NBL25's class of Next Stars is looming as one of the top groups of emerging hoops talent anywhere in the world. Stay informed as to how each of the competition's brightest stars played on the weekend with NBL Media's Next Stars Wrap.

Malique Lewis had one of his best games of the year when the Phoenix recorded a pivotal win in Tasmania this round. Lewis made 3 of his 5 attempted threes and ended the game with 14 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 block in 32 minutes. It was his defence, though, that got the spotlight once again when SEM Head Coach Josh King spoke to the media post-game: “I said it a couple of weeks ago: I think he should be up for DPOY… when Malique’s playing like this it really helps our team.”

Rocco Zikarsky was again sidelined for the Brisbane Bullets this round due to mild knee soreness. 

The New Zealand Breakers suffered two losses in this round, and Karim Lopez is slowly coming back into form after being sidelined with a mild ankle sprain. Starting from the bench, the 17-year-old Mexican had a couple of impressive dunks against the Bullets and was included as one of the contenders for the NBL Next Gen Award, which will crown the best U25 player of the season. 

Alex Toohey is on a roll: the Sydney Kings forward went 12/20 from the field, including 3/6 3PT, across Sydney’s two wins in this Round. He also registered another 6 steals – the 20-year-old now leads the entire NBL in STL% (3.4). His Head Coach, Brian Goorjian, had great praise for him after the win against the Bullets: “All those attributes that scouts want to know about, and you don’t see, he’s a 10 out of 10. And he’s a winner, as you could see tonight.”

The Perth Wildcats played only one game in this Round, when they beat New Zealand on the Breakers’ home floor. Izan Almansa cooled off after his great performance in Adelaide, yet kept showing his chemistry with lead ball-handler Bryce Cotton, who went on to score 41 points in the win.