Geraldton Buccaneers go down at home against East Perth Eagles in round 6 of NBL1 West

The Geraldton Buccaneers went down at home to the East Perth Eagles on Saturday night in an uncharacteristic performance at Activewest Stadium.

In the Ruth Rogers pink game, honouring a late local stalwart of the game, it was a tight contest from the first tip-off with Buccs’ Josh Keyes getting the home side off to a flyer, scoring twice in the first minute of the game. From there it was an arm wrestle in the first quarter.

Verle Williams came early to the party, lending a helping hand to Keyes, with the pair leading the scoring duties for the Buccs in the opening term. By quarter time it was the Eagles up, 23-17.

Johnny Narkle starred in the second term with nine points, getting his night up and running against the Eagles as the tussle continued. An early three-pointer from Aaron Ralph sparked the Buccs into action, later seeing the home side draw ahead going into the main break, 38-36.

A strong third quarter from Williams saw the Buccs battle through the term, extending their lead thanks to their new recruits Williams and Akeem Springs, who secured two important threes.

Liam Hunt and Keyes continued their work defensively with Narkle also restricting scoring from the Eagles, seeing the Buccs head into the final break up by a narrow margin of five points with the scoreboard reading, 66-61.

Springs got things started for the Buccs in the final term with a quick-fire three as the home crowd got up and about as the Buccs looked to drive home a win.

Clinical finishing at the free throw line saw the Eagles make the most of their chances early in the fourth quarter, with Williams for the Buccs holding his end of the bargain scoring at the line.

Quick-fire scoring from the Eagles in the middle of the fourth saw them draw out to a narrow lead as the Buccs looked to stem the bleeding on defence.

An important three from Nik DeSantis helped keep the home side in the game as Narkle and Springs converted from the field. Two back-to-back threes from Eagles’ Max Rice saw the lead extend for East Perth late in the last quarter.

Facing an uphill battle, the Buccs attempted to claw back the margin but it was unfortunately too late for the home side as the Eagles ran away with the win 92-89.

Williams was the top performer for the Buccs with 20 points, four rebounds and five assists with Keyes following close behind with 19 points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal.

Springs was solid with 16 points, six rebounds and two assists along with Narkle’s performance of 14 points, five rebounds and five assists.

With the loss the Buccs now slide to seventh on the NBL1 West ladder, with a 4-3 record.

The Buccs now prepare to dust themselves off as they host eighth-placed Perry Lakes at home this weekend at Activewest Stadium, on Saturday May 17 at 7pm.