Garbin time: Darcee etches name into Jewels history

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“It was amazing,” Tasmania Jewels captain Darcee Garbin declared minutes after the WNBL’s newest franchise secured its first win in its first game, 103-90 against Geelong Venom, in the first game of WNBL27 in Hobart on Thursday, October 15, 2026.

“It was really cool when the doors opened, and people just flooded in,” Garbin said of the sell-out crowd at MyState Bank Arena.

“I thought the girls were going to be way more nervous, but to be honest, I thought we were more nervous for that game in Townsville, the first game that we played.

“I think that's a credit to not only the girls, but our amazing staff.

“(Coach) Claudia (Brassard) talks about our assistants, but it's not even that. It's our medical staff, our performance psych.

“We've done so much work to make sure we were ready for the moment and that we weren't overwhelmed by it.

“Everyone was really locked in. I didn't think anyone was too nervous.

“It was great that we were then able to use that energy from the crowd.”

For the pub quizzers and Trivial Pursuiters, commit to memory, Garbin recorded the first three statistics for the Jewels: Block (Q1 – 9:50); rebound (Q1 – 9:31); and bucket (Q1 – 9:23).

Garbin finished with 20 points (9-for-17), six boards, three assists, two blocks, and a steal, while UCLA Bruins NCAA national champion and WNBA first-round draft pick Gianna Kneepkens also put up 20 points (7-for-11), grabbed eight boards, and added three assists.

“Really proud of the contributions,” Brassard said.

“Every athlete that stepped onto the floor contributed, whether it was defensively or offensively.

You could see on the scoresheet multiple different scorers for us, multiple people with over five or six rebounds. So it's really a group effort.

“When they started making that run in the second half, I think we just dug a bit deeper and got connected, and then came out with some big shots when it mattered.”

Brassard named Garbin, who became a first-time mum in December 2025, the inaugural captain of the Jewels because “I know how good she is and how capable she is.”

“I think she played an amazing game,” she said.

“They couldn't handle her inside.

“Darcee's known for popping and shooting threes, so it was nice to see her mixing it up, and she's been working on that.

“I think that led the way for us in the first half, and then they had to find solutions around managing Darcee, which opened it up for our guards.”

Venom guard Maddy Rocci, who won the MVP at the pre-season Townsville Tip-Off, ripped 33 points (9-for-17, 5-for-7 threes) with seven rebounds and four assists in 36:11 minutes.

She said she relished the opportunity to go at Australian Opals and Jewels marquee point guard Steph Reid. Reid had 17 points, eight assists, two rebounds, two steals and a block in 30 minutes.

“I always love coming up against Steph,” Rocci said.

“It's always a good competition. But when I think about it, it's the game against Geelong and Tassie, and I think that's where the game probably was won.

“Tassie set the standard of the game at the very start, and we just found it hard to actually be able to kill their momentum at the very start of the game.”

Venom head coach Cheryl Chambers still has Chinese international superstar Han Xu to come into the team. Xu, who played for the New York Liberty in the WNBA Semi-Finals just days ago, has yet to arrive in country Victoria but is expected within days.

“I guess every time you go out there, and you have a common experience,” Chambers said.

“We've had an experience now where we don't like the way we started.

“So that will enable us to work on that and be better defensively.

“I guess every time we play, we will get a bit better. We are a young team. We've got Han to come in, which will help us enormously.

"There will be a time where we have to settle her in as well. So it's a work in progress.

“I was just saying to the girls, I've never gone through a season and not lost a game.

“It is a normal part of a season. You do lose, and it's how you respond and how you get better.”

What you need to know

• The Tasmania Jewels beat the Geelong Venom 103-90 at MyState Bank Arena in Round 1 of WNBL27 on Thursday, October 15, 2026.
• Tasmania won the first two quarters 29-20 and 28-18 to lead 57-38 at half-time and stretched the margin to 24 in the third, before Geelong took that quarter 29-23 and the last finished level at 23-23.
• Maddison Rocci scored a game-high 33 points for Geelong on 9-from-17, including 5-from-7 from three and 10-from-12 at the line, while Darcee Garbin and Gianna Kneepkens shared Tasmania's top score with 20 each.
• Tasmania won the boards 49-35, including 22 offensive rebounds to 13, and took 76 shots from the field to Geelong's 69.
• Six Jewels scored in double figures and Tasmania assisted on 21 of their 37 field goals, while no Venom player other than Rocci scored more than 13.

Tasmania Jewels

• Darcee Garbin scored 20 points with six rebounds, three assists and two blocks on 9-from-17, including 1-from-5 from three.
• Gianna Kneepkens added 20 points and eight rebounds on 7-from-11, including 2-from-5 from three and 4-from-4 at the line, without a turnover in 30 minutes.
• Brooke Basham had 19 points, eight rebounds and a game-high four steals on 8-from-12, including 3-from-7 from three, and fouled out.
• Stephanie Reid scored 17 points with a game-high eight assists on 5-from-13, including 5-from-6 at the line.
• Keely Froling scored 11 points and five rebounds on 2-from-5, making 7-from-10 at the line.
• Ella Tofaeono added 11 points and six rebounds off the bench in 17 minutes on 5-from-8.
• Mia Jacobs had seven rebounds and three points off the bench in 17 minutes and finished a game-high plus-21.
• Tasmania shot 37-from-76 from the field, 8-from-25 from three and 21-from-32 at the line, with 49 rebounds (22 offensive), 21 assists and 16 turnovers.

Geelong Venom

• Maddison Rocci top-scored with a game-high 33 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 36 minutes on 9-from-17, including 5-from-7 from three and 10-from-12 at the line.
• Indiah Bowyer added 13 points on 6-from-8, including 1-from-2 from three, with a game-high five turnovers.
• Rebecca Cole scored 11 points with four assists on 4-from-11, including 3-from-5 at the line.
• Lilly Rotunno scored 11 points off the bench in 26 minutes on 5-from-7.
• Mackenzie Clinch Hoycard had 10 points and two blocks on 4-from-12, including 2-from-7 from three.
• Alexandra Sharp pulled down a team-high eight rebounds, four of them offensive, with six points on 3-from-11 in 32 minutes.
• Dakota Crichton scored six points off the bench in 16 minutes, going 4-from-4 at the line.
• Geelong shot 32-from-69 from the field, 8-from-23 from three and 18-from-24 at the line, with 35 rebounds (13 offensive), 14 assists and 18 turnovers.