Defending WNBL champions Bulleen will host a third-straight WNBL grand final after Liz Cambage lifted the Boomers to a thrilling 73-71 major semi-final away win over minor premier Adelaide on Saturday.
Centre Cambage hit a close-range shot with two seconds remaining to ensure the Boomers, who finished second on the ladder, host the March 11 decider.
Cambage hit a game-high 29 points, ten of them in the final quarter.
The visitors led for virtually the entire game, bar a brief period in the final quarter in which Abby Bishop scored eight straight points to lift the minor premiers to a 58-55 advantage.
Bishop scored a team-high 23 points, including Adelaide’s first 13 points of the last quarter.
Her frontcourt partner Suzy Batkovic was out of sorts, making just seven out of 25 field-goal attempts to finish with 15 points, well down on her season average.
The Boomers led by six, eight and five points at the end of each of the first three quarters, but hit just one of 12 three-point attempts and missed the leadership of injured point-guard Sam Richards.
Cambage, who spent some time off the court early in the third quarter with an ankle issue, scored eight quick points in a 16-3 run that gave Bulleen a 71-61 lead with just over four minutes left.
Adelaide then went on a 10-0 run and kept Bulleen scoreless for four minutes to lock the scores up at 71-71.
The Lightning had a chance to hit the front with just over 20 seconds left, but New Zealand international Antonia Edmondson missed two free throws before Cambage had the final say.
Cambage apart, Bulleen’s only other double-digit scorer was Rachel Jarry, who tallied 15 points and ten rebounds.
Adelaide will host the preliminary final next Sunday against the winner of Sunday’s minor semi-final in which Dandenong host Townsville.