Geelong coach Chris Lucas has conceded finals are out of reach for his side, but has dodged questions about his WNBL future after the Venom suffered a crushing 94-52 loss to the Southside Melbourne Flyers.
Southside Melbourne were utterly dominant on Saturday, holding Geelong to the second-lowest number of points in the competition this season, while making bucket after bucket at the Victorian State Basketball Centre.
The loss is a huge blow for the cellar-dwelling Geelong (3-13), who are four wins behind their fourth-placed opponents with seven games left.
Having not won since November, the Venom needed to snap their eight-game losing streak, but a sea of errors (18 turnovers, 39 per cent of shots) cruelled their chances.
For the Flyers (7-8), a win moves them one victory clear of the UC Capitals on the ladder.
American Haley Peters was the spark, grabbing 19 points, seven rebounds and two steals to help Southside win the head-to-head match-up, with the Flyers claiming the past two victories in the rivals' three encounters this season.
Five other players also hit double-digit scores to guarantee the Flyers' third consecutive victory for the first time since February 2024.
"Games like this always worry me, especially when we've already won two in a row," coach Kristi Harrower said.
"That hot start set us up for the rest of the game, but it was a matter of trying to continue it and not take our foot off the gas, and I thought we were really good at that at times."
Southside Melbourne held the visitors to just six points, while Peters and Nya Lok guided the hosts to 32 points by quarter-time.
Opal Maddy Rocci piled on the baskets as Geelong continued to cough up the ball in the second quarter, and the Flyers subsequently extended their advantage to 37 points at halftime.
Having scored the least amount of points in a half by any team this season (18), Geelong produced a more spirited second 20 minutes.
But Southside young guns Indiah Bowyer and Manuela Puoch each racked up 10 points to secure the win.
The Flyers hit the road to Ballarat to take on the Bendigo Spirit on Friday 9th January. The match up is a must win for the Flyers to retain 4th spot on the WNBL ladder.
They will then return home on Sunday 11th January against the Townsville Fire in what is another must win game in the context of the Flyers season. This game will be played at State Sport Centres, Parkville at 12:30pm AEDT. Tickets are on sale now here through Intix. Flyers Members, please check your emails on how to redeem your tickets for this game.
