The UC Capitals closed out their 25/26 WNBL season on a high note, beating the Geelong Venom 76-67 in front of almost 4000 fans at the AIS Arena on Saturday afternoon.
In a match featuring the two clubs who have been most hampered by injuries through the season, the Caps managed to pull away late in the fourth quarter to secure its second straight 5th place finish. The Caps also remain undefeated against the Venom, sweeping all three games as they did last season.
Nyadiew Puoch led a balanced Caps attack with 17 points – 15 in the 2nd half – while Jade Melbourne and Zitina Aokuso had matching 10 and 11 double-doubles (Jade with points/assists, Z with points/rebounds). Jayda Clark finished with a career-high 16 points while Teige Morrell added another 10 on 5/6 shooting off the bench.
First quarter
The Caps came out firing, with Jade Melbourne scoring 6 early points. While the 3pt shot wasn’t working early for the Caps, the squad took advantage in transition and in the paint. That, combined with the Venom’s poor shooting helped the Caps open up a 19-7 lead before Elissa Brett and Jaz Shelley got going late to help the visitors close the gap 19-12 after the first 10 minutes.
Second quarter
The Caps held the Venom off for much of the first half of the second quarter, maintaining a 5-9 point lead through the efforts of Jayda Clark. But the Venom would answer back once again, with Elissa Brett delivering timely baskets. At the half the Caps would hold a slim 35-33 edge, setting up an exciting last half of the 25/26 season.
Third quarter
The third quarter was a back-and-forth affair and it was Nyadiew Puoch’s moment in the spotlight. After only managing 2 points in the first half, the young star poured in 12 (on 4/4 shooting) in the third quarter to keep the game close as Geelong threatened to pull away. For every bucket that Geelong had, Nards had a big answer straight away. Her second 3-pointer of the quarter with under 30 seconds left helped the Caps maintain a 54-53 lead heading into the last quarter.
Fourth quarter
Similar to the third quarter, the Venom took control early, threatening once again to steal this game from the Caps. This time, it was Teige Morrell who stepped up in the first half of the quarter for the Caps, delivering 6 points to keep the game close. From there Jayda Clark continued her career game with a go-ahead triple with 4 minutes left to give the Caps the lead for good. She would follow it up with one of her patented floaters a few minutes later, before Nyadiew Puoch took the wind out of the Venom’s sails with her third triple of the match to give the Caps a 74-67 lead with under 2 minutes to go.
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