Bianca Donovan maintained her offensive production for a second straight week to help the women’s Collie Crane Hire South West Slammers secure a thrilling 67-65 victory over Stirling on Sunday.

The Slammers women have now won three games in a row and Donovan has played a major part in two of them, including top scoring with 22 points against the Senators.

The home side started slowly and trailed by four at the first break before turning the screws defensively in the second quarter to limit Stirling to just 11 points and take a 35-32 advantage into halftime.

The Slammers stepped up their shooting efficiency after the main break and with strong contributions from the ever-reliable Amy Patton (17 points, 16 rebounds, six assists), Rebecca Preston (10 points, eight rebounds and Catherine Waycott (10 points, three rebounds) held off the fast-finishing Senators to win the game.

Stirling surged to score 24 fourth quarter points but were hurt by their long range shooting, hitting just two of nine three point attempts in the final term.

By contrast, the Slammers hit three of five from beyond the arc to allow themselves some breathing room in a frenetic ending.

The result is a reversal of the two point loss the Slammers suffered at the hands of Stirling in round nine in Perth.

The Slammers shot a paltry 50 per cent from the charity stripe that night and although they converted just 12 of 19 on Sunday it was enough to close out the match.

The victory moves the Slammers two points clear of Perry Lakes in eighth on the State Basketball League ladder.

Article by Josh Zimmerman: Bunbury Herald
Photo by Mick Cronin