The 2020 WNBL season was the 41st season of the competition since its establishment in 1981.[1] The Canberra Capitals were the two-time defending champions, but were defeated in the semi-finals by Melbourne. The Southside Flyers won the Grand Final, defeating the Townsville Fire, 99–82.[2] The Flyers took home the franchise's fourth WNBL title overall, this being their first since rebranding as Southside.
| WNBL season | |
|---|---|
| League | Women's National Basketball League |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | 11 November 2020 – 20 December 2020 |
| Number of teams | 8 |
| TV partner(s) | ABC Fox Sports |
| Regular season | |
| Top seed | Southside Flyers |
| Season MVP | Stephanie Talbot (ADL) |
| Top scorer | Liz Cambage (STH) |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Southside Flyers |
| Runners-up | Townsville Fire |
| Finals MVP | Leilani Mitchell (STH) |
Chemist Warehouse was again the WNBL's naming rights partner for this season, after signing a three-year deal in July 2018.[3] Spalding again provided equipment including the official game ball, alongside iAthletic supplying team apparel for the fourth consecutive season.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a North Queensland hub was set to host the season.[4] The season was originally 2020–21 and would be traditionally played over several months across the summer, however this season's scheduling had been condensed. The six-week season saw Townsville, Cairns and Mackay host a 52-game regular season fixture, plus a four-game final series (2 x semi-finals, preliminary final and grand final). Each team contested 13 games starting on 11 November, with the grand final scheduled for 20 December.[5]
Player movement
Standings
| # | WNBL Championship ladder | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GP | |||||
| 1 | Southside Flyers | 11 | 2 | 84.6 | 13 | ||||
| 2 | Townsville Fire | 9 | 4 | 69.2 | 13 | ||||
| 3 | Canberra Capitals | 9 | 4 | 69.2 | 13 | ||||
| 4 | Melbourne Boomers | 9 | 4 | 69.2 | 13 | ||||
| 5 | Sydney Uni Flames | 5 | 8 | 38.5 | 13 | ||||
| 6 | Adelaide Lightning | 5 | 8 | 38.5 | 13 | ||||
| 7 | Perth Lynx | 4 | 9 | 30.8 | 13 | ||||
| 8 | Bendigo Spirit | 0 | 13 | 0.0 | 13 | ||||
Finals
| Semifinals | Preliminary final | Grand final | |||||||||||
| Southside Flyers | 106 | Southside Flyers | 99 | ||||||||||
| Townsville Fire | 93 | Townsville Fire | 82 | ||||||||||
| Townsville Fire | 65 | ||||||||||||
| Melbourne Boomers | 62 | ||||||||||||
| Canberra Capitals | 68 | ||||||||||||
| Melbourne Boomers | 78 | ||||||||||||
Statistics
Individual statistic leaders
| Category | Player | Statistic |
|---|---|---|
| Points per game | Liz Cambage (STH) | 23.6 PPG |
| Rebounds per game | Anneli Maley (SYD) | 12.1 RPG |
| Assists per game | Leilani Mitchell (STH) | 6.5 APG |
| Steals per game | Alison Schwagmeyer (SYD) | 2.2 SPG |
| Blocks per game | Liz Cambage (STH) | 1.9 BPG |
Individual game highs
| Category | Player | Statistic |
|---|---|---|
| Points | Liz Cambage (STH) | 35 |
| Rebounds | Anneli Maley (SYD) | 20 |
| Assists | Tessa Lavey (BEN) | 11 |
| Leilani Mitchell (STH) | ||
| Steals | Stephanie Talbot (ADL) | 7 |
| Blocks | Liz Cambage (STH) | 6 |
Awards
Player of the Round
| Round # | Player | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | Stephanie Talbot (ADL) | [6] |
| Round 2 | Liz Cambage (STH) | [7] |
| Round 3 | Shyla Heal (TSV) | [8] |
| Round 4 | Darcee Garbin (PER) | [9] |
| Round 5 | Lauren Mansfield (SYD) | [10] |
Team of the Round
| Round # | Team | Ref. | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | Maddison Rocci (CBR) | Tess Madgen (MEL) | Stephanie Talbot (ADL) | Cayla George (MEL) | Liz Cambage (STH) | [11] | ||||
| Round 2 | Jade Melbourne (CBR) | Shyla Heal (TSV) | Lauren Nicholson (TSV) | Lauren Scherf (SYD) | Liz Cambage (STH) (2) | [12] | ||||
| Round 3 | Shyla Heal (TSV) (2) | Stephanie Talbot (ADL) (2) | Anneli Maley (SYD) | Darcee Garbin (PER) | Liz Cambage (STH) (3) | [13] | ||||
| Round 4 | Katie Ebzery (PER) | Lauren Nicholson (TSV) (2) | Darcee Garbin (PER) (2) | Ezi Magbegor (MEL) | Liz Cambage (STH) (4) | [14] | ||||
| Round 5 | Lauren Mansfield (SYD) | Rebecca Cole (STH) | Anneli Maley (SYD) (2) | Cayla George (MEL) (2) | Zitina Aokuso (TSV) | [15] | ||||
Postseason Awards
Team captains and coaches
| Team | Captain | Coach |
|---|---|---|
| Adelaide Lightning | Stephanie Talbot | Chris Lucas |
| Bendigo Spirit | Tessa Lavey | Tracy York |
| Canberra Capitals | Kelsey Griffin / Marianna Tolo (co) | Paul Goriss |
| Melbourne Boomers | Madeleine Garrick / Cayla George (co) | Guy Molloy |
| Perth Lynx | Katie Ebzery | Ryan Petrik |
| Southside Flyers | Jenna O'Hea | Cheryl Chambers |
| Sydney Uni Flames | Lauren Mansfield / Alison Schwagmeyer (co) | Katrina Hibbert |
| Townsville Fire[17] | Gaze, Murray, Nicholson, Payne (group) | Shannon Seebohm |