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We'll pick a Player of the Week and four other selections to round out the Team of the Week, paying attention to the following criteria:
Other players will also receive a shout out as honourable mentions at the bottom of the piece.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Knocking off second place Reading on their own court is no mean feat, but Essex did just that on Sunday thanks to a standout performance from Busumbru.
Still in the hunt for a top-four finish, the Rebels went to Loddon Valley and came away with a well-earned 89-81 victory as Busumbru put in a captain's performance.
Thirty five points from the former Solent guard went with eight assists, both game-highs, plus four rebounds and a pair of steals, making for a great afternoon's work.
Twelve points from Busumbru's total, plus four assists, came in the opening quarter, one which Essex won 29-19, providing the early confidence needed to eventually seal the win.
Nottingham's thoughts of the bottom two are all but over after a valuable 85-81 victory against London Cavaliers.
Guard Taliaferro put in a super-efficient performance in the win, with a near double-double of 21 points and nine rebounds that involved 7/10 shooting.
Three makes from long-range helped his value, as did five assists to keep the Hoods' offence ticking over, but 30:49 of turnover-free basketball was the icing on the cake and helped earn a spot in this week's five.
Skoric produced one of the rebounding performances of the season as he pulled down a ridiculous 26 boards in Nottingham's win over London Cavaliers.
Taking the battle on the glass 53-41, the New Jersey native filled his boots, pulling down nearly half of his side's total.
Fifteen points made for a useful double-double, and splitting his rebound numbers evenly with 13 at both ends, he was able to have a big impact in the paint at both ends.
A solid weekend for the London side resulted in a shock win over Hemel and a tough loss to Nottingham, but Matthew Bryan-Amaning certainly did his part for the Cavs regardless of the results.
Working hard against the antics of Greg Skoric and Co, Bryan-Amaning still managed a solid 16/8 effort against the Hoods on Saturday, but it was his part in Sunday's win against Hemel that earns the plaudits here.
With a big double-double of 24 points and 18 boards, the former GB man hit the shot that sent the game to OT before adding four points, two rebounds and a steal in the extra frame.
Going 2/8 from the stripe after drawing five fouls wasn't the best, but shooting 11/21 (52%) from the floor was a more efficient return elsewhere.
Ndoukou remains one of D1M's most well-rounded players, and this weekend was another fine example as the Loughborough man shot, rebounded and passed the ball with quality.
In the narrow 85-83 victory over Bristol, Ndoukou enjoyed team-highs in points and rebounds, whilst only Justin Hedley (11) managed to top Ndoukou's assist numbers.
It's no surprise to see the Loughborough man still in D1M's top three for efficiency, and for a forward to hit 11/11 from the charity stripe is just another positive to the young star's game.
After a hard-fought regular season, Hemel Storm were finally able to confirm themselves as champs for 2024/25 this past weekend.
Their 16-0 start to the season was truly impressive, winning both home and away and consistently finding a way to dig deep against tricky opponents. Coach Clark and his staff deserve tremendous credit for the achievement, and getting the best from this Storm roster across the campaign.
Matt Ellis has been a standout in his debut NBL campaign, and his play alongside experienced forward Darien Nelson-Henry has been impressive. Sam Newman is set to capture the league's assist crown (8.3APG, at present), the team ranks first in D1M for total efficiency, as well as points per game (91.2), and a respectable seventh for points allowed (83.3PPG).
They're worthy winners, but the rest of the chasing pack will no doubt take heart from Storm's 3-4 record since their unbeaten streak ended. If that stretch impacts the playoffs remains to be seen, but locking up home-court advantage with top spot is sure to be a bonus regardless.
With just one week of regular season action remaining, the anticipation for the playoffs is building at speed.
In what has been one of the most hotly-contested D1M seasons in some time, teams will be sizing each other up for April's win or go home action, with every team fancying their chances to beat anyone on their day.
The four playoff match-ups will no doubt provide fans with a thrilling third instalment of some compelling contests from the regular season, producing can't miss action.
Seedings will be important, especially with MK and Essex trying to grab the #4 spot and a home draw to open the post-season, whilst there's five different teams all still battling it out for seventh and eighth.
Top spot may already be decided, but there's a lot of exciting basketball still to be played over the next month.
Justin Hopkins (REA) - 29P/7R/3A/3S/31EFF
Bode Adeluola (WOR) - 32P/4R/6A/30EFF
Adrian Scarborough (MKB) - 22P/12R/3A/29EFF
Kai Walker (MKB) - 16P/9R/7A/28EFF
Justin Williams (BRA) - 32P/5R/5A/3S/29EFF
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Main image credit - Kay Lu
