Lynx pounce to hand Lightning third straight defeat

The start of Adelaide’s WNBL season has gone from bad to worse, suffering an eight-point loss to Perth.

Both sides competed neck-and-neck in the first three quarters, but the 90-82 defeat came after the Lynx proved better in the fourth period on Saturday night.

It handed coach Aja Parham-Ammar her third-straight demise, admitting it was not the season-start she expected.

“We expect to come out with W’s right now, and we’re not. So there’s frustration there,” she said in the post-game news conference.

“Going back and looking at the film, we would probably be upset with some of the unforced turnovers that we had, some transition points that we gave up, which in the end would have changed the score a bit.”

Multiple three-pointers from both teams in opening minutes made it seem as though fans at SA State Basketball Centre were in for a high-scoring game.

But neither team’s players shot double digits in the opening half.

The Lynx held onto a five-point lead at halftime in Anneli Maley’s first game back in the squad after a season with the WNBA’s New York Liberty.

She produced a double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds.

“I just I don’t think I’ve ever met a player that works harder on the court every second she’s out there,” Lynx coach Ryan Petrik said.

“That’s really underrated because it’s not as common as you think.”

The Lightning’s Zitina Aokuso also had a double-double, made up of 20 points and 11 boards.

Her stats were crucial in the third quarter when Adelaide piled on 26 points to Perth’s 18 and positioned the hosts with a one-point lead before the final term.

Despite losing in the final 10 minutes, Aokuso believed her side still showed up.

“We spoke about being resilient because the last two games we hadn’t been resilient for the whole four quarters,” she said after the loss.

“I’m definitely proud of the girls for pushing for four quarters.”

Adelaide’s power faded in fourth quarter against both Sydney and Townsville.

The Flames stacked on 25 points to the Lightning’s 12 in the final 10 minutes of the opening round; the collapse was worse when the Fire piled on 27 points to 10 in the last term.

Petrik warned the competition it was too early to write off Adelaide.

“They were two and zero against two very good teams,” he said.

“I really do rate Adelaide. They’ve got three WNBA players ... I think they’re elite on paper.”