South West Slammers women’s side fall short of second win of season despite brilliant Cayla King performance

The South West Slammers women’s side were on the wrong end of a six-point overtime loss to Joondalup Wolves on Saturday at Eaton Recreation Centre despite a standout performance from import Cayla King. The wing was on the bench for just over two minutes of the game, coming up with a 31-point, 10-rebound double-double despite making only three of her 10 three-point attempts. But her side were ultimately the losers in a contest where the two teams were never separated by more than a few points, going down 93-87. The Slammers’ sixth consecutive defeat has seen them slip to 12th on the ladder, ahead only of last-placed Eastern Suns, who they defeated in their season opener. With the side’s other import Mykea Gray (14 points, five assists) quiet by her own lofty standards, the Slammers were able to find some other contributors, with playing assistant coach Kate Fielding (13 points) having her best game of the year, and Addison Edwards (seven points, 13 rebounds) fighting hard on the inside. Coming down the court with scores tied and only five seconds left in regulation time, King was fouled and coolly drained a pair of free throws to give her side the lead. Joondalup’s Laniesha Paddon (18 points, seven rebounds) was then able to expose a seam in the hosts’ defence on the final possession, getting to the basket and scoring to send the game to overtime. Being without Gray — who fouled out of the game in the closing stages of the fourth term — in the extra period ultimately proved to be too large a hurdle to overcome for the Slammers, who made only one of their 12 field goal attempts in overtime. Finishing offensive possessions continues to be a struggle for the Slammers, who made only 31 of their 83 field goal attempts and just six of their 25 three-point shots for a total percentage of 37.35. They were able to keep themselves afloat in the game by taking care of the ball, committing a season-low 11 turnovers, and getting active on the glass, snaring 18 offensive rebounds. A slow start from the Slammers saw the Wolves open up a nine-point lead inside the game’s first two minutes but the contest was very close from there. The hosts ended up winning the first term by three points and the fourth by two as the visitors came in ahead by one in the second, and four in the third.