Flames star to miss Fire fixture

Sydney Flames star Lauren Nicholson will miss the club's Round 8 clash with Townsville due to personal reasons.

The Townsville Entertainment Centre fixture will be the first that Nicholson, who is averaging 18 points, 3 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game, has missed during the WNBL26 season.

Fellow backcourt star Olivia Époupa (concussion) will remain sidelined for the Saturday encounter too, with Issy Morgan and Zoey Miller suiting up as their replacements.

This match, between the 8-1 Fire and 3-7 Flames, will mark Renae Garlepp's first in charge of the latter.

The matchup tips off at 7pm AEDT, live on ESPN2 and 9Now, with tickets still available here.