
21 May: SBS Bank Southland Sharks 104 defeated Mills Albert Wellington Saints 90
The first meeting was a rematch of the 2025 Finals, but Southland began with the greater urgency and quickly established control through its perimeter shooting.
The Sharks made seven of their first eight three-point attempts. Wellington remained within reach during the opening stages, but another Southland run restored a double-digit advantage behind the shot-making of Asberry, Jones and Inger.
Southland finished 19-of-38 from three, while the Saints made only 10 of their 35 perimeter attempts. The Sharks also forced 16 Wellington turnovers and recorded 13 steals.
Pepper produced 43 pts in an attempt to keep the Saints within striking distance, but Southland’s balance proved decisive. Asberry and Jones each scored 26, while Inger contributed a double-double.
SBS Bank Southland Sharks: Caleb Asberry 26 pts, 6 reb and 7 ast; Rylan Jones 26 pts, 5 reb, 5 ast and 5 stl; Brayden Inger 15 pts, 11 reb and 2 stl.
Mills Albert Wellington Saints: Elijah Pepper 43 pts, 5 reb and 2 ast; Izayah Le’afa 10 pts, 11 reb and 8 ast; Akech Aliir 11 pts and 5 reb.
Last Time Out
Saints Pull Away from Hawks
Mills Albert Wellington Saints 107 defeated Big Barrel Hawke’s Bay Hawks 82
The Saints secured their second consecutive victory after establishing control early and responding strongly to Hawke’s Bay’s attempts to close the margin.
Wellington shot 50 percent from the field, recorded 29 ast and forced 20 Hawks turnovers. The Saints scored 58 points in the paint, 25 from turnovers and received 29 points from their bench.
Pepper again led the scoring, while Aliir provided an efficient presence across the frontcourt. Harris produced one of his most complete performances of the season, finishing two ast short of a triple-double.
Mills Albert Wellington Saints: Elijah Pepper 28 pts, 4 reb, 3 ast and 3 stl; Akech Aliir 17 pts, 6 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl and 1 blk; Hyrum Harris 14 pts, 12 reb, 8 ast and 1 stl.
Big Barrel Hawke’s Bay Hawks: Chase Jeter 19 pts, 9 reb, 4 ast and 2 blk; Jeremy McLaughlin 19 pts, 8 reb, 2 ast and 1 stl; Jacob Murphy 9 pts, 1 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl and 1 blk.
Sharks Overwhelm Hawks
SBS Bank Southland Sharks 103 defeated Big Barrel Hawke’s Bay Hawks 62
Southland produced its fifth consecutive victory by taking control early and steadily extending the margin against an undermanned Hawke’s Bay lineup.
The Sharks shot 50 percent from the field and made 17 three-pointers at 45 percent. They also won the rebounding battle 50-44 and recorded 25 ast against only 11 turnovers.
Inger led a balanced Southland attack, while Timmins controlled the interior and Jones directed the offence.
SBS Bank Southland Sharks: Brayden Inger 21 pts and 2 reb; Sam Timmins 20 pts, 12 reb and 3 ast; Rylan Jones 15 pts, 5 reb and 10 ast.
Big Barrel Hawke’s Bay Hawks: Jacob Murphy 15 pts, 9 reb and 3 ast; Chase Jeter 14 pts and 9 reb; Jeremy McLaughlin 10 pts, 8 reb and 3 ast.
What to Expect
The contest brings together the league’s highest-scoring offence and one of its strongest defensive teams.
Wellington leads the competition at 99.4 points per game, shoots a league-best 50 percent from the field and records 25.3 ast per contest. Pepper is the competition’s leading scorer, but the Saints are most difficult to defend when Davison and Harris are creating opportunities for Aliir, Ingram, Hunt and the players around them.
Southland allows only 86.8 points per game and holds opponents to 44 percent shooting. Timmins provides elite rim protection, while Jones, Asberry, Inger and Boone have the size and activity to pressure the perimeter and generate transition opportunities.
The three-point line was decisive in Invercargill. The Sharks lead the league at 37 percent from three while making 12.3 triples per game. Jones, Inger, Asberry and Boone all demand attention beyond the arc, making Southland difficult to contain when several shooters establish an early rhythm.
Wellington must defend the perimeter more effectively than it did in the first meeting. The Saints allowed 19 threes and were repeatedly forced into long closeouts after Southland moved the ball from side to side.
The Saints have an advantage on the glass statistically, holding a plus-5.5 rebounding margin compared with Southland’s plus-2.2. Harris, Aliir, Davison and Hunt rebound well across several positions, but Timmins leads the league with 11 reb per game and Boone adds another physical presence.
Turnovers will also be important. Southland owns a plus-1.1 turnover margin and averages 8.9 stl. Jones leads the Sharks’ point-of-attack pressure, while Pepper and Davison must create without giving Southland opportunities to run.
The Saints are playing their third game in eight days, while the Sharks have had a full week since defeating Hawke’s Bay. Wellington must match Southland’s energy from the opening possession rather than allowing another early three-point surge.
Matchups to Watch
Elijah Pepper vs Caleb Asberry
Two of the competition’s leading scorers meet in a matchup capable of defining the game.
Pepper averages a league-best 28.7 pts while adding 5.2 reb, 4.8 ast and 2.9 stl. He scored 43 in the first meeting and remains Wellington’s primary option when the offence needs a difficult basket.
Asberry averages 20.7 pts, 4.2 reb and 4.5 ast while shooting 54 percent from the field and 40 percent from three. He scored 26 in Invercargill and can attack Wellington as a shooter, ball-handler or cutter.
Southland must prevent Pepper from repeatedly reaching the middle of the floor, while Wellington cannot allow Asberry to find rhythm through uncontested perimeter looks or let him get going for easy looks in transition.
Carlin Davison vs Rylan Jones
Davison and Jones are the players most responsible for connecting their teams at both ends of the court.
Davison averages 13.2 pts, 6.9 reb and 7.0 ast. His size allows him to initiate offence over smaller guards, attack mismatches and rebound before leading the break himself.
Jones averages 16.3 pts, 6.3 reb, 7.1 ast and 2.9 stl. He recorded 26 pts and 5 stl in the first meeting and has one of the league’s best assist-to-turnover ratios.
Davison must use his size without becoming vulnerable to Sharks ball pressure. At the other end, Wellington needs to keep Jones from finding space on the perimeter and prevent him from creating open threes for Southland’s wings.
Akech Aliir and Hyrum Harris vs Sam Timmins and Keylan Boone
The battle between the two frontcourts brings together size, shooting, rebounding and playmaking.
Aliir averages 16.3 pts and 6.8 reb while shooting 61 percent from the field and 42 percent from three. Harris adds 10.3 pts, 8.4 reb and 4.8 ast and enters after producing 14 pts, 12 reb and 8 ast against Hawke’s Bay.
Timmins averages 18.3 pts, 11.0 reb, 3.9 ast and 2.2 blk while shooting 58 percent. Boone contributes 16.9 pts and 7.4 reb and can stretch Wellington’s defence from the perimeter.
The Saints will attempt to make Timmins defend away from the basket, while Southland will look to establish its centre inside and use Boone’s movement to create mismatches.
Individual Leaders
Mills Albert Wellington Saints
Elijah Pepper: 28.7 pts, 5.2 reb, 4.8 ast and 2.9 stl
Akech Aliir: 16.3 pts, 6.8 reb and 1.6 ast
Donte Ingram: 13.8 pts, 4.3 reb and 2.4 ast
Carlin Davison: 13.2 pts, 6.9 reb, 7.0 ast and 1.9 stl
SBS Bank Southland Sharks
Caleb Asberry: 20.7 pts, 4.2 reb and 4.5 ast
Sam Timmins: 18.3 pts, 11.0 reb, 3.9 ast and 2.2 blk
Keylan Boone: 16.9 pts, 7.4 reb and 1.0 ast
Rylan Jones: 16.3 pts, 6.3 reb, 7.1 ast and 2.9 stl
Individual Category Leaders
Category
Wellington Saints
Southland Sharks
Leading scorer
Elijah Pepper, 28.7ppg
Caleb Asberry, 20.7ppg
Rebounding
Hyrum Harris, 8.4rpg
Sam Timmins, 11.0rpg
Assists
Carlin Davison, 7.0apg
Rylan Jones, 7.1apg
Steals
Elijah Pepper, 2.9spg
Rylan Jones, 2.9spg
Blocks
Jordan Hunt, 1.1bpg
Sam Timmins, 2.2bpg
Field-goal percentage
Akech Aliir, 61%
Sam Timmins, 58%
Three-point percentage
Akech Aliir, 42%
Brayden Inger, 44%
Turnovers
Carlin Davison, 3.6 per game
Caleb Asberry, 2.9 per game
Made three-pointers
Elijah Pepper, 3.5 per game
Rylan Jones, 2.9 per game
Stats That Matter
Category
Wellington Saints
Southland Sharks
Record
14-5
16-3
Points percentage
109
105
Last five games
4-1
5-0
Points per game
99.4, 1st
96.5, 3rd
Points allowed
89.9, 6th
86.8, 3rd
Scoring margin
+9.5, 4th
+9.7, 3rd
Field-goal percentage
50%, 1st
48%, 4th
Defensive field-goal percentage
46%, 6th
44%, 3rd
Three-point percentage
33%, 5th
37%, 1st
Defensive three-point percentage
35%, 8th
33%, 7th
Three-pointers made
10.3 per game
12.3 per game
Free-throw percentage
74%, 1st
72%, 6th
Rebounds
42.6 per game, 4th
42.5 per game, 5th
Rebounding margin
+5.5, 2nd
+2.2, 4th
Assists
25.3 per game, 1st
20.5 per game, 5th
Turnovers
14.0 per game
12.8 per game
Assist-to-turnover ratio
1.82, 3rd
1.60, 5th
Steals
9.2 per game, 2nd
8.9 per game, 3rd
Blocks
4.0 per game, 3rd
3.8 per game, 4th
Final Word
Southland controls its own path to the number-one seed. A victory gives the Sharks a 17-3 record and guarantees they enter the postseason from the top of the ladder with a home court advantage that goes all the way to the grand final.
A loss opens the door for Auckland and Canterbury and could drop Southland as far as third if things don’t fall their way. The Sharks therefore arrive in Wellington with considerably more than momentum at stake.
The Saints are guaranteed at least fourth but still have an opportunity to improve their route through the postseason. A win takes Wellington to 15 victories and places pressure on both Auckland and Canterbury ahead of Sunday’s games.
The first meeting was decided by Southland’s three-point shooting and ability to turn Wellington mistakes into scoring opportunities. The Saints must defend the arc, control the glass and use their league-leading ball movement to make the Sharks work throughout the possession.
With the top seed, home positioning and the order of the leading four teams still unresolved, the regular season closes at TSB Arena with a contest carrying genuine postseason weight.