There were four matches to take place on Saturday afternoon in the NBL1 West Men’s Division to close the regular season with the Lakeside Lightning and Willetton Tigers battling over second spot, and the Joondalup Wolves and Cockburn Cougars over the last playoff position.
Twelve of the league’s 14 teams were all in action on a massive Friday night to open the final round of the regular season with plenty at stake right across the board.
There were some fascinating outcomes as a result including the Cockburn Cougars hammering the Perth Redbacks 96-70 at Belmont Oasis to put themselves right in the box seat for eighth position after the Joondalup Wolves lost 96-85 to the Rockingham Flames at Mike Barnett Sports Complex.
The Perry Lakes Hawks all but guaranteed the regular season championship by beating the Warwick Senators 97-88 with the East Perth Eagles defeating the Kalamunda Eastern Suns 81-55 and the Mandurah Magic downing the Lakeside Lightning 93-74.
The Willetton Tigers also stayed in the race for second spot by hammering the Geraldton Buccaneers 103-42 at Willetton Basketball Stadium.
There were four more matches to take place on Saturday afternoon to close the regular season with the Lightning and Tigers fighting over second place, and the Wolves and Cougars over eighth at different venues.
The battle for second was a playoff like contest in every way as the Lakeside Lightning went to battle with the Willetton Tigers, and prevailed at Lakeside Recreation Centre 97-95 to guarantee that second position with the two teams to do it all again next weekend.
Jack Isenbarger was huge for Lakeside in the absence of Jay Bowie, Jarrad Prue and Corey Shervill with 34 points with Kyle Armour adding 20, Rowan Mackenzie 18 and Tom Parkinson 14. Damien Scott put up 26 points for Willetton and Connor Mincherton 25.
The shock result of the afternoon came at HBF Arena with the Joondalup Wolves seeing their playoff dreams disintegrate before their very eyes with a stunning 100-94 loss against the horribly undermanned Geraldton Buccaneers.
Geraldton lost to Willetton by 61 points the night before and were without Aaron Ralph, Mat Wundenberg, Taine Wattie and Mathiang Muo, but they found a way to win to close their season with 30 points from Elijah Barbour, 24 from Brandon Holloway and 15 from Geordie Murray.
Jonathan Wade finished with 27 points for the Wolfpack and Trian Iliadis 24.
That meant the Cockburn Cougars just had to beat the South West Slammers to make sure they were part of the playoffs and not the Wolves, and they did so winning 101-59 at Wally Hagan Stadium.
Nic Pozoglou produced another 20 points and 14 rebounds for the Cougars with Devan Craig and Caleb Van De Griend scoring 11 points apiece for the Slammers.
The Perth Redbacks then at least found some form and confidence to take into the playoffs with a 94-79 win against the Goldfields Giants at Belmont Oasis.
There was no Joel Wagner, Zac Gattorna or Tevin Jackson for the Redbacks, but Marshall Nelson had 27 points and Louis Timms 22. Jerome Reid top-scored for the Giants with 19 points while Hamish Cummings added 15 points.
NBL1 WEST – 2021 MEN’S SEASON
ROUND 18 – SATURDAY
PERTH REDBACKS 94 defeated GOLDFIELDS GIANTS 79
The Perth Redbacks responded to a disappointing last 11 quarters in the NBL1 West Men’s Division to score a win at least heading into the playoffs despite the absence of three key players.
The Redbacks were guaranteed of making the playoffs coming into the final round of the NBL1 West season but they missed a chance to push for a top four position with a disappointing loss at home to the Cockburn Cougars the night before.
That came on the back of tough losses to the Mandurah Magic and Lakeside Lightning as well, and in face take out an impressive opening term against the Magic, and the Redbacks had been outscored 295 to 222 in their last 11 quarters of basketball.
Then also coming into Saturday afternoon’s clash with the Goldfields Giants at Belmont Oasis and Tevin Jackson joined fellow start starters Joel Wagner and Zac Gattorna on the sidelines.
The Giants were also hoping to finish their season on a high as well even if playoffs were out of reach and they arrived for the last game of the season on a two-match winning streak.
The Giants came out and started well too to turn the pressure further back on the Redbacks who were desperate to not head into an elimination final on a four-game losing streak no matter who they had available.
They still had Louis Timms and Marshall Nelson to lean on, though, and were able to turn things around in the second quarter with 27 points to 12 to head into the half-time break leading 55-44.
The Redbacks were able to open up a match-winning gap in the third quarter to lead the Giants 75-56 by three quarter-time before going on to record the 94-79 win to snap that losing slide and to finish the regular season in seventh place at 13-9.
The Giants finished the season with some encouraging form despite an overall 6-14 record.
Marshall Nelson had an impressive performance to lead the Redbacks with 27 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals while shooting 10/14 from the field, 2/4 from the three-point line and 5/6 from the free-throw line.
Louis Timms also delivered 22 points and five rebounds on 10/13 shooting for the Redbacks so to get 49 points on 20/27 shooting from their two guns was impressive.
Jordan Herbert stood in for the missing usual starters and had 13 points and six rebounds while Lachlan Bertram contributed 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Kyden Edman also had six points, David Swaby seven and Matt Giorgi three to go with two assists.
Jerome Reid has produced the best season of his career with the Giants and he finished off impressively with 19 points, six assists, four rebounds and three steals while knocking down 5/10 from three-point territory.
Hamish Cummings added 15 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals as well while hitting 4/10 from beyond the arc while Jasper Gibson had 12 points and 14 rebounds, Sam Morrow 10 points, and Dion Collins eight points and three boards.
LAKESIDE LIGHTNING 97 defeated WILLETTON TIGERS 95
Second spot and a home qualifying final went up for grabs on Saturday at Lakeside Recreation Centre and everything about the clash between the Lakeside Lightning and Willetton Tigers suggested playoffs started a week early.
Both teams were coming off playing the night before to open Round 18 in the NBL1 West Men’s Division with Willetton winning big by 61 points at home to the Geraldton Buccaneers while the Lightning suffered a disappointing road loss to the Mandurah Magic by 19 points.
What that did, though, was set the stage for the playoffs to begin six days early on Saturday afternoon at Lakeside Recreation Centre with the Lightning and Tigers battling over second position.
Quite simply, the winner would finish the regular season in second position and then have home court advantage for the qualifying final which was also going to feature the same two teams.
So in a lot of ways it was the start of a series between the Lightning and Tigers with Lakeside getting to start on their home floor, but they were minus key players Jarrad Prue, Jay Bowie, Ben Lee and Corey Shervill.
Shervill is unlikely to return during the playoffs as he focuses on recovering from his foot injury in the lead up to the NBL season with the Perth Wildcats, but Prue, Lee and Bowie should be right while next week while the Tigers are back at full strength with the returns of Michael Vigor, Damien Scott and Connor Mincherton.
The stage was set for a thrilling finish to the regular season and the game didn’t fail to deliver, played at playoff intensity from the outset and going right down to the wire.
Tom Parkinson hit his first of three big triples in the first quarter for Lakeside to help them to an 8-3 start. When he knocked down a third having earned the start with Prue out, Lakeside was leading 27-21 and was still on top 35-28 after an up tempo opening period.
Three-pointers midway through the second quarter from Jack Isenbarger and Rowan Mackenzie saw Lakeside open up a double-figure lead.
That advantage did grow to 15 points with Isenbarger hitting yet another three ball but Willetton hit a couple of threes of their own through Connor Mincherton and Hunter Clark to cut Lakeside’s lead to eight by the half.
However, the Lightning were still on top by 11 heading into the fourth quarter with the home team then up by 14 early in the final period with Isenbarger connected once again from downtown.
Then a Michael Vigor three ball sparked Willetton back into the contest and Damien Scott added another and suddenly it was a six-point game with six minutes remaining.
Out of a timeout, Mincherton hit another triple for the Tigers to make it a three-point game and it turned into a game of trading scores down the stretch.
But Scott hit four consecutive points for Willetton around the two-minute mark to make it a one-point game. Isenbarger, though, nailed another triple coming out of a timeout with 1:30 left and that would prove the killer blow.
That sealed the win and second position for Lakeside with a 17-5 record while Willetton finished the regular season in third at 15-6. The two teams now battle on Friday back at the same venue in a qualifying final.
Jack Isenbarger came up huge for the Lightning finishing the afternoon with 34 points on 12/18 shooting from the field and 6/9 from the three-point line.
Kyle Armour also delivered 20 points and six assists against his former club with Rowan Mackenzie finishing with 18 points and four steals, Tom Parkinson 14 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three steals, and Kayden Malseed six points and two assists.
Willetton has still done enough to earn a finals double chance with Damien Scott ended the afternoon at Lakeside with 26 points, four rebounds and four assists.
Connor Mincherton also produced 25 points, eight assists and five rebounds with Tom Gerovich contributing 12 points and seven boards, Michael Vigor 11 points, four rebounds and four assists, and Hunter Clarke six points, three boards and three assists.
JOONDALUP WOLVES 94 lost to GERALDTON BUCCANEERS 100
The Joondalup Wolves were clinging to an outside hope of still reaching the playoffs should they take care of business at home against a Geraldton Buccaneers team missing four starters, but it wasn’t to be.
The Wolves and Cougars came into the final round locked in a battle over the eighth and final spot for the playoffs in the inaugural NBL1 West season with Cockburn taking the advantage with a win over the Perth Redbacks on Friday while the Wolfpack lost to the Rockingham Flames.
That had the Cougars 10-11 and the Wolves 10-11 coming into Saturday afternoon with Joondalup knowing not only did they have to beat the Buccs at HBF Arena to make it, but also to hope Cockburn lost to the South West Slammers at the same time.
Given the fact that Geraldton had lost the previous night to Willetton by 61 points and were without perhaps their four most important players Aaron Ralph, Mat Wundenberg, Taine Wattie and Mathiang Muo meant the Wolves should have been fancying their chances.
But these two teams had a strong rivalry which including a Grand Final meeting with the Buccs beating the Wolves for what turned out the last SBL championship, and several other playoff battles.
So with the motivation for the Buccs knowing they could end the Wolves playoff aspirations and also send off championship winning coach Dayle Joseph on a terrific high, those who turned out for Geraldton gave their all from the outset.
Geraldton might have been horribly undermanned and won just five games for the season, and ended up having only six players who played 17 minutes or more for the game, but they just wouldn’t be denied.
The Buccaneers held a narrow 21-19 lead by quarter-time but the Wolves did as expected and worked their way on top to lead 48-43 by half-time.
It was easy to expected the Wolfpack to put their foot down and take care of business to keep their season alive and hope a miracle happened with the Slammers beating the Cougars, but neither would happen.
Geraldton produced perhaps their best second half of the season and considering the players they were missing, that was some performance full of spirit, heart and courage, and brilliant three-point shooting to finish up going 20/38 as a team at 52.6 per cent.
The Buccs outscored the Wolves 57 points to 46 in the second to record the 100-94 to end their season on the ultimate high and also the run as coach of Dayle Joseph who took them to a drought breaking championship in 2019.
Meanwhile, it ends the Wolves season in terribly disappointing fashion having lost eight of the last 11 games to miss the playoffs following a run of five straight SBL Grand Finals between 2015 and 2019, and making the top four of last year’s West Coast Classic.
Elijah Barbour delivered a standout performance for the Buccaneers with 30 points, five rebounds and four steals while knocking down 6/11 from three-point territory.
Brandon Holloway was outstanding as well with 24 points, six assists and four rebounds while hitting 5/7 from downtown with Geordie Murray grabbing his chance with 15 points and two assists while nailing 5/9 from the three-point arc.
Tomas Dobson also had 11 points for Geraldton, Dylan Myers eight and Will Galvin another seven points and nine rebounds in 39 minutes of court time.
It was a rough end to the season for the Wolfpack despite 27 points, 10 rebounds and four assists from Jonathan Wade.
Trian Iliadis hit 6/13 from three-point land for 24 points with Reece Maxwell adding 16 points and 10 rebounds, Lochlan Cummings 12 points, eight assists and five boards, and Rob Huntington 11 points and nine rebounds.
COCKBURN COUGARS 101 defeated SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 59
All the Cockburn Cougars had to do was continue their momentum from the previous night and they would be guaranteed of reaching the playoffs of this inaugural NBL1 West season.
That possibility appeared a long way off early in the season for the Cougars as they lost nine of their last 11 games to almost appear dead and buried.
However, with the superstar punch of Gavin Field and Nic Pozoglou with support from veterans Jaarod Holmes and Seva Chan, and the emerging Nathan Pond, Daniel Rogers, Josh Hunt, Matt Clifford and Zac Watkinson, the Cougars build some impressive momentum.
That meant they had given themselves a shot of reaching the playoffs coming into the final round, but they did need some things to go their way notably with the Joondalup Wolves not winning their two games against Rockingham and Geraldton.
As it turned out, they needn’t have worried about that but they still needed to take care of their own business and the Cougars were tremendous impressive on Friday night to beat the Perth Redbacks 96-70.
So going into Saturday’s clash with the Slammers at Wally Hagan Stadium, Cockburn just had to win and a playoff spot would be theirs.
The Cougars started off well enough with 27 points to 20 in the opening quarter and then another 14 points apiece in the second term meant the game was still up for grabs with Cockburn leading 41-34.
The Cougars put it to bed quickly in the third quarter, though, not only scoring 32 points themselves but holding the Slammers to just the five and that was enough to set up the 101-59 victory.
It caps off a remarkable finish to the season for the Cougars who have now won nine of their past 11 games having started the season losing nine of 11.
Nic Pozoglou was the star of the show once again for Cockburn with another 20 points and 14 rebounds on shooting 9/11 from the field.
Daniel Rogers added 14 points and seven rebounds for the Cougars, Jaarod Holmes 12 points, Gavin Field nine points, six rebounds and five assists, Ben Henshall eight points and three boards, Josh Hunt eight points and five rebounds, and Zac Watkinson eight points.
The Slammers finished their season with Caleb Van Griend scoring 11 points to go with six rebounds with Devan Craig also putting up 11 points, four boards and three steals.