Recap NBL1 West | Round 3 Sunday

A trademark three from Aaron Ralph and then two clutch free throws from Joshua Keyes saw the defending NBL1 West champion Geraldton Buccaneers win a Sunday heartstopper 104-103 over the Mandurah Magic.

RECAP NBL1 WEST | ROUND 3 SATURDAY

RECAP NBL1 WEST | ROUND 3 FRIDAY

FITTING SEND OFF FOR STEVE, NICOLLE DICONZA

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Mandurah Magic (103) lost to Geraldton Buccaneers (104)

The last match of Round 3 of the NBL1 West was a terrific contest and after Lachlan Bertram thought he'd become a Mandurah Magic hero, Josh Keyes was fouled taking a three and the Geraldton Buccaneers prevailed 104-103.

Both the Magic and Buccs came into the Sunday contest at Mandurah Aquatic and Recreation Centre in impressive form and that set the stage for the match to close Round 3 this weekend.

Mandurah's form has been building nicely and after narrow losses to open the season to Cockburn and in overtime to Rockingham, the Magic beat the Perth Redbacks last Saturday in a thriller and backed it up to beat Lakeside on Friday.

They were then at home to the defending champion Buccs who are still undefeated in their title defence having won at home to Willetton last Saturday and then having to fight hard to overcome the South West Slammers on Saturday.

Precious little separated the two teams all afternoon and it always felt like it was destined for a dramatic finish.

The Magic did lead by four at quarter-time but that lead was back to just two by half-time with Geraldton having fought back from slipping nine points down during the second term.

Both teams managed to lead by five at different times in the third period and then Mandurah grabbed the momentum once more completing an 11-0 run to take an eight-point edge with nine minutes to play on the back of a Jarrod Molnar triple and inside finish from Michael Durr.

The Buccs had to dig deep to respond and five quick points to Grand Final MVP Johny Narkle had the margin back to five and then a three ball from 2019 Grand Final MVP Liam Hunt made it two.

Narkle and Julian Pesava then traded three balls for their respective teams and the two sides continued to go basket for basket.

Another triple from Pesava had Mandurah up two with four minutes on the clock but Hunt answered in kind a minute later for Geraldton.

Then with a minute and-a-half to go, it was Bucs captain Aaron Ralph who hit what is his trademark with a clutch three ball. It was the 1019th of his 437-game career as he tries to chase down all-time leader Ryan Neill on 1097.

Hunt as able to push Geraldton out to a four-point lead but the drama didn’t end there with Bertram continuing to shine on his move to Mandurah. He knocked down the corner three with 10 seconds to play to make it a one-point ball game again.

The Magic did well defensively to deny Hunt a look inside with him dishing outside to Joshua Keyes. Joel Murray got a piece of the shot to block, but the foul was called too and Keyes made the first two at the line to see the Buccs win by one and stay unbeaten in 2024.

Johny Narkle continues to emerge as a genuine star of the league with another 32 points and five rebounds for Geraldton on 13/24 from the field and 4/10 from downtown.

Liam Hunt is back from a professional season in Germany following last year's championship and put up 22 points, 10 rebounds and four assists with new arrival Nik DeSantis delivering 22 points and four assists on 7/8 shooting.

Aaron Ralph also had 12 points and eight rebounds, and Joshua Keyes 11 points, 11 boards and six assists.

It was a heartbreaking way for Mandurah to lose given they were leading when the foul was called with a second on the clock, but it shouldn’t take away from the excitement around how the team is playing, and coming together in 2024 after three rounds.

Joel Murray produced another 24 points, five assists, three rebounds and three steals with Jarrod Molnar contributing 23 points and three steals, Michael Durr 19 points and eight rebounds, and Julian Pesava 18 points, eight boards and five assists.

The Buccs are back home next Saturday to host the Lakeside Lightning at 7pm local time via NBL1.com.au or the NBL1 App. The Magic also host the Cockburn Cougars on Friday at 8:30pm.

MANDURAH MAGIC 103 (Murray 24, Molnar 23, Durr 19)

GERALDTON BUCCANEERS 104 (Narkle 32, Hunt 22, DeSantis 22)