'Lit a fire under us': Ciezki's 25 ends Lightning's 0-3 run

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Phoenix Mercury development player Shay Ciezki revealed Adelaide's 0-3 start only fueled the fire for the Lightning's first win of WNBL27, holding off Southside Melbourne Flyers 81-74 in Round 3 of WNBL27 at the State Basketball Centre in Melbourne on Sunday, November 1, 2026.

Ciezki, 22, poured in a WNBL career-high 25 points (7-for-12 and 11-for-11 from the foul line), scoring 11 of Adelaide's last 15 points.

"I think we just had an increase in hunger. Starting 0-3 kind of lit a fire under us a little bit," Ciezki said.

"I think confidence comes with reps. I don't think it really comes with wins and losses. It just comes with the daily work that we put in every single day.

"That's exactly what we've been doing, day in, day out. This is only the beginning for us.

"Any time the ball's going through the hoop, and you're making good decisions, confidence comes with that.

"Just getting in the gym every single day, staying together as a team, doing the things that we have to do is going to raise my confidence even more."

Lightning head coach Aja Parham-Ammar said Las Vegas Aces and Australian Opals star Steph Talbot remained on a minutes restriction after returning from the US.

"She's doing well," Parham-Ammar said.

"Look, Steph is dealing with some injuries. She's got some minutes restrictions. That can take you out of rhythm, but Steph is our captain. She's our leader. We're going to play through her.

"She's always going to make the right play, so she'll get where she needs to be."

Katherine-born Talbot, 32, had four points, three rebounds, three assists and a steal in 21:15 minutes.

"She's a great leader," Ciezki added.

"She's a great teammate, and we always say it, but she's a pro's pro.

"Just to learn from her, just to pick her brain about different things, both on and off the court -" she just has a great basketball mind. To have her on the floor and just to have her around the team is such an advantage for us.

"I'm just excited to go through the season with her."

Sam Mackinnon's Flyers were down 10 at halftime (47-37) and clawed it back to five to start the last quarter (59-54).

"I love our effort," McKinnon said.

"We keep on competing every possession. We don't give up anything easy.

"I think today is one of those games where, if you look back on it, we probably missed half a dozen layups. I thought we turned down too many open threes for tougher shots.

"So, it's just the girls having belief. But when you get wins, the confidence comes with that.

"We're right there. We're in every game. The effort's great. We've got quite a few players to come back."

What you need to know

• The Adelaide Lightning beat the Southside Melbourne Flyers 81-74 at the State Basketball Centre in Melbourne in Round 3 of WNBL27, for their first win of the season after an 0-3 start. Both clubs are now 1-3.
• Adelaide won the first quarter 27-22 and the second 20-15 to lead 47-37 at half-time. Southside won the third 17-12 to cut it to 59-54, and Adelaide won the fourth 22-20. Adelaide never trailed after the 3:37 mark of the first and led for good from 2:44.
• Shay Ciezki top-scored with 25 points on 7-from-12, going 11-from-11 at the line, with 11 of them in the fourth quarter. Tess Heal led Southside with 19 on 6-from-12, also with 11 in the fourth.
• Adelaide's 9-0 run in the second turned 29-27 into 38-27 and Tayla Brazel's three made it 41-29, the biggest lead of the game. Madison Ryan scored 11 in the third, when Southside closed to 51-50, and they got back within three as late as 77-74 with 29 seconds left, before Ciezki hit her last four free throws.
• The free-throw line decided it. Adelaide went 24-from-29 to Southside's 13-from-16, an 11-point gap in a seven-point game, and took 13 fewer shots from the field. Southside shot 3-from-23 from three to Adelaide's 5-from-17, and Adelaide turned it over 18 times to Southside's 11.

Milestones & Moments

• It is Adelaide's first win of WNBL27. Their 74 points conceded are their fewest of the season, after 95, 86 and 90.
• Adelaide's 24 made free throws are the most by any team in the 15 WNBL27 games played so far.
• Shay Ciezki's 25 points are her WNBL27 high, up from 17 against Sydney on October 18. Her 11 made free throws are the most by any player in a WNBL27 game, one more than Maddi Rocci on October 15 and Anneli Maley on October 24, and she did not miss.
• Zitina Aokuso's 15 points and 11 rebounds gave her three double-doubles in four games, and the 11 rebounds equal her WNBL27 high. She made all five of her shots from the field, and no other player in WNBL27 has made four or more without a miss.
• Aokuso played her 130th WNBL game, 20 short of 150, and moved to 719 career WNBL rebounds, 31 short of 750, and 1,227 points, 273 short of 1,500.
• Stephanie Talbot played her 230th WNBL game and moved to 2,736 career WNBL points.

Adelaide Lightning

• Shay Ciezki top-scored with 25 points, three assists and three rebounds on 7-from-12, going 11-from-11 at the line. She scored 11 of Adelaide's last 15 points.
• Zitina Aokuso had 15 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and a block on 5-from-5, going 5-from-7 at the line.
• Tayla Brazel had nine points and five rebounds on 3-from-9, including 2-from-4 from three, and her plus-nine was the equal best on the floor.
• Madeline Westbeld had nine points and nine rebounds on 4-from-14, and fouled out with 3:48 left.
• Kiara Waite scored eight in 7:33 off the bench on 3-from-5, with seven of them in the first quarter.
• Elissa Brett scored six off the bench on 2-from-3 from three, including the shot with 10 seconds left in the first that made it 27-22.
• Stephanie Talbot had four points, three rebounds, three assists and a block in 21 minutes on 1-from-3, with five turnovers.
• Jessica McDowell-White had three points and two assists off the bench in 24:35, with four turnovers, and matched Brazel's plus-nine.
• Adelaide shot 26-from-57 from the field, 5-from-17 from three and 24-from-29 at the line, with 41 rebounds, 12 assists and 18 turnovers.

Southside Melbourne

• Tess Heal top-scored with 19 points, four assists and two rebounds on 6-from-12, including 1-from-4 from three, going 6-from-6 at the line. She scored seven of Southside's last nine points.
• Madison Ryan had 16 points and five rebounds off the bench on 7-from-14, including 1-from-6 from three, with 11 of her points in the third quarter.
• Wang Siyu had 14 points, five rebounds and four assists on 6-from-13, going 0-from-4 from three, with eight of her points in the first quarter.
• Carley Ernst scored nine off the bench in 14 minutes on 4-from-10, including 1-from-5 from three, with four rebounds.
• Hannah Hank had eight points, four rebounds and three steals on 3-from-10, and fouled out with 15 seconds left.
• Haylee Andrews had four points and two assists off the bench on 2-from-4.
• Lucy Cochrane had two points, five rebounds and three blocks on 0-from-4 from the field, going 2-from-2 at the line.
• Southside shot 29-from-70 from the field, 3-from-23 from three and 13-from-16 at the line, with 34 rebounds, 17 assists and 11 turnovers.