West Finals | Senators advance despite Atwell's 47

Featured image: Madeleine Clark | @madeleineclarkmedia

Amy Atwell did her best to shoot the Rockingham Flames into the NBL1 West Grand Final with 47 points but it wasn’t to be with the Warwick Senators prevailing 90-86 in overtime with their starting back court again shining.

Both teams have had championship aspirations all season so one of them was going to get their wish and reach the Grand Final at RAC Arena while the other was going to see their season end setting up a fascinating preliminary final at Mike Barnett Sports Complex.

Just to add to the occasion and it was going to be the last game in the remarkable careers of either Shani Amos from Rockingham or Nat Burton from Warwick who both are 250-plus game players and multiple championship winners in the league along with having played in the WNBL.

Both have announced that 2026 will be their last seasons so there was plenty to look forward with the contest and certainly didn’t disappoint and needed an extra five minutes to determine the first team into the Grand Final.

Atwell hit two huge threes near the end of regulation to have Rockingham up two before Chloe Forster made a layup to level scores up to force the extra period.

And the two teams combined for 28 points in those five minutes but Warwick started it with a 10-2 run and were able to hold out the Flames from there to win by four and make it to consecutive Grand Finals.

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Rockingham had locked in the home preliminary final after beating the East Perth Eagles last week while the Senators lost their qualifying final to the Cockburn Cougars and had to overcome the Joondalup Wolves on Thursday to advance.

Warwick had the better of the start away from home to be leading 27-17 by quarter-time but Rockingham hit back in the second term with 23 points to 10 and Amy Atwell fired up to have 20 points to her name by half-time with 3/6 three-point shooting.

That saw the Flames clinging to the 40-37 advantage with Mackenzie Clinch Hoycard showing the way for Warwick with 15 points on shooting 3/4 from the outside.

It remained a tight battle in the third quarter and scores were locked at 55-55 by three quarter-time to set up the tense and high-quality final quarter with it all on the line.

By the time Clinch Hoycard and Jayda Clark hit three-pointers halfway through the fourth term, Warwick were up nine to have one foot into the Grand Final but the Flames still had Atwell.

She hit three free throws before landing another triple with three minutes to go to make it a four-point ball game, and then in the final minute she landed two more bombs to firstly bring the deficit to one, and then put Rockingham up two.

That turned the heat back on Warwick and they responded with Clinch Hoycard finding Forster for the tying basket just before the buzzer.

Then in overtime, Clinch Hoycard and Kiara Waite opened up with three-pointers and by the time Clark also hit one, the lead was nine and even though Atwell kept on shooting and made another from the outside, Warwick got the job done to win by four.

The Senators are now into a fourth Grand Final in the past eight years as they attempt to replicate the success from 2022 and it was their back court that is going to give them a shot of winning next Saturday.

Even if Kyana Weir had a quiet night, she remains dangerous and then there's Chloe Forster who produced 23 points, 11 rebounds and four assists on 15/17 free-throw shooting with Jayda Clark contributing 22 points, nine assists and seven boards.

Mackenzie Clinch Hoycard top scored with 28 points, 10 rebounds and three steals on 6/9 shooting from the outside with Kiara Waite contributing nine points, six boards, three assists and two blocks.

Rockingham have now won just one of four finals since winning the 2024 championship but Amy Atwell was remarkable in her first game since winning gold with the Australian Gangurrus at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

She finished with 47 points, six rebounds and two assists on 13/31 field goal shooting and 7/18 from the outside and 14/14 at the foul line.

Teige Morrell added 20 points, 13 rebounds and two assists, Sara Puckett seven points and nine boards despite shooting 3/16, and Lesila Finau six points, 13 rebounds, four assists and two steals.

NBL1 WEST 2026 SEASON | PRELIMINARY FINAL

ROCKINGHAM FLAMES 86 (Atwell 47, Morrell 20, Puckett 7)

WARWICK SENATORS 90 (Clinch Hoycard 28, Forster 23, Clark 22)