MABA: Comets advance direct to grand final after defeating SlamDrunks by eight points

Comets have advanced directly to the Manjimup Amateur Basketball Association women’s A grand final after defeating SlamDrunks by eight points in the semifinals at Manjimup Indoor Sports Pavilion.

A contest which looked to be a toss-up on paper started out just like that but a dominant second half from Comets saw them overpower SlamDrunks to secure a comfortable 30-22 victory.

Brianne Gluck and Courtney Webb both starred for Comets in the win, leading their side with nine and eight points each.

For SlamDrunks, Lilly Podziuka played somewhat of a lone hand on the offensive end with 10 points.

Comets led by four points at half-time but the contest was still up for grabs in the second half, with an early pointer from Emma Podziuka cutting their deficit back to three.

It was the closest SlamDrunks came to overpowering Comets, who continued to answer every score before a couple of two-pointers from Caitlin Smith and Gluck brought their lead to a game-high of seven points.

With another grand final opportunity available to them, SlamDrunks looked to pull back as Comets had done enough to make a certainty of the result.

SlamDrunks can earn themselves the second coveted grand final spot on March 21 when they take on Panthers on Wednesday.

Also in women’s A, Senators defeated Titans 18-16 to advance to the A-reserve grand final, while Sapphire defeated Saints 22-21, knocking Saints out of the finals and advancing to the preliminary final, where they will take on Titans.

In women’s B, Magpies Blue advanced to the grand final after defeating Magpies Orange 44-23, while Raiders advanced to the preliminary final to take on Magpies Orange after defeating Tropics 20-0.

In men’s A, Barracudas defeated Purple Cobras 49-35 to enter the grand final, while Raiders defeated Wolfpack 48-41, knocking them out of the finals race.

In men’s B, Billy Goats advanced to the grand final after defeating Warriors 35-12, while Giants defeated Yabbies 21-16 to secure themselves a preliminary final spot against Warriors.