West Recap | Round 9 Saturday

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Todd Withers landed 11 three-pointers for Warwick Senators on the same night Geraldton Buccaneers captain Aaron Ralph broke the NBL1 West record for shooting from beyond the arc.

CLARKE ALWAYS THANKFUL TO WAIS WARRIORS

WEST RECAP | ROUND 9 FRIDAY

BLACK PROUD TO BE FIRST TIGER TO 300 AS ROLE PLAYER

THREE-POINT RECORD LAST THING ON RALPH'S MIND

WOMEN

Perry Lakes Hawks (94) defeated South West Slammers (70)

The Perry Lakes Hawks welcomed back Alex Fowler and she put up 25 points as they returned to the winner's list with the 94-70 victory over the South West Slammers.

The Hawks were back home at Bendat Basketball Centre having lost their past three matches but that has included Fowler and Mia Satie being absent, and Megan McKay yet to arrive to resume her career at her original club.

Fowler was back in the line-up having been away with the Australian Gangurrus 3x3 team last week and Perry Lakes were on fire from the outset with 35 points to 18 in the first quarter.

That lead got out to as much as 27 points in the second quarter and the Slammers did well to limit the damage from there even though the Hawks did still outscore them 35 points to 28 in the second half.

That saw Perry Lakes record the 24-point victory to return to the winner's list and improve to a 4-4 record to consolidate their hold on a place in the top eight.

Alex Fowler was back and starred in the win for the Hawks with 25 points, eight rebounds and three steals on a might efficient 8/8 shooting from the field and 8/8 at the free-throw line.

Jayda Clark added 23 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and four steals, Maddy Dennis 15 points, seven boards, three steals, two blocks and two assists, and Amy Jacobs 14 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and two steals.

The Slammers are now 2-9 on the season following the loss with Mykea Gray playing all 40 minutes for 23 points, five steals, three rebounds and three assists.

Fellow import Cayla King also played all but 1:43 of the game but couldn’t find her radar like she did with seven threes last Friday night against the East Perth Eagles, instead finishing with five points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Zaya Black put up 12 points, three rebounds and two assists, Kate Fielding 14 points, six boards and two steals, and Addison Edwards nine points and seven rebounds.

PERRY LAKES HAWKS 94 (Fowler 25, Clark 23, Dennis 15)

SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 70 (Gray 23, Fielding 14, Black 12)

Cockburn Cougars (104) defeated Willetton Tigers (73)

The Cockburn Cougars remain undefeated this season beating local rivals Willetton Tigers 104-73 despite a triple-double from Zitina Aokuso with Sarah Mortensen and Jewel Williams producing season-best performances.

The Cougars put their undefeated record on the line back home at Wally Hagan Stadium taking on a Tigers line-up having just added Sharn Hayward who is fresh off her strong college career at Stonehill.

It was a blistering start from the unbeaten Cockburn with 33 points to 20 in the opening period on the back of shooting 14/22 from the field opposed to the 8/23 from the Tigers.

The lead for Cockburn got out to 22 points in the second term but Willetton did well to stay in touch and limit the lead for the Cougars to 51-41 by half-time.

Cockburn blew the game open in the third quarter, though, with another 27 points to 14, and then they ended up leading by 33 points in the final stanza on the way to the eventual 31-point victory.

The win improves the Cougars to a perfect 10-0 record as they attempt to make a third straight grand final in 2025 with Sarah Mortensen outstanding with 34 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and two assists on 14/24 shooting.

Captain Jewel Williams then had her best performance of the season in the 163rd game of her career with 24 points, three assists and two rebounds on 6/9 three-point shooting.

Daniel Raber added 14 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and five steals, and Steph Gorman 14 points, five assists, five steals and four boards on 4/7 three-point shooting.

The Tigers are now 6-4 for the season having lost their past couple despite another huge performance from Zitina Aokuso who delivered a triple-double made up of 14 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists.

Sharn Hayward was impressive on debut too with the Tasmania providing 18 points with shooting 6/11 from three-point range while Eva Langton delivered 12 points and three assists, Desiree Kelley seven points and five steals, and Ajulu Thatha six points and six rebounds.

COCKBURN COUGARS 104 (Mortensen 34, Williams 24, Raber 14, Gorman 14)

WILLETTON TIGERS 73 (Hayward 18, Aokuso 14, Langton 12)

Warwick Senators (110) defeated Goldfields Giants (82)

The Warwick Senators welcomed in Emma Gandini for the first time in 2025 and came out with the 110-82 home win over the Goldfields Giants even without missing a couple of key pieces to their front court.

The Senators celebrated Heritage Round by taking their home game against the Giants out to their previous home at Herb Graham Recreation Centre in Mirrabooka, and were looking for the win to main pace with the top two teams.

Warwick welcomed three-time championship winner Gandini into the line-up for the first time and with her fresh off winning another title Sheffield in England.

However, the Senators were a bit light on up front in the absence of Nat Burton and Kiara Waite, but the Giants weren’t able to take advantage with Warwick already opening up a 31-22 advantage by the end of the first quarter.

Warwick then blew the game wide open with a 38-point second term on the back of landing 7/11 of their three-point attempts while holding Goldfields to just the 15 points on 5/18 shooting.

That meant the Senators were leading 69-37 by half-time and then ended up cruising to the 28-point victory in the finish to improve to an 8-2 record with Emma Gandini's Warwick debut seeing her having 10 points, 10 rebounds and two assists after winning championships at Willetton and Rockingham.

Chloe Forster top-scored in the win with 31 points, seven assists, five rebounds and four steals with Mackenzie Clinch Hoycard adding 26 points on 5/10 three-point shooting while two-time MVP Stacey Barr had 22 points, six boards, four assists and three steals.

The Giants are now 2-8 on the season with another game to come on Sunday against the East Perth Eagles with Nici Gilday battling hard for 30 points, seven rebounds and seven assists with Chloe Zorzi contributing 14 points and three assists, and Erin Antosh 11 points and six rebounds.

WARWICK SENATORS 110 (Forster 31, Clinch Hoycard 26, Barr 22)

GOLDFIELDS GIANTS 82 (Gilday 30, Zorzi 14, Antosh 11)

MEN

Lakeside Lightning (87) lost to Geraldton Buccaneers (107)

It only took Geraldton Buccaneers captain Aaron Ralph a quarter and-a-half to get the required three-pointers to set the all-time league record and his team kept rolling from there to beat the Lakeside Lightning 107-87.

The Buccs arrived at Lakeside Recreation Centre fresh off handing the Warwick Senators a first loss of 2025 and with captain Ralph sitting on 1093 three-pointers ahead of his 468th game with Ryan Neill's 1097 career makes within touching distance.

Ralph hit the floor after just two and-a-half minutes and a minutes later he knocked down his first three-pointer and given his propensity for making multiple threes in quick succession, something special was brewing.

He hit another couple in that first quarter too to suddenly be just one behind the record held by Neill since he retired back in 2014.

It was a tight contest, though, with Geraldton only leading 28-27 by the end of one before Ralph checked back into the game four minutes into the second term and immediately landed his fourth three of the game to tie the record.

The very next possession down the floor and right in front of his very own bench, he hit his fifth of the night and the 1098th of his career to now sit alone as far as three-point shooting goes in the league that dates back to 1989.

 

 

 

 

 

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That also gave his Geraldton a 13-point lead and by half-time they were on top of the Lightning 62-51 having shot 23/34 from the field at a scorching 68 per cent.

With another 22 points to 10 in the last quarter the Buccaneers guaranteed the 20-point win to improve to a 7-3 record ahead of taking on the Willetton Tigers on Sunday to complete their road double.

It was a night of celebration for Ralph who finished with 15 points with those five threes but his two-time championship teammate Liam Hunt had a big performance too with 27 points, 12 rebounds and four assists.

Johny Narkle added 15 points, 12 assists, five rebounds and four steals, Verle Williams 17 points, eight assists and three steals, Josh Keyes 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals, and Nik DeSantis 12 points, five boards and five assists.

Lakeside are now 2-9 on the season having lost four straight with Corey Shervill putting up 25 points, seven rebounds, three blocks, two assists and two steals on 5/14 three-point shooting.

Isaiah Lewis added 16 points and three assists, Josh Davey 16 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and two steals, and Tim Hollick eight points and five assists.

LAKESIDE LIGHTNING 87 (Shervill 25, Davey 16, Lewis 16)

GERALDTON BUCCANEERS 107 (Hunt 27, Williams 17, Raphy 15, Narkle 15)

Perry Lakes Hawks (96) defeated South West Slammers (83)

The South West Slammers remain winless for another week with the Perry Lakes putting in a strong showing to beat them 96-83 with Luke Phillips delivering 27 points.

The Hawks were back home at Bendat Basketball Centre on Saturday night looking to back up their stirring comeback win last Saturday night against the Kalamunda Eastern Suns that saw them move into the top eight.

They were without import big man Davin Miller while the Slammers arrived having lost their opening 10 matches of the season and also without their import shooter Calvin Whipple.

Perry Lakes did get off to the flying start opening up an early 13-point lead but by quarter-time the Slammers had done well to only end up trailing by three points.

Again in the second term the Hawks opened up a 12-point lead but once more South West did well to stay in touch and the half-time lead for Perry Lakes was just 48-43.

The trend continued with the Hawks leading by 14 in the third frame but only by six at three quarter-time, but once they pulled away in the last term it was for good this time around.

Perry Lakes would go on to secure the 13-point victory on their home floor to improve to 5-5 on the season to consolidate a place inside the top eight.

In the absence of Davin Miller, Luke Phillips came up big time for Perry Lakes producing 27 points, seven rebounds and two assists on 11/14 field goal shooting and 4/6 three-point shooting.

Jaden Stanley-Williams also had 20 points and four steals, Nick Floyd 15 points, five rebounds and four assists, Tom Snelgrove 12 points, and Matt Leary nine points, seven assists, five rebounds and five steals.

South West remain winless at 0-11 on the season with Devan Craig top-scoring with 18 points, five rebounds and two steals.

Manny Wugol also had 14 points and five rebounds, Jamal Poplar 12 points and six boards, Rivar Evans 10 points, three assists and three steals, Nathan Walsh 10 points, five rebounds and two blocks, and Gavin Deacon nine points, five assists and three boards.

PERRY LAKES HAWKS 96 (L Phillips 27, Stanley-Williams 20, Floyd 15)

SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 83 (Craig 18, Wugol 14, Poplar 12)

Cockburn Cougars (98) lost to Willetton Tigers (99)

The experience of the Willetton Tigers shone late as they came back from a five-point deficit with three minutes to go to escape with the 99-98 victory against the Cockburn Cougars.

The Cougars were back home at Wally Hagan Stadium to host their local rivals and looking for a second win of the season, and to get some reward for the strong efforts they have been producing in recent times.

The Tigers arrived fresh off a win against the shorthanded Perth Redbacks and even though Cockburn did open up an eight-point edge in the first quarter, by quarter-time that advantage was back to just 25-24.

The teams then combined for 58 points in the second quarter with the Tigers scoring 30 to the 28 from the Tigers and that meant that it was Willetton clinging to the 54-53 lead as the teams headed to the locker room.

The Willetton lead got out to 10 points in the third frame but Cockburn responded and even put themselves into a winning position.

By the time Josh Hunt threw down a dunk with just under three minutes to play, the Cougars were up by five points and the Tigers had their work cut out.

Michael Vigor showed his 311 games of experience to bring Willetton back within three before Roosevelt Williams Jr brought back within one, and then the two teams traded huge threes first to Cockburn from Terrandus Smith only to be answered for Willetton by Tom Musumeci.

Taeshon Cherry then finished at the rim on the pinpoint pass from 361-game veteran Damien Scott before he also stepped up to the foul line to hit two on the back of a massive block from Vigor up the other end on Nathan Pond.

Cockburn still had a chance to force overtime but Kortland Martin's three-point attempt was off the mark and the only thing Pond's offensive rebound and put back did was make the final margin one-point.

Willetton are now 7-3 on the season after playing in last year's grand final and ahead of hosting the Geraldton Buccaneers on Sunday in what is Andrew Black's 300th appearance with the Tigers.

The Tigers finished with six players reaching double-figures in scoring led by Taeshon Cherry with 26 points, eight rebounds and three steals on 10/18 shooting.

Michael Vigor added 16 points, seven rebounds and two assists, Roosevelt Williams Jr 14 points, five assists and four boards, Tom Musumeci 11 points, two rebounds and two steals, Damien Scott 10 points, five assists, three boards and two steals, and Tyreese Davis 10 points, four rebounds and four assists.

The Cougars are now 1-10 but are playing much better than that suggests with Josh Hunt finishing with 27 points and five rebounds on 11/18 shooting.

Nathan Pond added 20 points, 10 rebounds and two assists with Terrandus Smith contributing 19 points, nine assists and six rebounds.

COCKBURN COUGARS 98 (Hunt 27, Pond 20, Smith 19)

WILLETTON TIGERS 99 (Cherry 26, Vigor 16, Williams Jr 14)

Warwick Senators (114) defeated Goldfields Giants (113)

Todd Withers knocked down 11 three-pointers and the Warwick Senators maintained top position with the 114-113 victory in a terrific match up with the third placed Goldfields Giants.

As part of Heritage Round, the Senators took the game to their previous home at Mirrabooka's Herb Graham Recreation Centre as they put their hold on top position on the line hosting the visiting Giants.

No more than five points ever separated the two teams the entire first half with the Senators hitting 6/13 from three in the first quarter but only leading 28-24 by quarter-time with Goldfields shooting 11/19 with a focus of doing their work within the arc.

Warwick made another six threes in the second term too to put up 28 points, but Goldfields also knocked down four themselves and shot 12/24 overall for 30 points and that cut the Senators advantage to 56-54 at the half-time break.

The Senators were able to push out to a nine-point lead in the third quarter and then extend that to 15 early in the fourth, but the Giants didn’t give up the fight and brought it all the way back thanks to going on a 13-0 run.

By the time De'Sean Parsons completed a three-point play with 1:30 to play the scores were all the way back level and Goldfields had the momentum but the scoring dried up in a tense finish.

The only other points scored from the Senators were four clutch free throws from Elijah Pepper and that would seal the win for the home team with the three from former Giants captain Jerome Reid on the buzzer bringing the final margin back to a point.

Warwick now reclaims top spot from the Rockingham Flames by improving to a 10-1 record and bouncing back from their lone loss of the season last Saturday night on the road to the Geraldton Buccaneers.

Todd Withers had a night out for the Senators with 11/17 three-point shooting on his way to 34 points, six rebounds and two assists.

The league's leading scorer Elijah Pepper finished with 24 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and two steals with Cooper Creek providing 17 points and nine rebounds on 5/9 three-point shooting, Mitch Clarke 15 points and eight assists, and Cody Ellis 11 points and six rebounds.

The Giants are now 7-3 for the season ahead of completing their road double on Sunday against the East Perth Eagles with Joshua Duach continuing his standout form with 33 points and five rebounds on 13/20 field goal shooting and going 5/9 from three-point range.

Last season's All First Team member De'Sean Parsons also had 32 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and four steals, Shaun Stewart 21 points, eight assists, three boards and three steals, and Michael Jok 12 points, five steals and three assists.

WARWICK SENATORS 114 (Withers 34, Pepper 24, Creek 17)

GOLDFIELDS GIANTS 113 (Duach 33, Parsons 32, Stewart 21)