Jessica Relf grabbed a crucial last-gasp steal then Megan Johnson produced a three-point jump shot with six seconds left on the clock as the Newcastle Falcons sealed a gutsy 60-59 win over Canberra Capitals in NBL1 East at Newcastle Basketball Stadium on Sunday.
The nail-biting finish came just two hours before Newcastle's male counterparts also had to stave off a fast-finishing Canberra side in a 68-65 victory at Broadmeadow.
The Capitals, who lost 70-69 to Maitland in another thriller at Maitland Federation Centre on Saturday night, led 18-14 at the end of the first quarter of the women's encounter on Sunday.
But the Falcons made a strong start to the second period and were ahead by 13 at one point before holding a 35-29 advantage at half-time.
The hosts were still in control at 48-40 at three-quarter time but Canberra had moved within four points with four minutes remaining then took a 56-54 lead from the free throw line with just over two minutes remaining.
Natasha Lyle's three-point jump shot then gave the visitors a five-point lead but the Falcons scored three times from the free throw line before Johnson came up with the clutch play.
Falcons coach Chloe Mullaney credited "defensive intensity" for the win, which took them to 3-and-1 from four outings.
"It was a little bit nerve-racking," Mullaney said. "They were getting on a bit of a roll but it was good to get a win at home.
"Our defensity intensity, blocking out and working hard to stick together as a group probably led to us getting over the line."
In the men's match, the Falcons similarly prevailed in the dying stages to produce their second successive win.
The Gunners, who had beaten Maitland 88-83 on Saturday, led 16-15 at quarter-time before Newcastle took a 39-29 lead into half-time after a strong second period.
The hosts were up 52-43 heading into the final quarter but the score was locked at 63-63 before Miles Cherry (22 points, 10 rebounds, four assists) sunk a three-point jump shot with less than one minute remaining and the hosts were not headed from there.
Falcons coach Peter Astley said it was a crucial win.
"At times it was a bit patchy and we struggled to get into the flow but any time you can get a win you take that," Astley said.
"We're two-and-two now so it was pretty important. It puts us at 50 per cent and Canberra were one of the teams in the top part of the ladder so it puts us in a much stronger position than we were a couple of weeks ago."
AAP reports: Newly crowned NBL MVP Jaylen Adams produced a game-high 29 points to guide the Sydney Kings to the grand final series, courtesy of a 99-87 home win over the Illawarra Hawks on Sunday and a 2-0 semi-final series sweep.
The Tasmania JackJumpers kept their hopes of an NBL grand final series alive with a nail-biting 79-72 semi-final win over champions Melbourne United in the second best-of-three play-off in Hobart on Saturday night. A decider will be played in Melbourne on Monday.
