Faced with the daunting prospect of taking on ladder-leaders Maitland and Newcastle in quick succession, the Blaze rose to the occasion, registering two convincing wins and leapfrogging arch-rivals Shoalhaven into third place. 

US import Shakera Barnes produced her finest basketball since arriving at the club, topping the scorers’ list during both games with a 24-point haul against Maitland before stunning the Hunters with a 32-point match in Newcastle.

Barnes set the tone for the Blaze in their opening game against the Mustangs, bagging 12 points in the first quarter to silence the locals at Maitland Federation Centre.

The early blitz saw Wagga lead their opponents from start to finish with Khiani Clark and Maddison Clyne dominant in attack.

Clyne was particularly strong in the final quarter at Maitland, shooting with precision to cap a 19-point haul for the match, while Clark was impressive in a 15-point game.

The Blaze ran out 81-52 winners on Saturday night and it was a similar story less than 18 hours later at Newcastle Basketball Stadium as the side turned it on with an emphatic 73-43 win over the Hunters.

Barnes again stole the early limelight, running riot with an 18-point quarter to steer Wagga to a four-point lead at the first break.

Jemma Clifford and Grace Kibble broke the game open for Newcastle in the second term and kept the margin tight before Jess Sommerville gave the Blaze some breathing room with a pair of late buckets to stretch the half time buffer to 7 points.

The second half was all one-way traffic as Barnes and Clark piled on points with reckless abandon, blowing Wagga’s lead out to 19 points at the final break before stepping up a notch in the fourth quarter to run out 30-point victors.

Blaze coach Peter O’Leary was thrilled with his side’s success on the road.

“The girls were very impressive over the weekend, especially in the Maitland game,” O’Leary said.

“Everyone did really well in their positions both in attack and defence, but Shakera certainly nailed the points up front for us.

“She did a great job in both games, so full credit to her, and I think she’s getting better and better each week.”

The Blaze are now guaranteed a finals berth ahead of the final regular season clash with Goulburn on July 28 at Bolton Park Sports Stadium. 

“We’ll still go into that game with everything,” O’Leary said.

“The game’s for pride and we won’t cop being beaten by them twice after last week’s performance.”