Patches of brilliance hint at turnaround

Though they sit 0-9 on the SBL men’s table, the Printsync South West Slammers men’s team have showed patches of brilliance — with Saturday night’s visit to Belmont Oasis a perfect opportunity to snap an unwanted streak of defeats.

Both sides are no strangers to each other this season, with the Redbacks outgunning the Slammers 91-84 on April 6 at the Eaton Recreation Centre.

Slammers: Made a promising start against the Lightning at home, trailing by two points at quarter-time. Shot well from the inside early, with Michael Lay and Brody England particularly dangerous around the offensive glass. The home side continued to hold its own against a more fancied opponent, with Lay putting them up by three points with less than a minute on the clock — before Kyle Armour’s three-point shot levelled things back up near the half-time buzzer. Drifted off the pace in the third quarter offensively, with both American imports Tyler Livingston and Brian Voelkel exiting play through game-ending fouls. The Slammers were unable to recover in the final term, however, the aerial efforts of England (22 points, 10 rebounds) gave home supporters something to cheer.

Redbacks: A team synonymous with post-season basketball, the Redbacks have been wallowing at the bottom end of the table as they rebuild from several departures. Narrowly defeated Mandurah Magic on Friday night away from home, with Marshall Nelson and Joel Wagner at their best.

Scouting report(Perth Redbacks)

League position: 12th; Home record: 1-2; Away record: 2-4; Last round: defeated Mandurah Magic 89-88. Next two games: East Perth Eagles (away), South West Slammers (home).

Top performers

Slammers (v Lakeside Lightning)

Michael Lay — 19 points (7/8 from the field, 1/2 from beyond the arc, 2/3 from free-throw line), 10 rebounds, seven assists, zero steals, three turnovers.

Redbacks (v Mandurah Magic)

Marshall Nelson— 24 points (5/9 from the field, 2/9 from beyond the arc, 8/9 from free-throw line), 10 rebounds, two assists, one steal, six turnovers.