Geraldton Buccaneers gear up for potentially season-defining weekend

The Geraldton Buccaneers are on the road again in another weekend of back-to-back games in Perth as they face Perry Lake Hawks and second-placed Joondalup Wolves. The Buccs are coming off a split weekend as they suffered a shock defeat at the hands of the Redbacks before rebounding against the Eastern Suns. However, both games saw them suffer runs against them, giving up fairly large leads in both games. Coach Dayle Joseph said he believes some poor efficiency cost them. “If you look at the Redbacks game we had 14 more shots but ended up losing which is a pretty rare thing,” he said. “Those missed shots hurt us and we got stuck in transition not allowing us to set up the way we like defensively.” That efficiency will be a concern heading into two tricky games against teams that the Buccs have yet to face this season. Last season’s champions the Hawks have had an up and down season currently sitting with an 8-7 record in eighth position. However, they have beaten three of the top five sides this season and will be desperate for a win to keep hold of a finals position. The second match is an even more daunting challenge against the second-placed Joondalup Wolves who have won their past six games in a row and hold the best defensive record in the league. Much like the Buccs, they don’t have players who dominate the league statistics but spread the effort across the court with three players averaging over 17 points a game and have a good shooting percentage across the board. On paper, it’s hard to separate the two sides’ best five so the contest could come down to bench strength, especially with both teams playing two games over the weekend. Last round saw Liam Hunt for the Buccs step up and have arguably his best game against the Suns as Cameron Coleman had an uncharacteristically quiet night. Ryan Blanchett was instrumental in keeping them in games and stemming the tide when they did struggle. Joseph agrees depth will be key on both sides and is under no illusion of the challenge this weekend presents to the Buccs. “It could determine the course of our season whether we are a clear top four side or will have to fight the pack for finals,” he said. “We will play to win on Saturday night we won’t leave anything in reserve and then we’ll see where from there where we are at for Sunday.” Buccaneers game against the Hawks will start at 7pm on Saturday at Bendat Basketball Centre before they face the Wolves at 12pm on Sunday at Joondalup Arena.