Geraldton Buccaneers look to secure top spot as they take on Warwick Senators

The Geraldton Buccaneers have one hand on the minor premiership heading into this weekend’s clash against the Warwick Senators, which is their final home game before finals.

With just two rounds left in the regular season, the Geraldton Buccaneers sit a game clear of the second-placed Rockingham Flames.

A win in either of their last two games would see them wrap up the top spot with a game to spare, but they will first have to overcome the Warwick Senators.

The Senators sit in fifth, equal on points with the Goldfields in fourth and the Cougars in sixth, and are coming off a tight win over the Lakeside Lightning which snapped a three-game losing streak.

The Buccs are coming off their best performance of the year after dismantling the Joondalup Wolves as they bounced back from an upset loss to Perry Lakes.

They dominated from the opening exchange with a 30-point first quarter and never looked back as they outplayed the Wolves at both ends of the court.

Star forward Cameron Coleman said the team had talked at length about how they were going to respond.

“We talked a lot during the week about overcoming adversity and we implemented some of those plans on the weekend,” he said.

“It’s about sticking to the blueprint and fine-tuning a few things in the lead into the finals.”

Buccs coach Dayle Joseph was impressed with how his chargers responded to the performance against the Hawks.

“It was good to know the loss struck a chord with the boys and I certainly noticed a change in the mindset of how we prepared and played on the day,” he said.

With finals locked in, it may be easy for some Buccs to be looking a few weeks ahead but Joseph is keen to make sure their focus is solely on the Senators this weekend.

“The Senators have probably underperformed this season, having had an inconsistent line-up, but they’ve got a lot of talent and their best basketball is probably ahead of them,” he said.

“It’s going to be a big challenge for some of our guys but we want to consolidate that top two and if possible first place to give us a big boost into finals.”

It is the Buccs’ last regular home game of the season and Joseph is hoping for a good performance.

“We had a fantastic crowd last week; hopefully we get another this week and build towards a finals-like atmosphere in what should be a good contest,” he said.

Tip-off is scheduled for 7pm at Activewest Stadium.