WEDNESDAY night brought Fire to Bendat as the Perth Lynx hosted Townsville in the opening WNBL game of Round 2. Both teams entered after strong victories in the first round of the season, Perth hosting their second straight home game and Townsville travelling for the second consecutive week. 

Much of the opening quarter of basketball was back-and-forth as the two sides traded buckets, before the Fire leapt to a nine-point advantage with one minute remaining. Perth were fortunate to receive and nail three free throws to end the term, bringing the deficit back to five points after Miela Sowah was fouled on an attempt from downtown. 

Townsville then began the second quarter on an early 10-4 run, prompting a Lynx timeout. The Fire were severely out-rebounding Perth, which led to plenty of second chance opportunities, and so despite the best efforts of the home side’s defence, the Lynx were unable to halt Townsville’s scoring punches. The rest of the second term reverted to an even contest, with the Fire holding onto a five-point lead at halftime.

Back-to-back three-point bombs to kick off the third quarter saw Perth take the lead at 52-51, before Townsville quickly wrestled back momentum. Though the score stayed tight for the remainder of the third term, Perth never took the lead back despite tying things up with three minutes to play. A Courtney Woods jump shot to end the quarter gave the Fire a narrow four-point advantage going into the last. 

This time it was the visitors who came out swinging, doubling their lead through two minutes of play. They controlled the lead for much of the final term and Perth had to fight tooth and nail to climb back into the contest, taking the lead with just 2:30 on the clock after captain Anneli Maley split a pair of free throws.

Townsville regained the advantage, but the Lynx crept back within a single point with 30 seconds to go as Alex Wilson converted an and-one. Wilson had a chance to send the game to overtime but her attempt from beyond the arc went begging, and the away team held on for a thrilling 84-80 win to stay undefeated through two rounds of hoops.

Despite Townsville’s poor shooting night, their effort on the boards created 19 second chance points as they outrebounded Perth 48-29. Alicia Froling led the way for the victors with 25 points, 10 rebounds and three steals, while Woods dropped 25 points of her own. Lauren Cox was also huge for the Fire with 18 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. 

For the home side it was a case of being out-hustled and outworked. They shot the ball well but couldn’t contain their opponents on the defensive side of the ball. Sowah scored 21 points and along with Wilson and Maley, shot a combined 9/16 from distance. Laeticia Amihere also did her part with 19 points, five rebounds, two steals and three blocks.

The Fire sit atop the standings after two rounds, having won both their games and heading home to host the Bendigo Spirit, while the Lynx aren’t yet finished in Round 2, heading to Adelaide to face the Lightning on Saturday evening.

For the Perth Wildcats it was game three of no Bryce Cotton and they do not come much easier at the moment than the bottom-placed Tasmania JackJumpers, the reigning champions but winners of just three of their opening 10 matchups. 

It was not all smooth sailing for Perth though, as the traveling side led at halftime thanks to a Milton Doyle barrage. Doyle has been searching for a return to form and it could not have come at a better time for Tasmania, en route to 20 of their 51 opening half points.

Perth has found success in its team-oriented approach to scoring without its superstar, and Thursday night was no different. Five players scored in double digits, led by Kristian Doolittle’s double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Tai Webster continues to increase his load after returning from injury and in 22 minutes he posted 14 points and six assists. 

It was Todd Withers though, Cotton’s injury replacement player, that turned the tide for Perth in the second half. Withers knocked down a three in every quarter, ending 4/4 for his 12 points to steady the Cats’ offence.

Tasmania remained in the game until the final 2:30, when the Wildcats ended the game on a 9-2 run thanks to four different players. As if to symbolise their team offence, Doolittle, Webster, Keanu Pinder (13 points, seven rebounds) and Elijah Pepper (14 points, four assists, three rebounds) all made shots in the final 150 seconds, sharing the duties and each converting to win and remain in close touch of the top five. 

For the visiting side things have gone from bad to worse as they dropped to the standalone worst side in the competition. Doyle found form again as he dropped 30 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals, but they ran out of options quickly, just two other players scoring more than eight points. Defensive anchor Will Magnay is set for another stint on the sidelines after being ruled out of this matchup in the lead up with a shoulder injury.