The South West Metro Pirates finally gave the defending champion Northside Wizards their first loss of the season, snapping a 14-0 streak throughout the NBL1 North.
It was a highly entertaining game, with the lead switching between the two sides the entire match.
The standout was Leah Scott, dropping 30 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in the critical win for the Pirates’ Finals hopes.
However, Alana Fraser shone the brightest, scoring a season-high 16 points and making two triples to give South West Metro the edge.
Fraser explained that the team wasn’t nervous heading into the clash against the champions, allowing them to trust each other to claim their eighth win of the season.
“It just came down to ball movement,” she told NBL Media.
“Knowing that we're gonna make the shots when we get it, and just trusting each other at the end of the day. It felt good playing as a team, it felt really good on the court.”
With the top of the conference loaded with talent, the Pirates must improve even further if they plan to take down the likes of Townsville, Rockhampton and North Gold Coast.
However, Fraser said the team is just taking it game-by-game as they head into the penultimate regular season round.
“We're just taking it like each game as it comes. We're not really trying to focus too far ahead because obviously we need to get the wins as they come,” she said.
“Just sticking to what we scout and practice, just focusing on the attention to detail in each game that comes one by one. That's pretty much our main focus.”
The Pirates have a double-header this weekend, starting on Friday as they host the Sunshine Coast Phoenix from 6:00pm AEST, then on Saturday they’ll be heading over to Logan and taking on the Thunder at 6:00pm AEST.
Watch both the games live via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App.
