FRIDAY night sees the Townsville Fire take on the Adelaide Lightning and the Perth Lynx go head-to-head against the Bendigo Spirit. The Lightning and the Fire are two in-form teams while Bendigo is in the middle of a form slump. The Lynx have been one of the favourites to win the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL) championship all year, and will be looking to further cement their favouritism in Round 9.

Townsville Fire v Adelaide Lightning

Friday, 7pm at Townsville Stadium

Key match-ups:

Suzy Batkovic v Nia Coffey

Batkovic had a ripper of a game last week, leading the way against Bendigo Spirit with a solid 24 points to help her team take the win. She is going to be hard to shut down in this week’s game, not only offensively, but defensively as well with her rebounding. Coffey is an expert in rebounding and dominates under the ring. While she hasn’t put up massive scores lately, her defensive game has been solid, which might actually come in handy on Friday night in order to curb Batkovic’s influence.

Last time they met:  Adelaide Lightning (77)  defeated by Townsville (79) 

These two teams only met a couple of weeks ago in a nail-biter of a game. Townsville managed to get the lead on the game, only winning by two points. This week’s game will be a challenge for Lightning to see if they can get over the line this time.

Season so far:

Townsville Fire have had a series of close games in the last couple of weeks, with only one game having a margin larger than 20 points. With two loses against the Boomers  within a six-point margin, Townsville will be there to fight and redeem themselves after last week’s loss.Adelaide Lightning have had two wins in their last round. After being on the  receiving end of three consecutive losses to the Boomers, Rangers and Townsville beforehand, the Lightning will be hoping to continue their winning streak against Townsville.

The game: Depending on how the Lightning pull up after their game on Wednesday against Sydney Uni Flames, the Fire will be out to try and improve their position on the leader board. With an equal number of wins and losses, the two teams will be fighting to see who can take fifth place.

Perth Lynx v Bendigo Spirit

Friday, 6:30pm Bendat Basketball Centre  

Key match-ups:

Asia Taylor v Louella Tomlinson

Taylor had a strong game against UC Capitals, getting a total of 21 points, nine rebounds and five assists. She will be a tough opponent to take down, but after Tomlinson’s game last week, she has also proven that she will be tough competition for Lynx, being a key player both up the offensive and defensive end.

Last time they met: Perth Lync (77) defeated Bendigo Spirit (72) 

These two teams first clashed in Round 3 of the season, with Perth coming out on top. The five-point margin will make Bendigo come into this game with a lot of spirit and determination to win this time around.

Season so far:

Perth Lynx have had a strong season, only losing two games so far. Currently sitting on top of the ladder, the Lynx have a strong offensive side, and have only gone down on their home court against Adelaide Lightning in Round 1 and Melbourne Boomers in Round 6. Bendigo Spirit had a strong start to the season, taking out wins in their first two games. But their last two games haven’t had a good result, with both losses being larger than 20 points.

The game: After their last clash, both teams have something to prove. With only a small margin separating the two teams last time, both will be hoping to get in front, and maintain a lead right to the end. The Spirit will be coming into the game determined to get another win under their belt after their last three consecutive matches.