Southlands Boulevarde Willetton Tigers are the champions of the women's State Basketball League once again after defeating Australian Central East Perth Eagles in a thrilling Grand Final on Friday.

Kate Malpass' clutch field goal from near the baseline with just 4.8 seconds remaining was enough for the Tigers to win their third-straight title and crush East Perth's hopes of an inaugural championship with the 72-71 result.

Malpass' game-winning shot capped off a stellar night for her as she contributed strongly throughout, leading her side to the win with 24 points, six assists and six steals, which was enough for her to win the Grand Final MVP award.

Victory also saw Willetton set the record with its seventh title, which is one more than Perry Lakes and four more than the next highest teams - Wanneroo and the defunct Swan City Mustangs.

But the Tigers were just seconds away from being denied another win as the Eagles led by a point in the final minute after Sam Norwood's two-pointer with 46 seconds left.

East Perth forced a stop and had possession and the lead with 17 seconds remaining, but Kate Fielding couldn't inbound the ball and Malpass hit the shot to give Willetton the lead on the subsequent possession.

Norwood starred in defeat for the Eagles with 24 points, while Nicole Jorre De St Jorre (14 points) also impressed.

In front of a paid-up attendance at the WA Basketball Centre of 877 people, which was a significant improvement on last year's crowd, East Perth showed impressive energy early and jumped out to an eight-point lead within three minutes.

But Melissa Marsh provided a much-needed response for Willetton as she scored 11 points in less than three minutes to get her side back in the game. Marsh finished the quarter with 13 points and had 17 at the half, but finished with just 19.

The Eagles troubled Willetton with their pace in transition early in the quarter and that helped them take a six-point lead at the first break, thanks largely to the strong early form of Jorre De St Jorre, who had eight points at quarter time.

The reigning premiers hit back in the second quarter and looked much more like the side which dominated the competition earlier in the season as they took the lead with three minutes left in the half.

After a 16-5 run to finish the second period, the Tigers went into half-time with a five-point advantage and all the momentum, thanks largely to the hot shooting of Malpass, who hit eight of her first 12 attempts from the field to have 18 points at half-time.

Norwood also had 18 points at the break and was causing major problems for the Tigers, as she forced Zoe Harper to the bench early in the third quarter after she picked up her fourth foul.

With the Eagles' long-range shooting proving largely ineffective, Willetton was able to take advantage and its lead ballooned out to 11 three minutes into the second half.

But East Perth responded once more and took the lead after hitting the first basket of the fourth quarter.

The two sides traded blows throughout the fourth quarter, with Willetton maintaining the lead until Norwood's field goal gave the Eagles the advantage.

After Malpass gave the Tigers the lead once again, the Eagles had one last chance to win the game but Jorre De St Jorre's shot missed and Willetton held on.

Article by Jacob Kagi at the WA Basketball Centre
Photos by Helen Theoharakis (Hoop Shots) and Mick Cronin

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