Crunch Time: The key storylines from Round 1

The incredible Opening Week of the WNBL27 Season saw record crowds, thrilling blockbusters and historic performances.

Courtney Ward looks at some key talking points from the round just gone.

1 – Breaking records

The highly anticipated WNBL27 Season tipped off with a bang on Thursday night, as Tasmania defeated Geelong in front of a sell-out crowd at MyState Bank Arena.

That was followed by the Sydney Flames drawing both their biggest crowd at Quaycentre and their largest for a season opener in club history.

On the back of those two, and four other incredible crowds around the country, game attendance was up 40 per cent, with social media engagement also hitting record highs.

A factor in this was fans flocking to watch Chinese stars Rainy Wang, Yang Shuyu and Wanglai Zhang in action.

2 – Jewels shine bright

Ahead of their historic first game, the Jewels had been dominating off the court with record membership and selling out Game 1.

The team followed suit during the fixture against Geelong, marking the occasion with a 103-90 victory.

Another fitting moment saw Jewels captain Darcee Garbin score the club’s first-ever basket, which will etch her name further into Tasmanian folklore.

3 – Ellis explosion

Townsville were down by double digits to Adelaide on Tuesday night and staring down the barrel of an 0-2 start.

Enter Abbey Ellis.

The point guard kept her team afloat in the first half, scoring 25 of their first 33 points and their first 16 of the second quarter.

The Opal went on to score an incredible 47 points, as the Fire stormed back to win by 18 points.

That scoring output was the most by a WNBL player in 21 years and most points by a Townsville Fire player in franchise history.

It also sees her join Belinda Snell, Lauren Jackson and Penny Taylor as the only players to have 47 points and 6 steals in a game.

4 – Red-hot start from revamped Flames

At the end of Round 1, only one team sits at 2-0 and that’s the Sydney Flames.

Renae Garlepp’s revamped side fought back to defeat Southside Melbourne on Friday before smashing Adelaide in their home debut at Quaycentre.

While there were numerous stars in this perfect start, the standout was captain Lauren Nicholson, who claimed back-to-back Player of the Games awards.

As dangerous as the Flames were, they did all this without Opals star Ally Wilson in their lineup.

5 – New faces in new places

Numerous local stars in the League made their debuts in new colours across the round, after shining in a different uniform during the WNBL26 Season.

Australian guard Maddy Rocci scored a career-high 33 points for Geelong, while Commonwealth Games gold medallist Amy Atwell dropped 26 in her Capitals debut.

Alongside the strong play of her teammate Nicholson, Jaz Shelley averaged 17 points across Sydney’s two wins.

Another that impressed was Lightning centre Zitina Aokuso, who appears set for her best season to date in Adelaide.