West Recap | Round 8 Friday

Image credit: Mark Filpo (@codexdesignstudio)

Anneli Maley was again at her energetic best in Perth Redbacks win while Madison Torresin and Sasha Goodlett led East Perth Eagles with Joey Baker producing a best showing for Joondalup Wolves and Lee Roberts showing he's got plenty in the tank.

CUBILLO EMBRACING NEW CHALLENGE OUT WEST WITH EAGLES

FAMILY COMES FIRST AS DURNIN REACHES 200

AMOS THANKFUL TO BASKETBALL AHEAD OF GAME 300

NEW CHALLENGES AT GIANTS DRIVES GILDAY

WEST RECAP | ROUND 7 SUNDAY

WOMEN

Joondalup Wolves (69) lost to Perth Redbacks (88)

Anneli Maley delivered another dominant performance ably supported by Patty Brossmann and Natalie Chou as the Perth Redbacks beat the Joondalup Wolves 88-69 on Friday night.

The Redbacks made the trip north up the freeway to Arena Joondalup looking to bounce back from a loss to the Warwick Senators with their big three of Maley, Brossmann and Chou in tow.

The Wolfpack might have won just two of eight games so far in 2025 heading into the match, but they are getting stronger seemingly each week including Kurstyn Harden and Lesila Finau in for the first time on Friday night.

That meant it was a full strength Wolves outfit for the first time all season adding some added intrigue to the match up on their home floor, but scoring became mighty difficult for them to start the game.

Maddie Sutton scored in just under two minutes for Joondalup but that would be their only score of the entire first quarter with them shooting 1/15 and not getting to the foul line once.

The Redbacks didn’t shoot great themselves opposed to that going 5/21 from the floor, but it was enough to put up 13 points and lead 13-2 at quarter-time as a result.

The scoring picked up for both teams in the second frame as they combined for 47 points on 13/30 shooting while Joondalup got to the foul line 12 times and Perth seven.

The Redbacks still added to their lead and by half-time were leading 37-25 before continuing to build on that lead throughout the second half with it getting to as much as 23 points in the fourth term.

Perth would go on to claim the 19-point victory from there to improve to a 6-3 record on the season with Anneli Maley once again delivering a huge performance all on the back of the remarkable energy she plays with.

She delivered 21 points, 28 rebounds and six assists while playing all but 1:34 of the game.

Patty Brossmann added 18 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots for the Redbacks, Natalie Chou 17 points, five boards and four assists, and stand-in captain in the absence of Raya Thompson, Georgia Denehey 10 points and four rebounds.

Joondalup did battle hard but still slips to a 2-7 record ahead of a tough road trip on Saturday against the defending champion Rockingham Flames who will be celebrating the 300th game of a championship winner and captain of both clubs, Shani Amos.

Jorjah Smith top-scored for the Wolves in her 228th game with 14 points, three rebounds and two assists on 4/9 three-point shooting.

Recently arrived import Maddie Sutton also put up 13 points, eight rebounds and three assists with new arrival Lesila Finau delivering 13 points, three boards and two steals, Stefanie Berberabe 11 points, six assists, four boards and three steals.

JOONDALUP WOLVES 69 (Smith 14, Sutton 13, Finau 13)

PERTH REDBACKS 88 (Maley 21, Brossmann 18, Chou 17)

East Perth Eagles (93) defeated South West Slammers (75)

East Perth Eagles imports Sasha Goodlett and Madison Torresin combined for 47 points, 18 rebounds, eight assists and five steals in the 93-75 home win over the South West Slammers.

Both teams brought winning form into their Friday night match up at Morley Sport and Recreation Centre with the Eagles beating the Mandurah Magic last Saturday night to make it five wins from six to open up 2025.

The Slammers, meanwhile, won their second game already of 2025 having come into the season on a 52-game losing streak so even though it was the second placed team up against second bottom, it still did possess plenty of intrigue.

East Perth did go on a 10-0 scoring run in the opening quarter and were leading 26-15 by quarter-time on the back of hitting 5/12 of their three-point attempts, but the Slammers were efficient too hitting 3/4 from downtown even if they only got up eight shots in the entire first 10 minutes.

It was a total turnaround in the second quarter as the Slammers continued to show just how far they have improved in 2025 under the coaching of Mark Edman.

South West outscored East Perth 27 points to 13 while making 4/9 from three-point range and limiting the Eagles to just 13 shot attempts in total, and suddenly it was the Slammers leading 42-39 at the half.

The Slammers pushed out to a six-point lead in the third quarter too, but the Eagles soon warmed back up and with a 28-point third term, went into three quarter-time back in front 67-63.

The game was still on the line heading into the fourth but not for long with the Eagles outscoring the Slammers 26 points to 12 to clinch the eventual 18-point victory but they were made to earn it.

The Slammers did end up shooting 52 per cent to 49 from the Eagles, but East Perth got up 18 extra shot attempts on the back of 16 offensive rebounds to five, and forcing the Slammers into 23 turnovers.

The victory improves the Eagles to a 6-1 record on the season with Sasha Goodlett once again a powerful force inside with 24 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals on 9/14 shooting from the field and 6/7 at the line.

Madison Torresin continued her strong form with the Canadian forward delivering 23 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals on 8/14 shooting with 5/6 at the charity stripe.

Kiwi Awatea Leach also had 13 points, 11 assists, seven rebounds and two steals, Abby Cubillo 11 points, six boards and five assists, Taylor Roberts nine points and four rebounds, and captain Tessa Morrison eight points, four steals, two boards and two assists.

The Slammers are now 2-8 on the season but produced another impressive showing with Cayla King top-scoring with 23 points, five rebounds, four steals and two assists with 7/12 three-point shooting.

Fellow import Mykea Gray added 22 points, six assists, six steals and three rebounds, Alexis Donovan eight points and three rebounds with 2/3 three-point shooting, and Addison Edwards seven points, seven boards and four assists on 3/4 shooting.

EAST PERTH EAGLES 93 (Goodlett 24, Torresin 23, Leach 13)

SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 75 (King 23, Gray 22, Donovan 8)

MEN

Joondalup Wolves (114) defeated Perth Redbacks (87)

Joey Baker produced his best NBL1 West performance since joining the Joondalup Wolves with 34 points to lead his team to the 114-87 victory at home over the shorthanded Perth Redbacks.

Joondalup were back home at Arena Joondalup fresh off winning two straight, and four of the last five, but also needing to keep winning to maintain a top four position given how tight things are on the standings.

They were playing host to a Redbacks team who has been fighting hard but was always significantly up against it in the absence of Joe Cook-Green, Lochlan Cummings, Jacob Formosa, Mathiang Muo and Callan McDonald.

Of those, Cummings, Formosa and Muo missed the chance to play against their former team while Redbacks coach Charles Nix also took the Wolfpack to the West Coast Classic championship in 2020.

Just to make matters worse for the Redbacks, the Wolves also regained point guard Ethan Elliott from injury who is having a career-best season, and the Wolfpack did open up a 12-point lead in the first quarter.

Joondalup were leading 27-17 by quarter-time and then that lead grew to as much as 21 points in the second term.

The Wolfpack piled on 37 points in the second quarter including going 6/10 from downtown and that saw them well in control leading 64-44 by half-time.

That lead got out to as much as 32 points in the third quarter and 38 in the fourth before the Wolves secured the eventual 27-point win on the back of shooting 55 per cent from the field the 47 from the Redbacks, and getting to the foul like 37 times to just 16 for Perth.

The Wolfpack improve to a 7-3 record with the win ahead of a mouth-watering Saturday night match up in Rockingham against a Flames team on a six-game winning streak and sitting in second place.

Joey Baker had his best performance in the NBL1 for Joondalup finishing the night with 34 points, four rebounds, two assists and two blocks on shooting 10/16 from the field, 4/8 from three-point range and 10/13 at the foul line.

He had plenty of help too with fellow import Adili Kuerban producing 16 points and two rebounds, the returning Ethan Elliott 15 points, five assists and three boards, Jordan Wellsteed 12 points and four steals, and CJ Turnage nine points, eight rebounds and six assists.

The Redbacks are now 3-7 on the season but missing perhaps their three most important players Lochlan Cummings, Joe Cook-Green and Callan McDonald meant they were always up against it.

Against the odds, Emmanuel Kanwei finished with 20 points, eight rebounds and three assists with Jonah Underwood adding 16 points and six boards, Jordan Herbert 11 points and seven rebounds, and feisty 148-game guard Carl Aylett 11 points and five assists.

JOONDALUP WOLVES 114 (Baker 34, Kuerban 16, Elliott 15)

PERTH REDBACKS 87 (Kanwei 20, Underwood 16, Herbert 11, Aylett 11)

East Perth Eagles (78) defeated South West Slammers (63)

It might not have been overly pretty but the East Perth Eagles got the win they needed 78-63 at home to the South West Slammers with former Grand Final MVP Lee Roberts ultimately proving the difference.

The Eagles were back home for the second straight week at Morley Sport and Recreation Centre on the back of a heartbreaking loss at the buzzer to the defending champion Mandurah Magic last Saturday night.

Prior to that and East Perth appeared to be building some momentum with a stirring win on the road to the Geraldton Buccaneers and they couldn’t afford a slip up at home to the winless Slammers this Friday night.

South West arrived not only yet to win a game in 2025 but also without the presence of import Calvin Whipple and 186-game veteran Cory Richardson which wouldn’t be helping their causing hunt a first win of the season.

From the outset the Eagles did a strong job defensively on the Slammers and especially limiting the impact of their import centre Jamal Polar.

East Perth held South West to just eight points on 3/11 shooting in the first quarter. While the Eagles did shoot just 2/12 themselves from deep in that first quarter, they did put up 20 points including 10 of those after offensive rebounds.

East Perth pushed out to a 14-point lead in the second term and were still on top 40-28 by half-time with neither team shooting the ball well highlighted by the combined 5/27 from behind the arc.

The Eagles lead did get out to 19 points in the second half and while they never could quite put the Slammers completely away, neither could South West get back quite close enough to be within striking distance.

East Perth went on to score the 15-point victory on their home floor despite shooting just 41 per cent from the field and 5/25 from deep. The Slammers only shot 30 per cent with 4/25 from behind the three-point line.

The Eagles dominated the boards with 61 rebounds to 33 including 21 at the offensive end which helped them overcome having 23 turnovers for the game.

The win improves East Perth to a 3-5 record on the season with 2017 Grand Final MVP Lee Roberts playing a starring role with 21 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists and three blocked shots with 9/10 shooting at the foul line.

Ioannis Dimakopoulos moved into the starting line-up too and the 7'2 giant delivered 16 points, nine rebounds and two assists despite battling foul trouble for the Eagles.

Jonah Antonio added 14 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and two steals, Max Rice nine points, six steals, four boards and three assists despite 1/8 three-point shooting, Chier Maker nine points, three rebounds and two assists, and Nick Filpo an energetic five points, five assists and three boards.

The Slammers remain winless after 10 games this season in their only appearance of the weekend with Devan Craig top-scoring with 15 points, five rebounds and two assists.

Rivar Evans added 12 points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists, Jamal Poplar 10 points, nine boards and two steals, and 186-game veteran former captain Clive Weeden eight points, four assists and three rebounds.

EAST PERTH EAGLES 78 (Roberts 21, Dimakopoulos 16, Antonio 14)

SOUTH WEST SLAMMERS 63 (Craig 15, Evans 12, Poplar 10)