Flames v Magic Preview (Coast FM Cup)
The Coast FM Challenge winner will be crowned on Friday and the stage is set with little separating the two clubs in the proceeding contest. The Flames visited Mandurah on the 23rd of May where the women went down 53 to 76 but the men came up with a 113-92 win.
So at present the Magic hold a two point advantage on the points differential after the first clash but if either club claims both wins tonight they will automatically win the trophy. If it is one a win apiece then the points differential will be the deciding factor.
Men
Current Standings - Flames (7-15) eleventh, Magic (2-20) fourteenth
The Flames will need a miracle to make the playoffs after losing games to Cockburn and Stirling last
weekend which extended their losing streak to four but motivation wont be a factor as anytime these two teams face off it’s a good battle regardless of where they are positioned on the ladder.
The surprise welcome return of captain Travis Moore (19.3pts & 10.1rebs) will give the Flames another big body coming off the bench but the team will place importance on the import duo of Trey Clarkson (20pts, 3.5rebs & 3.2asts) and Joey Harrell (19.7pts & 8rebs) to deliver against the arch rival.
The Magic have only shifted the two wins home to date but one of those was the impressive thrashing of East Perth last weekend. The Magic are an even squad with former Flames Andrew Bowman (14.9pts, 7.3rebs & 7.1asts), Aaron Trahair (12.9pts & 5.1rebs) and Ben Caporn (14pts, 3.8rebs & 3.7asts) all featuring prominently. Tom Remmerswaal (14.2pts, 7.9rebs & 2asts) and Shaun Bennison (12.7pts & 8rebs) round out the starters with Kane Thompson a perimeter scorer off the bench.
Women
Current Standings - Flames (13-5) second, Magic (9-9) seventh
The Lady Flames had two wins last weekend confirming their intentions on the leagues standings where they have been locked in second for over two months.
Kaye Tucker (17pts & 6rebs @ 50%) was on target against the Cougars leading the team to a 73-61 win on Friday before Sherelle Johnson (20pts & 9rebs @ 50%) led the team in the 75-61 back end win of the double header. The Flames could welcome Casey Haggar (14.6pts & 6.4rebs) back into the line-up after she missed with an ankle injury last week which will give Coach Petrik his full arsenal of players as he starts preparing for a tilt at the title.
The Magic are led by another ex-Flame and English International Shelley Boston (22.2pts & 14.5rebs) who is a force under the basket but she has been getting consistent support from Tarsha Fletcher (11.1pts & 4.7rebs), Kelli Hayward (10.4pts, 6.7rebs & 4.2asts) and Katie Reed (10.1pts,4.3rebs & 3.9asts). The Magic have been getting some solid wins of late and are a dark horse pushing towards the playoffs.
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