Crunch Time: The key moments from Round 3

This weekend's games saw five blockbusters take place all across the country.

Most notably, the revamped Adelaide Lightning broke through for their first win of WNBL26, while Townsville and Perth suffered their maiden defeats of the campaign.

Join us as we recap all the top moments from Round 3 during our weekly column.

Lightning strikes first win

After a couple of close calls, the rebranded Adelaide Lightning broke through and chalked up their first win of WNBL26 on Saturday, edging the UC Capitals 73-65 on their home court.

Sania Feagin (19), Steph Talbot (18), Serena Sundell and Dallas Loughridge (both 14) all scored in double figures in the win, which also marked Kerryn Mitchell's first in the competition.

To make the occasion even more special was the fact it was in front of a second straight capacity crowd at the South Australian State Basketball Centre.

Southside Melbourne fly high

The Flyers look every bit of a championship contender after back-to-back wins over Sydney and Townsville, who came into the Round 3 clash undefeated.

Leading the way was three-time Olympian Cayla George, who put up her second straight double-double and subsequently claimed back-to-back Player of the Game awards.

Also chipping in for the Flyers during their first match of the season at the Victorian State Basketball Centre were Maddi Rocci (22 points), Haley Peters (14) and Issie Bourne (11).

Is the full Borlase-breakout happening before our eyes?

Through her first four seasons in the WNBL, Isobel Borlase has established herself as one of the competition's brightest young stars.

Now in her first season away from Adelaide and in Bendigo, it feels like the 2024 Olympic bronze medalist is truly taking her game to the next level and becoming a true MVP contender.

On Sunday, she scored 26 points (her second-highest ever score) and tallied seven rebounds, five assists (equal career high) and three steals in her side's win over Sydney.

With scores of 17, 20 and now 26 to start WNBL26, it feels like Borlase is set for her best season yet.

No more unbeaten sides

Going into Round 3, two teams remained perfect on the WNBL26 season, Townsville and Perth.

But both sides, Townsville to Southside Melbourne and Perth to Townsville, suffered defeats across the weekend.

This not only highlights the tightness of the competition but echoes Fire coach Shannon Seebohm's quote, “You look around the league, anyone can beat anybody on any given day.”

Tayli's making her Dimarco

It was a busy weekend for Geelong Venom rookie Tayli Dimarco.

The 18-year-old played a career-high 5.33 minutes during the Venom's one-point loss to Perth at the Geelong Arena, which saw her make numerous big plays.

This performance comes after the Belmont University commit completed some of her Year 12 exams, which will continue over the comings weeks.