12-1 Girls – Olivia Weddikara (sponsored by Visa4You Migration Agency)
Won against Cougars 35-32
Coach comments
- Today we had an excellent win against Cougars. The girls came into the game with an attitude ready to win.
- Our victory was led by our full court press and trapping on defence.
- Both Jem and Amelia were crucial on defence and used their speed to their advantage.
- Cairee was composed when bringing the ball up the court, becoming our most reliable point guard. She also created many scoring opportunities for her teammates.
- Mabel had an outstanding game today and was the most valuable player on the court. Mabel forced many turnovers, and got many steals, causing so many fast breaks and easy baskets.
- Finally, Hazel was highly effective in our game today as she used her athletic ability to an advantage, causing turnovers and giving herself many chances to score.
- Overall I am very proud of the team’s effort today.
- Quick shoutout to Niamh Murphy who stepped up as head coach as I couldn’t make it!
12-2 Girls – Dave Power (sponsored by RocketDNA)
Won against Cougars 34-24
Coach comments
- We opened the game with a big first quarter, 18-4.
- We had good looks in the second, but weren’t able to convert and went into the half up 21-12.
- Cockburn in the second half converted on some nice mid range shots to stretch our defence.
- We were able to win the 4th quarter to keep the gap stretched to come home 34-24.
- Alannah Murphy was disruptive defensively, and Emily Sundstrom, in her second game back from injury, is starting to find her rhythm again and was effective on both sides of the ball.
- Wanda Power was able to get timely break outs, drives and on ball defence each time Cockburn tried to go on a run to keep us out of reach.
12-3 Girls – Paul Philpott (sponsored byInternational Commissioning Solutions Group Pty Ltd)
Lost against Cougars 89-8
Coach comments
- Undeniably our toughest game this season, alerting us that every setback is a setup for a comeback! Whilst the Cougars were a dominant force today forcing us into many inbound and down court turnovers, our strong and determined girls never lost their fight or desire for possession with the scoreboard not defining our collective worth.
- Today, Sally, Nadia, our awesome supporters from the bench, and I left feeling proud of our girls as they continue to wrestle with the team at the top of the mountain.
- Claire Sunderland really turned up today after returning from injury, delivering a performance as bright as a scoreboard. She consistently took on the wall of Cougars and worked tirelessly to get our ball up the court.
- Zara Wong put on a clinic today, frequently exploding like fireworks as she launched herself into the contest, jumping and wrestling for those loose balls.
- Jean Grayson took control today, getting in front of the Cougars and dribbling like a squirrel on espresso.
- Today we accepted finite disappointment but never lost finite hope. Go Redbacks.
12-4 Girls – Indiana Ballantine (sponsored by Bruining Partners and John Hughes Ford)
Lost against Lakeside 11-57
12-1 Boys – Wayne Dropulich (sponsored by SLS Advisory)
Lost against Eagles 58-62
12-2 Boys – Adam Gunnis (sponsored by KPS BUILDING GROUP and PlanWA)
Lost against Eagles 48-61
12-3 Boys – Mason Wigmore (sponsored by Victory Technologies Pty Ltd and Stanley Ag WA)
Lost against Suns 78-41
Coach comments
- This game was more competitive than the final score suggests.
- We got jumped at the start and again at the end of the fourth quarter, but we managed to draw close to even in the second half.
- Overall, we learned some valuable things against the best team in the competition and are preparing ourselves well for the business end of the season.
- Dougie Butcher saw a lot more of the ball handling responsibilities this week as we experimented with some different lineups. He did well to persevere through pressure and still applied his usual defensive effort.
- Lachlan Stanley showed exactly why we missed him so much when he was out with an injury, making two three pointers and igniting our third quarter run.
- Lachlan Bright was tasked with holding down the league’s top scorer. Lachie has adapted well to his role as our tagger and held his opponent to just two points.
12-4 Boys – Charlize Nicolaou (sponsored by Float Docks)
Won against Raiders 73-47
Coach comments
- The boys came out loud and hard from before the starting buzzer right through to the final whistle of the fourth quarter!
- These 10 boys played their hearts out for the entire game, even with the physicality that Raiders brought. Jackson and I are so proud of how they have all developed throughout the season and can’t wait to see them continue to grow into fine young men.
- Harlan came out fast and hard, contributing to 60% of the blocks for the entire game. We couldn’t tell the difference between him and Wemby with the amount of hard and smart blocks he was making.
- Riley was phenomenal, using his footy skills to his advantage and helping out on both offence and defence. This man was like the Flash with the way he was playing on Sunday, we could barely keep up!
- Levi came into the game LeBron style, constantly using his basketball IQ to help create steals and push transition defence. He also took on feedback we gave him mid game and applied it the next time he stepped on court, just like the superstar he is!
- Everyone played like a team, using each other’s strengths to their advantage to create scoring opportunities and defensive turnovers.
12-5 Boys – Craig Dropulich (sponsored by Ganjing World)
Lost against Perry Lakes 39-63
Coach comments
- Coming into what we knew would be a physical game, the boys sadly could not meet the level of physicality required, as we trailed early and struggled to fight back. They were challenged for quarters 2 and 3, but ultimately fell apart across the 4th quarter to lose by 24.
- Felix and Regis showed courage within this game, as some of the smaller kids out there, going up against players who were a year or two older than them can be daunting. But these two kept their heads up, provided the opposition with a physical challenge, and did not allow anything easy past them.
- Lennox Baljic utilised his speed and quickness on the dribble to exploit gaps in a poor defensive team, finishing with poise to keep us in the game during some stretches of play.
14-1 Girls – Rori Roberts (sponsored by National Geotech)
Lost against Slammers 36-32
Coach comments
- A very physical game down in Bunbury. With only seven players, the girls put up a great fight no matter how tired they got.
- We went on a late run in the fourth, led by Olive Bird, but unfortunately were just unable to take the lead and continue that momentum.
- An amazing effort from every single one of the girls.
- Olive Bird had a tough defensive matchup and was amazing. She was able to shut down their leading scorer and did a fantastic job doing so without fouling. She also added 7 points in the fourth quarter to help us go on a late run.
- Lily Butler was super aggressive on both sides of the floor. She got unlucky with some hand fouls early, but that didn’t stop her from staying aggressive on defence.
14-2 Girls – Whitney Perret (sponsored by Accelerate Blue)
Lost against Senators 38-61
Coach comments
- We had a tough game against a very tall and quick Senators.
- At times we strung together some great basketball.
- A few more patches of our kind of basketball and we could have been more competitive.
- Lilly & Zoe both did well to spearhead some of our competitive patches. They were able to break the opposition’s trap through smart passes.
- Jade did well defensively and was able to get a number of steals. Her and Maddy were also able to get to the line with aggressive drives to the basket.
14-3 Girls – Matt Bailey (sponsored by Crothers Pty Ltd)
Won against Eagles 77-31
Coach comments
- We seem to have turned a corner with our defensive transition over the past couple of weeks, and the pressure we were able to create helped us get off to a strong start, even though our offence didn’t fully click until the second quarter.
- We were challenged a little the last time we played East Perth, but there were no signs of that this time around. The defensive intensity and ability to apply pressure early set the tone for the game.
- We still struggle on the defensive glass, which will cause issues against stronger teams and needs to be a focal point moving forward.
- Alexandra Trilling-Kirkwood was really active on the glass, leading the team in rebounding and scoring off the back of 13 second-chance points.
- Mina Bajin did a fantastic job of containing the ball defensively.
14-4 Girls – Bryn Arnold (sponsored by Mount Hawthorn Clinical Psychology)
Lost against Eastern Suns 51-52
Coach comments
- Outstanding game by everyone involved. This was probably our best performance of the season, and it was incredibly unfortunate to lose in the final five seconds. The girls should be proud of how they competed from start to finish.
- I was super proud of how well the team executed the concepts and structures we’ve been working on over the last few months. The improvement is obvious, the last time we played this team we lost by more than 35 points.
- The effort, discipline, and belief the team showed was outstanding. Keep up the great work performances like this show how far we have come and where we’re heading.
- Ella Jones was outstanding all game competing hard on the glass and finished with 19 points.
- Jess Beacham was also outstanding on the defensive end and contributed 12 points.
- Peyton Pohla continued her development by consistently being in the right spot at the right time which contributed to some easy points and crucial rebounds.
14-1 Boys – Dave Ogden (sponsored by Global Cabling)
Won against Slammers 46-43
Coach comments
- Away in Bunbury, the boys found a way to win late. We played our best two minutes of basketball when it mattered most, fighting back from two or three buckets down to steal the game in the final moments.
- Harry F was big at the end – hitting a big three that he and the bench enjoyed to seal it. He had a couple of key boards, a putback, and a really nice assist, all in the final two minutes, to lead his team to the win.
- Ollie L was top points and boards, and continues to work hard for offensive boards. His positioning down low is starting to draw a lot of the ball.
- Victor M always competes, but really had some key efforts late when we needed a presence. He finished his work with some class.
- JP’s on-ball pressure kept us competitive all game and led the team in steals.
14-2 Boys – Craig Dropulich (sponsored by M & T Gomm Pty Ltd ATF Gomm Family Trust T/As Customised Metal Works)
Won against Willetton 71-34
Coach comments
- We started off slow, lacking energy, and got behind by 7 in the first quarter. We took a timeout to reassess how we wanted to play and the energy needed, and started to fight our way back, only trailing at quarter time.
- From that point on, we became more aware defensively and capitalised on our elite pressure to get easy buckets, with Willeton not putting up more than 9 points in any quarter after.
- Everyone contributed and is fully understanding their roles within the team and how each player works with one another.
- Elijah Angelo Mancini’s quick hands led to a high number of steals, the majority of which resulted in easy points for the team. Elijah is playing at a level that showcases his true ability.
- It was Talin McCullough’s second week in a row being given a specific job, and this week he displayed his defensive capabilities by shutting down the opposition’s standout player, while still having a strong impact at the other end, scoring 13 points. Talin is a very trusted player in this role.
14-3 Boys – Dom Pitchen (sponsored by Candy Verse)
Lost against Eagles 66-61
Coach comments
- The match was highly competitive and clearly demonstrated the team’s progress this season, delivering a significant improvement over our previous meeting.
- The overall effort across the board was excellent, especially in defense and shot selection.
- It’s a performance the boys should be proud of as we prepare for the end of the season.
- Jimmy was a strong paint presence who deterred or altered many shots throughout the game, allowing us to generate multiple second chance opportunities through his physicality and effort on the boards. Well done Jim.
- Riley was a strong ball carrying presence and made opportunities for others and controlled the pace well. Defensively Riley was applying strong on ball pressure and getting stops or forcing turnovers.
14-4 Boys – Caitlin Rawes (sponsored by Crothers Pty Ltd)
Won against Slammers 85-54
16-1 Girls – Nigel Esau (sponsored by Xceed Real Estate)
Lost against Cougars 78-107
16-2 Girls – Reid Ballantine (sponsored by Access Hire)
Won against Willetton 61-60
Coach comments
- An absolutely thrilling 1 point win on the buzzer! Down by 17 early in the 4th, we turned the tables and came home with a 21-3 run ending with Sasha’s swished deep floater setting the stadium alight!!
- While the Willeton pressure had us rattled in the middle of the game, the last quarter was full of Redbacks magic.
- Both Lauren Jones and Harper Grace locking down defensive rebounds and sharply finding safe outlets.
- Maia Leckey and Paige Granato both finished on 17 points and were huge in both effort and ‘X factor’ in Q4.
- Alyssa Rullo played a pure hustle game diving for loose balls and boxing out bigger players and had a magic Q4 moment draining a fade away 3 and closing out a 4 point play.
- Both Paige and Lauren icing 2 for 2 free throws in Q4.
- Sasha Kuan totally clutch in the moment firing the game winner with 2 seconds to spare. Total Hero moment!
16-3 Girls – Geoff Alger (sponsored by Habitat Finance)
Lost against Lightning 45-57
Coach comments
- Down to six available players for this game and every player played with positivity and energy throughout and embraced the opportunity that the extra playing time provided.
- The game was closely fought and was tied up at half time as both teams struggled to score consistently.
- Only a brief period late in the third quarter saw Lightning able to force turnovers and capitalise on them to open up a gap, which ultimately was the difference on the scoreboard.
- Closing out the final quarter 19-20 while down to 5 players due to injury was a commendable effort, as the players threw caution to the wind and left nothing in the tank as we opened up the game and tried to close the margin.
- Audrey Toussaint runs endlessly every week. Audrey particularly took the opportunity to help herself to a season high 17 points at 65% as team mates found her running lanes hard in transition for layups and spacing well for her trademark catch and shoot jumpers.
- Iris Mairs’ energy levels are always impressive, and they never wavered despite the extra minutes. Iris was a bundle of energy, causing turnovers on defence with 5 steals and being selfless on offence with 7 assists coming from her crisp passes and willingness to find teammates.
- Eloise Clince worked really hard, as always, to fight for undersized rebounds, was absolutely solid in defence, and consistently probed and troubled the Lightning defence throughout the game, finishing with 7 assists.
- Alida Barmentloo returned from the flu and somehow managed to run the game out. She was super important inside, protecting the key and latching onto 5 steals while pulling down 14 boards. She also helped with ball advancement and showed some real intent offensively.
- Isla Cowman brought her usual levels of determination and defensive intensity, and demonstrated many of the defensive techniques we’ve been working on to good effect. Really safe with the ball despite playing under fatigue, she was a positive influence on our offence throughout.
- Sally Dowling was having a great game, so it was very sad to see her go down with an ankle injury. Sally fought really hard inside, was a key defensive presence in the paint, and showed great creativity offensively while having a nice shooting game, dropping an inspirational pair of 3s that our injured players/come video commentators Winnie and Eva really enjoyed!
16-4 Girls – Ashley Brian (sponsored by Realth Property Group)
Lost against Mandurah 45-77
Coach comments
- This was always going to be a tough challenge against a much bigger and more physical opponent. We were on the back foot early and looked a little intimidated by their size and strength, but to the girls’ credit they regrouped after half-time and competed much harder in the second half.
- While the result wasn’t what we were after, there were plenty of positives to take away.
- Bella Tolley led from the front with another outstanding performance. She attacked the basket with confidence and finished with an efficient 14 points, while also collecting 10 rebounds, 4 deflections and 3 steals. Bella’s willingness to take the game on set the tone for the rest of the group.
- Lily Yin produced one of her strongest games of the season. She was composed with the ball, finished efficiently for 6 points and worked tirelessly at both ends of the floor, adding 6 rebounds, 2 deflections and a steal to round out an excellent all-round performance.
- After only joining the team the week before the season began, Zoraya Laurenson’s improvement has been fantastic. After leading the scoring with 14 points last week, it was her defensive impact that really stood out this time around. She finished with 3 rebounds, 3 deflections and 2 steals, continuing to show just how much her game has developed over the course of the season.
16-1 Boys – Cameron Redhead (sponsored by Geist Consulting)
Lost against Eastern Suns 76-97
16-2 Boys – Francis Crawshaw (sponsored by F45 Victoria Park)
Lost against Binar 72-69
16-3 Boys – Vance Karimi (sponsored by School Bus Logistics Pty Ltd)
Lost against Eagles 84-88
Coach comments
- Another exciting home game. We competed strong in the first quarter with good tough defence and played with good pace.
- Quarter 2 was our downfall, giving away too many transition buckets. The boys won quarters 3 and 4 but it was a tough task to come back.
- They adjusted really well to counter defensively with paint penetration, stepped in early in transition D to stop ball and nailed well-timed open 3s to remain dangerous right to the end.
- Regardless of the outcome, all the boys were focused and brought game intensity and hustle every time they stepped onto the court. The loss hurts but they should be proud with their effort and passion.
- Caelan was strong in defence and had to work hard against tall physical players. He had to work on the boards at both ends and nailed his perimeter shots.
- Kruz worked hard in transition defence to delay the primary ball handler. He pushed our pace in transition O with confidence to give us early advantages and was hot with his 3s.
- Tom was a power in defence, fought hard on the boards, made good escape dribble decisions and hard to level up in the paint to fight for finishes.
16-4 Boys – Oliver March (sponsored by Rangecon)
Lost against Mandurah 92-66
18-1 Girls – Shaun Bennison (sponsored by Strike Drilling)
Won against Slammers 89-74
Coach comments
- Keen to get over a recent form slump, the girls were energised and ready to take on a Slammers outfit who like to play with pace.
- Again, we started out of the blocks slow – allowing Slammers to hang around with a lot of unforced turnovers.
- Our plan defensively was to slow their pace down by dragging out their possessions and forcing them to try and execute in the half court. They struggled with this – however, second chance opportunities through the O-boards allowed them to stay within reach.
- Over the course of 4 quarters, we wore them down and were able to take control and close the game out.
- Gabby Silvester stuffed the stat sheet in this one with 23pts, 6reb, 9as & 2stls – draining 5 3s.
- Mafa Tuialii was dynamic at both ends for us – scoring at 3levels and putting her body on the line through her intense defensive pressure.
- Leeshar Tuialii went about her work recording a double-double 15pts & 10reb, along with 4as and 2stls. A big congratulations to Leeshar who also brought up her 150 WABL games for the club. A huge milestone for her and her family – and a true testament to her hard work and dedication over many years. She has been a great example for the younger girls at Redbacks and is a shining light to the pathways of reaching and representing at the highest levels of our club with the NBL1 women’s team. Well done Leesh!
18-2 Girls – Simon Daff (sponsored by West Coast Reinforcing)
Won against Perry Lakes 86-57
18-3 Girls – Marcia Dowling (sponsored by PWS Group and John Hughes Ford)
Won against Perry Lakes 59-41
Coach comments
- We came out solid defensively and maintained a high press across four quarters, making it difficult in transition.
- Our opposition also found trouble under the basket as our rebounding effort outnumbered theirs.
- It wasn’t our best game, but as a team the girls stuck together and made it a success.
- All the girls tried hard this week.
18-4 Girls – Mark Wigmore (sponsored by PWS Group and John Hughes Ford)
Lost against Warwick 102-55
Coach comments
- Our team started the game with intent and the first few minutes were a tight battle.
- Unfortunately we then failed to take good care of the basketball and gifted a number of points late in the first qtr.
- The second and third quarters were closely fought and our girls showed a willingness to take the game on and put pressure on our opponent.
- In the last quarter we failed to close out the game in the same fashion allowing easy shots at the rim and offensive rebounds.
- Zoe Viesca attacked the rim and created shots for herself and others.
- Gracie Nash played with much more control and brought teammates into the game.
- Jamie Thysse was critical in the second and third quarters pushing the tempo and creating pressure on defenders in transition.
I didn’t do a report last week as I was travelling interstate for work. We played the Redbacks team 3 and lost. I would like to call out in particular a couple of girls from this game:
- Zoe Viesca who had an outstanding game and has really taken on the feedback to attack the rim off a screen or handoff and run with it in the last 2 games. This game vs Redbacks team 3 was her best of the season and she used her speed and aggression to put defenders under pressure all games.
- Alysha Robinson has become a genuine interior target for our team and works hard to create a position and has balance to finish around the key.
18-1 Boys – Adam Gunnis (sponsored by IML Group and John Hughes Ford)
Won against Cougars 100-92
18-2 Boys – Dan Cartwright (sponsored by Aviso WA Insurance Brokers and Signifi Media Pty Ltd)
Won against Cougars 65-77
18-3 Boys – Helen Pardini (sponsored by OCR Projects)
Won against Mandurah 104-90
18-4 Boys – Jess Tiwade (sponsored by Retriever Sound Events Dj.)
Won against Willetton 66-67
21 Girls – Shaun Bennison (sponsored by Freeman Chiropractic)
Won against Mandurah 64-58
Coach comments
- The girls struggled to stay composed under pressure today, but we continued to get better throughout the game and applied the defensive effort when it mattered most. Our wings are beginning to understand the concept of running hard and being rewarded for it too.
- Overall, it was great to get a win in a close game, as too many times this season we have lost close ones due to poor decisions down the stretch.
- Dakota was solid on the offensive end, knocking down threes and some handy pull-up jumpers.
- Olivia and Hannah handled the glass well and combined with our guards to get some great buckets. Hannah put a dagger in from 3 late game to seal the win.
20-1 Boys – John Foley (sponsored by Bodytune Massage and Sports Therapies)
Won against Eagles 77-84
20-2 Boys – Ofir Ben Dror (sponsored by Meyer Shircore Architects)
Lost against Raiders 88-83
Coach comments
- All season we have struggled to get off to a good start, but in this game we got the start we wanted, quickly pushing out to a double digit lead. However, Hills refused to go away and ran over the top of us in the last quarter.
- The effort level couldn’t be questioned, but unfortunately our defensive man coverage wasn’t up to scratch. With finals coming up, this will be a key focus of training.
- Jay Hazell once again stood up at both ends of the court and is getting rewarded for the hard work that he has put in throughout the season.
- Jack Ryder with 21 points including 3 treys was again very dependable.
- Hamish Gibson continues to come off the bench and provide us with great basketball IQ at both ends of the court.