Lauren Jackson Sport Centre is set to light up on Saturday evening as the Albury basketball legend herself returns to play in front of Border fans.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Bandits host rivals Sutherland for the first home game of the NBL1 East season, in what is anticipated to be a sell-out.
"We're biased, but we do honestly have the best crowd in the competition, hands down," Bandits' women's coach Sam McDonald said.
"We're really excited to get out there and show our brand of basketball to the loyal fans that turn up week in week out for us."
It marks Jackson's first home game back in Bandits' colours since helping the women's side to its maiden championship in 2022, ironically against the Sharks.
"Having Loz lifts the energy level of everyone," McDonald said.
"She's ready to go out there and play in front of everyone again."
The women's side is coming off the back off two early victories away from home and will be looking to maintain their momentum.
"Every game that we've played against them (Sutherland) has been a really hard fought contest and some of the best basketball that we've seen, so we're really excited to go up against them," McDonald said.
"They're going to be tough and they've got some very good players.
"We've got our work cut out for us, but we've done the work and we should be okay."
It's also set to be a night to remember for Albury's Jake Bowen, with the 24-year-old to make his debut for the Bandits' men's side.
The son of Albury deputy mayor, entertainer and DJ extraordinaire, Steve Bowen, has made his way into the senior ranks after emerging as a junior in the Albury Basketball Association.
"He's really excited for that," coach Matt Kowalczyk said.
Other border products will also be soaking up the opportunity to kick-start the home season.
"Obviously a lot of them are coming from the Youth League programs where they don't get crowds of 1000 plus people, so it will be a bit of a shock for them at first, but they're really excited to experience it," Kowalczyk said.
"It's something they've been looking forward to for a long time.
"Having Lauren back this year will obviously bring a lot of people, but we have a pretty exciting team ourselves and we're hoping to see a lot of people there."
The men's side split the double header weekend for round one.
"It's been a big week of training and there's been a lot that we've worked on, but we're really confident with the position that we're in," Kowalczyk added.
