Red-hot Townsville Fire have blasted their method to outright WNBL title favouritism after coming into the finals driving a 12-game successful streak, capped by a last-round demolition job on the Southern Flyers.
A top-of-the-table blockbuster on the State Basketball Centre on Saturday evening was anticipated to be a decent affair however proved a lopsided blowout because the Fire flattened the Flyers 83-61.
Townsville had been lethal correct – taking pictures 63 per cent to Southside’s 32 per cent – ultra-efficient and bought the job performed by committee, with no participant taking greater than 9 pictures.
The win topped a dominant spherical 16 Victorian highway double for the Fire, who on Wednesday trounced Bendigo Spirit 89-64 at Red Energy Arena to safe high spot and home-court benefit all through the play-offs.
“It’s awesome,” Townsville coach Shannon Seebohm stated.
“You could tell from the very start of the pre-season that we had something quite special.”
Superstar import Tianna Hawkins (19 factors) spearheaded one other even show from the Fire, who appear to have weapons from all angles, Shyla Heal a welcome late-season addition and Lauren Nicholson nonetheless to probably slot again in when her foot is healed.
Reigning league MVP Anneli Maley (14 factors) top-scored for the Spirit however shot solely 23 per cent, whereas luckless guard Abbey Wehrung injured her shoulder in a collision with Hawkins.
Bendigo (11-10) started their marketing campaign with a 7-0 streak earlier than ending it with six straight losses – a number of of them one-sided – to freefall out of finals competition.
The Flyers (17-4, first place) will probably be heat favourites once they host Perth Lynx (13-8, fourth) on the Townsville Entertainment Centre for Game 1 of their best-of-three semi-final collection on Thursday.
The Lynx additionally wrapped up their common season marketing campaign with a pair of highway victories, predictably defeating second-bottom Adelaide Lightning 97-93 and wood spooners Canberra Capitals 107-94.
On Thursday at Adelaide Arena, Perth led 94-72 halfway via the fourth stanza earlier than the Lightning produced a late 17-0 burst to nearly pinch a miracle.
Two nights later on the National Convention Centre, Lynx’s 16-point second-quarter benefit was trimmed to a single level early within the fourth, largely behind the brilliance of Canberra’s teen sensation Shaneice Swain (33 factors), earlier than Perth lifted once more late.
The Melbourne Boomers concluded the common season by annihilating the Sydney Flames 100-60 at Parkville on Sunday.
To maintain their bid for back-to-back pennants alive, the Boomers (15-6) might want to reverse a run of outs in opposition to bogey facet Southside (additionally 15-6) of their upcoming best-of-three semi-final collection beginning Wednesday on the State Basketball Centre.
The Flyers claimed all three Melbourne derbies by double-digit margins this season and, even with captain Lauren Jackson out injured, will fancy their possibilities of advancing to the grand remaining at Melbourne’s expense.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
