Red stars out of big game

Tornadoes Red could be without five of their best players for this Saturday’s women’s Bunbury Basketball Association grand final.

Tayah Burrows, Grace Lawler and Georgia Adams are all set to miss the game because of a two-day training camp in Perth for the State under-18 Country team.

Coach Graham Burrows also confirmed Georgia O’Neill was out with a back injury, while Dena English was unavailable because of work commitments.

They are likely go into the game with just six players – a tough task Burrows admitted against a full-strength Bulls outfit.

“They are a very talented team,” he said.

Burrows said he was waiting to hear if the Bulls would allow the game to be re-scheduled.

Bulls coach Matthew Rossiter said his team needed to play better defence to beat Tornadoes Red.

The two sides met in the semi-final, 15 days before this Saturday’s clash, when Tornadoes Red claimed a 83-73 victory.

“It was a very high scoring game,” Rossiter said.

“We need to slow the game down and keep the score to a 60-point game, not an 80-point game.”

The Bulls made the grand final after Aces White forfeited Friday night’s preliminary final and had the week off like Tornadoes Red, but Rossiter does not see it as an advantage.

“We would have liked to play to keep a bit of momentum going,” he said.

Tornadoes Red have a great record of stopping prolific Bulls scorer Courtney Bayliss, who averages just eight points against them compared to her season average of 19.

The two teams will meet at the South West Sports Centre with tip-off at 5.30pm.