Rampant Perth Lynx win seventh game in a row and jump to second spot as Anneli Maley celebrates 150th game

Perth Lynx have stormed into second spot on the WNBL ladder after extending their winning streak to seven games in a row during an 18-point win over Adelaide Lightning on Sunday.. But coach Ryan Petrik says they cannot afford to halt their momentum, as he tries to combine managing the workload of his stars with improving their percentage. The Lynx won 93-75 at the Perth High Performance Centre and it was the first time since the 2017-18 season where the club had won seven games in a row. Yet despite their average winning margin during that streak being 22 points, two large defeats earlier in the season means the Lynx have a percentage of 111.0 which is inferior to ladder leaders Bendigo Spirit (113.7) and third placed Townsville Fire (122.4). The WNBL previously relied on head-to-head results between teams to determine ladder positions if they were tied on wins. Petrik said the change to percentage this season meant his team couldn’t afford to relax during games. “I look at the loss column. We are on three, Townsville are on three and Bendigo are on two. We have the inferior percentage of the three of them. So technically we might be second but in theory right now we are third,” Petrik said. “We’ve got to keep winning and hopefully they start to lose. Neither of them want to lose right now. We’ve got to fix the percentage as well, while keeping our starters’ minutes as low as humanly possible. It’s a really fine line to walk.” Petrik heavily rotated his players throughout the game to keep them fresh for Sunday’s game against Canberra in the nation’s capital. Co-captain Anneli Maley was brilliant in her 150th game with 18 points, 15 rebounds, six assists and three steals from only 27 minutes on the court to continue her amazing form. Alex Ciabattoni top scored with 25 points, Amy Atwell scored 16 and Ally Wilson finished with 16 points, six rebounds and five assists. But Maley’s efforts continue to raise questions about how she was left out of the Australian Opals squad. Ciabattoni said Maley is the clear contender for a second WNBL MVP award. “Absolutely. I’m not sure I’ve seen anyone in the league getting the numbers she is getting,” Ciabattoni said. “Rebound wise, she is killing it, there’s points per game and assists per game. She’s running a bit of point-guard which is rare for her. I would be shocked if she’s not in talks for MVP but stranger things have happened. To me she has been the difference for our team. “Whatever the role is we need from her that day, she has stepped up and done it. She has been playing insane basketball.”