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ROAD wins for the Rockingham Flames, South West Slammers and Perry Lakes Hawks marked the opening of Round 12 of the Women’s SBL on Friday night.

There were three matches to begin the WA Day long weekend in the Women’s SBL on Friday night that all culminates on the All-Star Games on Monday at Bendat Basketball Centre.

The three matches on Friday night saw the road teams all prevail with the Rockingham Flames beating the Cockburn Cougars 92-51, the South West Slammers defeating the Mandurah Magic 84-81 and the Perry Lakes Hawks downing the East Perth Eagles 62-50.

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The Flames took some hot form with them to Wally Hagan Stadium on Friday night to play the Cougars and they continued on from the outset.

Rockingham put up 29 points to 14 in the first quarter and went on to lead 52-29 by half-time The Flames then held the Cougars to just six third quarter points to end up 33 points up at three quarter-time before claiming the 41-point win.

The win is a fourth straight for the Flames who improve to a 10-3 record while the Cougars remain outside the top eight at 4-9 having now lost three on the trot.

D’Lesha Lloyd delivered an unstoppable performance for the Flames with 34 points and eight rebounds on 15/21 shooting from the field.

Taneisha Harrison added 14 points and seven rebounds for Rockingham hitting 3/7 from downtown with Maddison Allen contributing 10 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, three blocked shots and two steals.

Jesni Cooper also had 10 points and four rebounds in just 10 minutes.

Isabelle Miotti finished with 12 points and five rebounds for Cockburn with Lauren Thompson adding 12 points and nine boards. Kisha Lee had a tough night with just five points and seven rebounds on 2/16 shooting.

The Magic and Slammers then locked horns in what shaped as a fascinating tussle at Mandurah Aquatic and Recreation Centre and it certainly didn’t fail to deliver.

Mandurah came into the game still missing Casey Mihovilovich with Carly Boag’s season already over and they were blown away by the Slammers in the first half.

The Slammers had opened up a 53-35 lead by half-time and were still 16 points to the good heading into the fourth quarter. The Magic threw everything at a stirring comeback but in the end fell three points short.

The win improved South West to a 5-7 record on the season as they chase a return to the playoffs while Mandurah slips to 7-5.

Co-captain Courtney Bayliss top-scored for the Slammers with 20 points, eight rebounds, three steals and three assists including shooting 6/10 from three-point territory.

Tayah Burrows showed her importance as point guard with 16 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists while Charlotte van Kleef contributed 15 points on 4/7 shooting from beyond the arc.

Tori Fisher also had 14 points, six rebounds and two assists while Georgia Denehey finished with nine points, four boards and two assists.

Regina Palusna ended the night with 19 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals for Mandurah with captain Rachel Halleen adding 17 points.

Rachel Pettit also had 15 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals for the Magic, Bree Klasztorny 13 points and five assists, and Anita Brown seven points, four rebounds and three steals despite shooting just 3/14.

Then the bottom two teams clashed at Morley Sport and Recreation Centre with the defending champion Perry Lakes making it three straight wins at the expense of East Perth.

It was a tight opening quarter but Perry Lakes began to pull away by holding East Perth to seven points in the second quarter to lead 34-24 at half-time.

Again the Eagles kept pace with the Hawks through the second half but Perry Lakes maintained that half-time advantage to end up leading by 12 points.

The Lady Hawks have now won three straight matches to improve to a 4-9 record while the Eagles are 0-14 having now lost 24 in succession dating back to 2017.

Nat Burton top-scored for Perry Lakes with 16 points and 11 rebounds with Gabby O’Sullivan adding 11 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Annika Renkema also had eight points, four rebounds and three assists for the Hawks, Toni Farnworth seven points, seven boards, five assists and two steals, and Emily Burton seven points, three assists and two blocked shots.

Bree Fisher had a standout night for the Eagles with 22 points and four rebounds shooting 7/14 from the field and 6/8 from the free-throw line.

Rose Aryang added eight points, 14 rebounds and three steals for East Perth, Akim Lual six points, five boards, two assists and two steals, and Stacia Muparutsa six points and three assists.

WEEK 12 WOMEN’S SBL FIXTURES
FRIDAY
Cockburn Cougars 51 lost to Rockingham Flames 92
Mandurah Magic 81 lost to South West Slammers 84
East Perth Eagles 50 lost to Perry Lakes Hawks 62

SATURDAY
Joondalup Wolves v Stirling Senators – HBF Arena 6.00pm
Lakeside Lightning v Willetton Tigers – Lakeside Recreation Centre 6.00pm
Kalamunda Eastern Suns v Perth Redbacks – Ray Owen Sports Centre 6.30pm

MONDAY
Women’s All-Star Game
North v South – Bendat Basketball Centre 12pm