Lynx pluck WNBL finals boost out of Fire

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Lynx pluck WNBL finals boost out of Fire

Perth Lynx secured home-court advantage for their WNBL semi-final series against Townsville Fire with a thrilling overtime win against them in the last game of the regular season.

The Lynx trailed by two points when Laeticia Amihere stole the ball out of Fire forward Lauren Cox’s hands and found Alex Ciabattoni, who sunk the go-ahead triple.

Abbey Ellis’s rushed attempt at a buzzer-beater to win the game at the other end missed and Perth hung on.

Their 87-86 victory at the Townsville Entertainment Centre on Sunday clinched second spot on the ladder, relegating the Fire to third.

The two teams will meet in a best-of-three semi-final series, starting next Saturday.

Top seeds Bendigo Spirit will face Sydney Flames in the other semi-final series.

Ally Wilson (21 points) and Amihere (18) led the scoring for Perth in Townsville, where Nia Coffey’s long-range two tied the game with 3.2 seconds left in the fourth *******.

Cox’s steal gave Coffey another look to win it in regulation, but her three-point attempt missed and left scores tied at 75-75.

Townsville were ahead by as much as six points during overtime but Perth finished on a 7-0 run.

Courtney Woods (27 points), Coffey (19) and Cox (14 points, 10 rebounds) were the Fire’s best.

Also on Sunday, Adelaide Lightning ended their season on a positive note with an 87-70 win over Geelong United.

Lightning captain Steph Talbot had 17 points, eight rebounds and six assists, and Brianna Turner (19 points, nine rebounds) flirted with a double-double.

Isobel Borlase (12 points, nine rebounds, five assists) helped keep Geelong’s Jaz Shelley (12 points) scoreless in the second half, while Elissa Brett had 18 points and nine rebounds for the visitors.

Saturday produced a night of upsets as the UC Capitals and Southside Flyers both toppled finals-bound opponents.

The Caps sent off retiring great Abby Bishop in positive fashion with an 83-74 win over Bendigo, with captain ***** Melbourne in imperious form.

Melbourne posted 40 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, and Charli Collier (14 points, 10 rebounds) also had a double-double for the home side.

Veronica Burton (29 points, seven assists) and Kelsey Griffin (11 points, 10 points) were the best for the Spirit, who were smashed in the rebound count (52-38).

Sydney coach Guy Molloy reached the 350-game milestone but had the party crashed by last-placed Southside, who posted a surprise 83-67 win behind Naz Hillmon’s game-high 30 points and nine rebounds.

Maddi Rocci had 17 points and nine assists for the Flyers, while Shaneice Swain (20 points) top-scored for Sydney.

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#Lynx #pluck #WNBL #finals #boost #Fire

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