Finals-bound Geraldton Buccaneers look to maintain momentum as they face Perry Lakes Hawks

Just one week after defeating them in their perfect Perth weekend, the Geraldton Buccaneers will face Perry Lake Hawks at home on Saturday night. After overcoming a tricky assignment against two teams they had yet to face this season, the Buccs will have to do it all again as they face the Hawks and Joondalup Wolves over the next two rounds. They put in commanding performances over the weekend, dismantling the Hawks and weathering the Wolves to post two wins and be two games clear at the top. Buccs coach Dayle Joseph was pleased with the way his team performed over the weekend. “To get the wins against two very good sides in what was our second away trip in a row and playing two games in two days it was a really good performance,” he said. One clear improvement the Buccs made over the weekend was their efficiency in offence shooting at more than 50 per cent, which Joseph said they worked hard on during the week. “In the review of our performance against the Redbacks we were generating plenty if shots but we weren’t getting many open shots. “Rather than just being about shooting more accurately we worked hard on executing our offensive plays better and with that came the easier shots allowing us to convert better.” They were also able to control the games better, with the largest swing against them a seven-point run Wolves managed in the fourth quarter. “We’ve really challenged ourselves to stop teams when they’re on a run, you can’t be on top all game so when the opposition has the momentum if you can go basket for basket with them it’s a good position to be in.” The Buccs could be forgiven for going into the game with confidence after such a good performance and sitting two wins clear at the top with only four rounds left. But the Hawks, just 2.7 percentage points out of a finals spot, will be desperate for a win and Joseph believes playing the same team again so soon can come with some challenges. “I think it’s a little bit trickier to play them again so soon, they’ve got a great coach who I’m sure has gone over the game footage with a fine-tooth comb and will have prepared some different counters for us. “We’re secure in playing finals this season but two losses could see us back in the pack quickly and we obviously want to finish as high as possible to give ourselves the best chance for finals. “We focusing on securing top four and then top two, so every game is still hugely important.” Tip-off for the Buccs will be at 7pm at Activewest Stadium.