The Townsville Fire have claimed the WNBL Championship after a thrilling 108-105 overtime victory over the Perth Lynx in the second game of the grand final series. The win sealed the best-of-three series 2-0 for the Fire, who were minor premiers this season.
Captain Courtney Woods led the Fire with a career-high 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, despite copping an elbow to the head from Perth's Han Xu in the third quarter. Miela Sowah was instrumental, scoring 18 points, including a three-pointer with 3.7 seconds left in regulation to tie the scores and a crucial basket with 7.4 seconds remaining in overtime.
Alicia Froling contributed 25 points and eight rebounds, while Lucy Olsen added 15 points and five assists. The victory completes a dominant season for the Fire, who lost to Bendigo Spirit in last season's grand final series.
The Lynx, hoping to win their first WNBL title in 34 years, started strongly in front of a sold-out crowd in Perth, leading by six points at quarter-time. Han Xu had 18 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, while Anneli Maley recorded a double-double with 27 points and 19 rebounds. The loss marks the Lynx's third grand final series defeat in five years, after finishing runner-up in 2022 and 2024.
