Ally Wilson has unleashed a devastating shooting display to help the Perth Lynx overcome a 13-point deficit and post an 85-81 WNBL win over the Bendigo Spirit at HoopsFest.
Bendigo started Thursday night's match at Perth's RAC Arena with a three-point barrage and looked on track for victory after opening up a 53-40 lead early in the third quarter.
But Wilson's 26-point haul on 6-of-9 shooting from the perimeter proved too much to handle for Bendigo.
Perth hit the lead when Wilson nailed her sixth long bomb of the match with two-and-a-half minutes remaining, and the Lynx came up clutch in the key moments from that point on to seal victory.
The win lifted Perth (14-4) into second spot and put them right in the thick of the race to finish first.
In a quirk, Townsville (14-4) went from second to first without even playing due to their superior percentage, with Bendigo (13-4) dropping from first to third on the back of their second straight loss.
Han Xu (14 points, 10 rebounds), Amy Atwell (13 points) and Anneli Maley (12 points, 16 rebounds) all played key roles in Perth's fightback.
"We didn't start how we wanted to start in that first half," Wilson said.
"We had a chat at half-time to change some things, and we came out and gave more energy and effort. When we play like that, we're hard to beat."
Izzy Borlase (19 points, 10 rebounds) produced a strong finish to top score for Bendigo, while Kelsey Griffin (15 points) and Kelsey Rees (15 points) combined for nine three-pointers.
Bendigo unleashed a scintillating long-range assault in the opening quarter, nailing seven of their first 10 three-point attempts to shoot out to a nine-point lead late in the quarter.
Griffin was a perfect three-of-three for the term, while Rees nailed three of her four attempts as Bendigo entered the first break with a 30-22 advantage.
Alarm bells were ringing for the Lynx when the margin blew out to 13 points midway through the second quarter.
The Lynx had scored just seven points for the quarter up until that moment, but they went on a Wilson-inspired 11-2 run to close to within four points.
Just as Perth looked set to threaten Bendigo's lead, the visitors unleashed an 8-0 run of their own to take a 52-40 advantage into half-time.
Xu was held to just five points in the first half, and she cut a frustrated figure as Bendigo's lead again swelled to 13 points in the opening moments of the third quarter.
But the 211cm star exploded with seven quick points and a block in the space of several minutes to spark Perth's fightback.
Maley joined in, with the Lynx levelling the scores late in the quarter before Rees' fifth three-pointer of the night gave Bendigo a 69-66 edge at the final break.
The last quarter was a topsy-turvy affair, with Wilson firing every time Bendigo threatened to pull away, ensuring the Lynx were close enough to run over their rivals.
