West Recap | Round 13 Saturday

Image credit: Tyson Lumbaca | @ty.visuales

Warwick Senators won big over defending NBL1 West women's champions while Johny Narkle had another 30 points as Geraldton Buccaneers had 73 in a half over Willetton, and Emmett Naar and Isaac White combined for 72 as Rockingham Flames consolidated top spot.

WEST RECAP | ROUND 13 FRIDAY

WEEDEN GIVING SLAMMERS HIS ALL ONE LAST TIME

WOMEN

Lakeside Lightning (64) lost to East Perth Eagles (80)

East Perth Eagles leaders Tessa Morrison and Taylor Roberts made the difference combining for 34 points as they bounced back with the 80-64 road win over the Lakeside Lightning.

Both teams were coming off disappointing Friday night results when they arrived at Lakeside Recreation Centre with the Lightning hammered by Cockburn by 79 points while East Perth lost at home to Perry Lakes by 46.

With the Eagles needing to win to stay solid in the top eight and the Lightning trying to maintain touch for a playoff spot, and there was plenty at stake for both teams in the Saturday evening match up.

It was a strong start away from home by the Eagles who led 24-20 by quarter-time and then they opened up an 11-point advantage in the second quarter, and by half-time were leading 42-32.

The Eagles continued to build on that advantage with another 27 points to 20 in the third period with the lead growing to 17 points, and then 21 in the last term before East Perth secured the eventual 16-point triumph.

The Eagles ended the game shooting 47 per cent from the floor opposed to 35 from the Lightning while also attempting nine extra free-throw attempts along with forcing Lakeside into 15 turnovers from which they scored 13 points.

East Perth are now 9-6 on the season having split their second straight double-header with Sasha Goodlett delivering 22 points, eight rebounds and three assists on 11/14 field goal shooting.

Captain Tessa Morrison stepped up to deliver a season-best 18 points with 7/13 shooting while 141-game veteran Taylor Roberts knocked down 5/9 from three-point range for 16 points, four rebounds and two assists.

Abby Cubillo added 13 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals, and Awatea Leach seven points, six boards, five assists and three steals.

Lakeside are now 5-10 on the season after the pair off losses this weekend by a combined 95 points even with reigning MVP Teige Morrell again doing all she could with 25 points, 14 rebounds and four assists.

Sam Lubcke added 12 points and eight rebounds, and Sarah Allen nine points against the team she played with the past two seasons while her dad, Craig, was coach.

However, once again the Lightning just didn’t get enough from their import guards with Kennedi Williams and Oceane Kounkou combining for 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists, six turnovers and shooting 6/15 from the field and 2/8 from downtown with not a free-throw attempt between them.

LAKESIDE LIGHTNING 64 (Morrell 25, Lubcke 12, Allen 9)

EAST PERTH EAGLES 80 (Goodlett 22, Morrison 18, Roberts 16)

Rockingham Flames (68) lost to Warwick Senators (104)

Emma Gandini and Robbi Ryan returned to their home floor from last year's championship season to help lead the Warwick Senators to the 104-68 win over the Rockingham Flames.

The Flames were back home at Mike Barnett Sports Complex consolidating a spot in the top eight the previous night beating the Joondalup Wolves while the Senators made the trip south of the river on a five-match winning streak.

It was also a second game for the Senators with a back court boosted by Rockingham championship winning pair from last year, Gandini and Ryan, but it was a tight contest to start with scores level at 22-22 by quarter-time.

It was in the second term when the Senators made their move going on a 12-0 scoring run and end ing up leading by as much as 22 points, and outscoring the Flames 30 points to eight on the way to leading 52-30 at the main break.

That lead continued to balloon further in the favour of Warwick through the second half and the advantage got out to 37 points in the third quarter, and 46 in the fourth before they did settle on the eventual 36-point win.

Warwick ended up shooting 46 per cent from the field opposed toe 31 along with taking seven extra shots and five more free throws while forcing the Flames into 18 turnovers and scoring 13 points from those.

The Senators improve to a 12-2 record with six straight wins as a result to remain solid in second position only behind the undefeated Cockburn Cougars.

Two-time MVP Stacey Barr delivered 31 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three steals in the win for Warwick with 5/10 three-point shooting while last year's MVP runner-up Chloe Forster delivered 21 points, six assists, five boards and two steals.

Robbi Ryan provided 187 points on 8/12 shooting, Mackenzie Clinch Hoycard 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists, Nat Burton six points, nine boards and two steals, and Emma Gandini five points, three rebounds and two assists.

Rockingham split their double-header weekend to now sit at 7-7 while without WNBL experienced pair Marena Whittle and Georgia Pineau.

Alex Sharp finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds with Alex Ciabattoni adding 14 points, six boards, three assists and two steals, Aysha Kemp 10 points and six rebounds, and Jess Jakens four points, five boards and four assists.

ROCKINGHAM FLAMES 68 (Sharp 17, Ciabattoni 14, Erikstrup 11)

WARWICK SENATORS 104 (Barr 31, Forster 21, Ryan 18)

Kalamunda Eastern Suns (66) lost to Perth Redbacks (82)

The Perth Redbacks overcame a slow start to overpower the Kalamunda Eastern Suns in the finish for the 82-66 victory to consolidate their hold on a top four position.

The Redbacks did arrive at Ray Owen Sports Centre without both Patty Brossmann and Anneli Maley, but were coming off a thrilling win against the Rockingham Flames that kept them solid in a top four place.

The Eastern Suns were back at home and looking for a second win of the season and the potential for the upset was there with the Redbacks missing two key parts of their front court as they come up against Karly Murphy.

Kalamunda had the better of the start as well with 15 points to nine in the first quarter on the back of shooting 6/18 from the field opposed to the 2/19 from the Redbacks.

The Eastern Suns then got out to an eight-point lead early in the second quarter before the Redbacks began to work their way on top by going on a 9-0 run on the way to outscoring the home team 27-17 to take a 36-32 lead into half-time.

Perth took further control throughout the second half with 22 points to 15 in the third quarter, and 24 to 19 in the fourth on the way to leading by as much as 18 points on the way to the eventual 16-point victory.

The win improves the Redbacks to a 12-4 record on the season to remain solid in third position with Natalie Chou delivering 25 points, 10 rebounds and five steals.

Alaska Rhebok added 14 points and five rebounds, Georgia Denehey 13 points, five boards and three assists, and captain Raya Thompson 11 points and two rebounds in her first appearance since April 27 having overcome a knee complaint.

The Eastern Suns are still in last place with just the one win so far in 2025 with Karly Murphy finishing with 20 points, 18 rebounds and four assists.

Alyssa Bowen added 11 points and four rebounds, Emma Strelein 10 points, four boards, two assists and two steals, and Tayjanna McGhee-Pleasant nine points, five rebounds and two assists.

KALAMUNDA EASTERN SUNS 66 (Murphy 20, Bowen 11, Strelein 10)

PERTH REDBACKS 82 (Chou 25, Rhebok 14, Denehey 13)

MEN

South West Slammers (69) lost to Goldfields Giants (93)

The Goldfields Giants welcomed back Shaun Stewart and he helped to steady the ship with the 93-69 win to start their road double against the South West Slammers.

The Giants arrived at Eaton Recreation Centre having lost their past five matches to only be just clinging to a playoff position ahead of taking on a Slammers team fresh off scoring their first win of the season last Friday against the Cockburn Cougars.

Shaun Stewart returned for the Giants after missing the past two games and the championship winning point guard did make a significant difference with the visitors opening up a 24-17 lead by the end of the first quarter.

Goldfields pushed that lead out to 12 points in the second term and by half-time it was them leading 49-37.

It was another 24 points to 12 in the third quarter from the Giants as the lead got out to 26 points, and then grew to 35 in the final frame before they secured the 24-point victory.

It's an important win in the context of the season for Goldfields too to steady them with an 8-7 record to stay inside a playoff spot ahead of finishing their road double against the defending champion Mandurah Magic on Sunday.

Josh Duach top-scored for the Giants with 22 points, nine rebounds and two assists while Shaun Stewart returned with 15 points and six boards on 5/10 field goal shooting.

Former captains De'Sean Parsons also had 11 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals, and Jerome Reid 11 points, five boards, two assists and two steals.

Michael Jok also contributed 10 points, five rebounds and two assists, Sam Morrow nine points on 3/4 shooting, and Kur Maler eight points and three rebounds on 2/3 three-point shooting.

The Slammers remain in last place not quite able to back up their first win of the season to now sit on a 1-14 record with Jamal Poplar providing 14 points and 12 rebounds despite shooting 4/15 from the floor.

Manny Wugol delivered 13 points, six rebounds and three assists, Devan Craig seven points, and Jordan Wayne seven points, four boards and two assists.

SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 69 (Poplar 14, Wugol 13, Wayne 7, Craig 7)

GOLDFIELDS GIANTS 93 (Duach 22, Stewart 15, Reid 11, Parsons 11)

Geraldton Buccaneers (117) defeated Willetton Tigers (97)

Johny Narkle threatened a triple-double and scored another 30 points as the Geraldton Buccaneers got one back on the Willetton Tigers for last year's preliminary final with the 117-97 home victory.

The two teams did meet on the same Active West Stadium floor in last year's preliminary final where Willetton delivered a blistering first half before then having to withstand a Narkle-led Geraldton fightback to end up causing the almighty upset to reach the grand final.

The Buccs came into the game not only looking to avoid a similar result to last year but also to keep their winning form going having now won three straight against Joondalup, Mandurah and Goldfields by a combined 100 points exactly.

Willetton arrived in impressive form too having won seven straight matches and with the two teams occupying third and fourth positions, it was shaping as a tantalising match up for so many reasons.

As they did in last year's preliminary final, Willetton got the better of the start to be leading 26-19 by quarter-time while maintaining a handy lead the rest of the first half too to go into the half-time break on top 52-44.

So the Buccs had work to do coming into the second half and they were up to the challenge with a huge third quarter made up of 33 points to 19 thanks shooting 14/18 from the floor to turn that eight-point deficit into a six-point lead.

The Buccaneers then piled on another 40 points to 26 in the last term with 12/16 shooting from the floor and 14/15 at the foul line to blow the game apart with the 73 points to 45 in the second half to go on and score the 20-point victory.

It's four straight wins now for the Buccs by a combined 120 points as they improve to an 11-4 record with Johny Narkle once again the star performer with another 30 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, three steals and three blocks with 13/16 free-throw shooting.

Liam Hunt added 19 points, six rebounds and five assists, Akeem Springs 18 points, four boards and four assists, Nik DeSantis 17 points, four rebounds and four assists, Josh Keyes 15 points and nine boards, and Verle Williams 13 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Willetton suffer a first loss since May 17 to now sit at 12-4 and they look as though they will continue to fight over that third spot with the Buccs.

Taeshon Cherry once again top-scored for Willetton with 21 points, seven rebounds and three assists while Tom Musumeci added 17 points with 4/7 three-point shooting.

Tyreese Davis also had 14 points, eight rebounds and four assists, Michael Vigor 12 points, eight assists, five boards and two steals, and Tana Kopa 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots.

GERALDTON BUCCANEERS 117 (Narkle 30, Hunt 19, Springs 18)

WILLETTON TIGERS 97 (Cherry 21, Musumeci 17, Davis 14)

Lakeside Lightning (99) defeated East Perth Eagles (93)

Saturday night away trips south of the river don't seem to agree with the East Perth Eagles with the Lakeside Lightning handing them a third straight defeat matching that criteria with the 99-93 victory.

The Eagles lost a thriller two weeks ago on Saturday away to the Willetton Tigers, then last week had a disappointing showing to give up 122 to the Cockburn Cougars on the back of an impressive home win on the Friday night against the Perth Redbacks.

It was a similar scenario this time around for East Perth with the 24-point win at home to the Perry Lakes Hawks on Friday ahead of taking on the Lightning at Lakeside Recreation Centre on Saturday.

It was a Lightning team out of the playoff hunt too at 4-11 so it presented a chance to the Eagles to consolidate the top eight position they have moved into with their win on Friday.

The Lightning came out feeling good about themselves putting up 36 points in the first quarter while shooting 14/24 from the floor including 4/11 from downtown to lead by as much as 12.

Lakeside were still up 36-28 by the end of one but the Eagles responded knowing it was a crucial game in the context of their season to briefly grab the lead before the scores were all level at 53-53 by half-time.

East Perth did work on top in the third quarter with 23 points to 13 thanks to shooting 9/18 from the floor to the 5/20 from the Lightning as they ended up leading by as much 13 points.

The Eagles couldn’t quite put the Lightning away, though, and the home team fired back in the last quarter with 33 points to 17 thanks to hitting 4/7 from beyond the arc and also 13/16 at the foul line.

As a result, Lakeside turned a 10-point deficit at three quarter-time into the six-point victory to improve to a 5-11 record on the season.

Isaiah Lewis produced his best performance with the Lightning finishing with 33 points, seven assists and five rebounds with 5/12 three-point shooting.

Michael Garbellini lit it up for 5/10 shooting from downtown with 25 points, 10 rebounds and two assists while AJ Wilson contributed 10 points, 10 boards and six blocks, and Tim Hollick nine points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals.

It's a third straight disappointing Saturday night result south of the river for East Perth who are 7-9 on the season as a result having played a second game this weekend without back court pair Matthew Lang and Jonah Antonio.

Captain Lee Roberts put up 31 points, 11 rebounds and six assists on 12/20 shooting for the Eagles with Chier Maker contributing 17 points and five boards, Sharif Watson 13 points, eight rebounds and three steals, Max Rice 12 points, six assists and four boards, and Ioannis Dimakopoulos 11 points and 10 rebounds.

LAKESIDE LIGHTNING 99 (Lewis 33, Garbellini 25, Wilson 10)

EAST PERTH EAGLES 93 (Roberts 31, Maker 17, Watson 13)

Rockingham Flames (108) defeated Warwick Senators (106)

Top spot in the NBL1 West went on the line and the two produced a scintillating contest and any time a game is decided with a shot on the buzzer one way or the other you can't be decided.

It was a fascinating contest all evening at Mike Barnett Sports Complex between the Rockingham Flames and Warwick Senators, but it was the fourth quarter where both teams kicked things up a gear that perhaps only they can go to in 2025.

The Flames and Senators combined for 67 points in the last quarter alone and in the end it was Rockingham up two heading into the last possession that led to a good look at the three for Cooper Creek, but when it didn’t fall the Flames held on for the 108-106 win to consolidate top spot.

Rockingham were back home coming off a Friday night loss to the Joondalup Wolves while the Senators were without Todd Withers who was with the NBL Select team in Japan, but were coming off wins against the Goldfields Giants and Eastern Suns by a combined 50 points.

It was a hot start from both teams with Rockingham opening up a 16-point lead early on but by quarter-time that advantage was back to 35-31 with the Senators getting back into the contest by shooting 9/15 from behind the arc.

Both teams then had their turn in the lead in the second frame but by half-time it was Rockingham clinging to the 55-54 advantage.

The Flames did get back out to a 13-point lead once again when Travis Durnin scored with six minutes to play, but the Senators had the league's leading scorer Elijah Pepper.

He might have had a rough shooting game for a lot of the night, but he remained a threat and in the last six minutes alone he scored 16 points including completing a four-point play that made it a two-point ball game once more with 2:45 to play.

Pepper hit another triple 45 seconds to go to make it a one-point game but Tevin Jackson then hit a huge triple right in the face of Cody Ellis shortly after to restore the Flames to the four-point lead.

Warwick weren't going away, though, and eventually it was a Mitch Clarke three ball with 20 seconds to go that finally saw the Senators get back level.

Isaac White made both free throws up the other end, but the Senators still had the chance to either force overtime or win the game, and Cooper Creek did get a good look that didn’t quite fall with Rockingham holding on for the two-point win.

The victory keeps the Flames in top spot with a 14-2 record after splitting their double this weekend with the NBL experienced back court of Emmett Naar and Isaac White combining for 72 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists.

Naar finished with a season-best 38 points, seven rebounds and six assists with White delivering another 34 points, five assists and three boards.

Laquinton Ross also had 12 points, 11 rebounds and two assists, Tevin Jackson nine points, five boards, two assists and two steals, Jervon Pressley five points, five rebounds, four blocks and two assists, and Justin Beard five points, five rebounds, two assists and two blocks.

The Senators stay second at 12-3 with the Willetton Tigers losing at the same time to Geraldton to keep them from falling to third place.

Mitch Clarke ended up with 28 points, seven assists, three rebounds and two steals on 4/6 three-point shooting for the Senators while Elijah Pepper had 23 points and nine assists despite shooting 4/17 from deep with 16 of those points coming in the last six minutes.

Cody Ellis added 17 points and three assists with 5/13 three-point shooting while George Pearl contributed 15 points on 4/6 shooting from downtown, and Cooper Creek 12 points, 12 boards and three assists.

ROCKINGHAM FLAMES 108 (Naar 38, White 34, Ross 12)

WARWICK SENATORS 106 (Clarke 28, Pepper 23, Ellis 17)

Kalamunda Eastern Suns (104) defeated Perth Redbacks (76)

What a back court featuring Randy Bell, Marshall Nelson and Travis Fee is capable was on show for the Kalamunda Eastern Suns as the trio combined for 63 points in a 104-76 home win against the Perth Redbacks.

It was just the second game in the Suns line-up for Bell who starred at the Goldfields Giants in 2024 where he was named to the All-Second Team and after some growing pains against the Warwick Senators, things started to click at Ray Owen Sports Centre.

It was an important game in the context of the season for Kalamunda too if they wanted to maintain a spot in the top eight up against a Redbacks team all but out of contention having lost their past three matches.

It was a terrific start from the Eastern Suns in what was the home debut for Bell and they put up 33 points to 21 in the first quarter with 14/21 shooting from the floor while the Redbacks managed just 7/19.

It was another 25 points to 21 in the second term for Kalamunda with the lead getting out to 20 points and by the half-time break the home team were on to 58-42.

The Eastern Suns remained in control through the second half with the lead getting out to 25 points in the third quarter and then 30 in the fourth before they secured the 28-point victory.

The Suns ended up shooting 52 per cent from the field opposed to the 35 from the Redbacks while Kalamunda also forced Perth into 19 turnovers from which they were able to score 15 points.

The win keeps the Eastern Suns inside the top eight with a 7-8 record with Randy Bell impressive in his first home game with 20 points, seven assists and three rebounds on 4/9 three-point shooting.

Marshall Nelson also provided 22 points, 11 assists, eight rebounds and two steals while Travis Fee put up 21 points, five boards, four assists and two steals on 9/13 field goal shooting.

Joel Vaiangina stepped up in the continued absence of Lewis Thomas for another 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists with Terrico White contributing six points, five boards and two steals.

The Redbacks have now lost four straight to slip to a 5-12 record with Joe Cook-Green having a night to forget on his old home floor with just eight points on 2/9 shooting with three turnovers and with his team outscored by 26 with him out there.

Import centre Emmanuel Kanwei finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and four assists while Jonah Underwood contributed 11 points and eight boards, Matt Teale 10 points and five rebounds, and Michael Riley nine points on 3/8 three-point shooting.

KALAMUNDA EASTERN SUNS 104 (Nelson 22, Fee 21, Bell 20)

PERTH REDBACKS 76 (Kanwei 14, Cummings 12, Underwood 11)