Mandurah falls just short of SBL championship

Mandurah Magic’s women have fallen agonisingly short of the State Basketball League championship, going down to Lakeside Lightning 75-64 in the grand final.

The Magic and Lightning went tit-for-tat throughout the first half at the Bendat Basketball Centre before Mandurah opened up a five-point buffer at the final break.

They couldn’t keep that momentum going however, as Lakeside stormed home with a 29-point to 13 final quarter to wrap up the competition for 2018.

Fouls and missed three-pointers counted against the Magic in the two minutes. 12 points went begging from long range, while down the other end the Lightning sunk five free throws.

Magic had the bulk of the scoring opportunities—76 to 67—but Lightning’s willingness to take more long-range chances paid off despite both sides sinking fewer than one third of their attempts.

The eventual winners were more accurate from close range, slotting half of their 30 shots to Magic’s 19 of 56.

Regina Palusna had a strong outing for Mandurah, notching up 18 points, eight rebounds, four assists and a block for the game.

Anita Brown top scored for the Magic with 19 points. Emma Klasztorny managed 11 rebounds and 11 points.

The Perry Lakes Hawks won the men’s league 94 to 87 over the Joondalup Wolves.