WBBL game posts week 4 (week ending 21st Oct)

Suns vs Hatters has to be the highlight of the weekend's fixtures, should be a good top of the table clash

Sat 20 Oct 2018 - WBBL Game Reports

Oaklands Wolves 69-83 Leicester Riders (18-21, 32-37, 50-56)

Leicester Riders have got their WBBL Championship campaign up-and-running with an 83-69 defeat of Oaklands Wolves on the road.
It’s Leicester’s first win of the season, condemning Oaklands to a fourth straight defeat, while Riders now hold five consecutive league wins over this opposition.
Leading scorers – Schluter 25, Rustamzada 14, Harrison 13 (Wolves); Winterburn 27, Elmore 16, Hayward 14 (Riders)
Turning point – Leicester led narrowly throughout much of the game, and took it when a 9-2 run over the third quarter break made their lead double-digits, Holly Winterburn opening the fourth period with a three-pointer to help the score to 61-50. There was no way back, as Riders kept the scoreboard ticking over late on.
Key stat – Riders were dominant on the inside, as they scored just four three-pointers in the game but made 22 trips to the free-throw line, scoring 17 of those for a 77% success rate.
Game hero – Holly Winterburn led the scoring for the victors with 27 points, and that included key scores late on as she hit 12 of those in the decisive fourth quarter.

Newcastle Eagles 75-68 BA London Lions (18-16, 34-31, 59-45)

Newcastle Eagles are into the WBBL Cup quarter-finals after beating BA London Lions 75-68 at Sport Central, in a strong second half display.
Eagles have now won two of the three games they have played in all competitions this season, while Lions have just one win in four.
Leading scorers – Bonenberger 16, Gandy 16, Ohrdorf 15 (Eagles); Brantlova 14, Ofomata 14, Cotton 11 (Lions)
Turning point – Eagles dominated the third quarter to break open a tight game. Kara Bonenberger scored consecutively to spark a 10-2 surge that made the score 45-36; and it was into double-figures when they held Lions scoreless for four minutes, netting 12 in a row for 57-41 with two minutes to play in the period.
Key stat – Eagles were much stronger than Lions on the interior, scoring 38 points in the paint on 45% shooting, compared to London’s 35%, with Steph Gandy scoring all 16 of her points close to the basket.
Game hero(es) – Kara Bonenberger was too much for Lions to handle as she posted a big double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds, while also drawing nine fouls and shooting 4-4 at the line. Meanwhile, Georgia Ohrdorf came from the bench for a double-double of 15 points and 10 boards in just 16 minutes.

Manchester Mystics 94-53 Essex Rebels (30-18, 58-27, 77-41)

Manchester Mystics powered into the next round of the WBBL Cup after beating Essex Rebels 94-53 at the National Basketball Performance Centre on Saturday afternoon.
Mystics won the Cup in 2016-17, and remain unbeaten in four games in all WBBL competitions so far this season.
Leading scorers – Roscoe 22, Bailey 21, Ovner 16 (Mystics); Lutz 19, Ward 14, Waithe 10 (Rebels)
Turning point – Mystics dominated from tip-to-buzzer after putting up 30 first quarter points to take an early double-digit lead, as Rheanne Bailey scored seven early points including five in a 9-0 burst that made the score 19-7. The lead was through 30 by the half on a Georgia Jones three-pointer, as Mystics held their visitors to just nine second stanza points.
Key stat – Manchester’s defence was stifling. They forced Rebels into 17 turnovers, for 19 points off turnovers, and held them to just 29% shooting from the field. Georgia Jones led the way with three steals.
Game hero(es) – All five Mystics’ starters scored in double-figures, led by 22 points and 10 rebounds from Samantha Roscoe; while Jones had 11 points and a massive 17 assists, and Bailey scored 21 with seven rebounds and six assists.

Sun 21 Oct 2018 - WBBL Game Reports

Sevenoaks Suns 75-68 BA Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters (14-14, 30-35, 52-46)

Defending their crown will not be easy this season, but last year’s league winners made another big statement by taking down Hatters – a team tipped to challenge for the title.
They beat the team that could well be their nearest challengers this season, although had to come from behind to do it – using their superior depth to get the win.
Leading scorers – Koppl 19, Carr 12, Clark 11 (Suns); Toeaina 19, Gorrell 16, Livulo 14 (Hatters)
Turning point – The visitors had the edge heading into the locker rooms at the interval. But, a terrific 13-2 burst at the start of the third period by Suns flipped the game on its head. They always held the upper hand after this.
Key stat – Suns outscored Hatters 46-28 in the paint which was a big number, whole Hatters could not get their three-pont game going and went 1 of 10 from long range.
Game hero(es) – Julia Koppl led the way with 19 points in victory, with the forward adding 6 rebounds. Ta’Yani Clark and Cat Carr were also influential with good all around displays.

Cardiff Met Archers 64-81 Oaklands Wolves (14-15,30-43,50-64)

It’s been a hugely frustrating first few weeks in the WBBL Championship for Oaklands Wolves, but things have clicked straight into place in the WBBL Cup.
Lee Ryan and his players collected a fabulous road victory in South Wales to advance to the Quarter-Finals of the competition.
Leading scorers – Shanahan 16, Jorgensen 12, Dukic 11 (Archers); Schluter 23, Boros 13, Sarson 13 (Wolves)
Turning point – Archers looked like they might give Wolves a late fright after questioning the authority of the visitors with a surge in the last period that cut the gap to 62-66 with 7 minutes remaining. But Wolves kept calm and hit the gas pedal again.
Key stat – Wolves were lethal in transition and sunk a spectacular 35 fast break points.
Game hero(es) – It was a captain’s performance from Anneke Schluter with 23 points, while Dorka Boros could barely miss after going 5 of 6 from the floor.

Durham Palatinates 63-58 Caledonia Pride (12-17,41-28, 53-45)

North-east franchise Durham Palatinates have their first league win of the season on the board after denying Caledonia Pride a border raid.
Durham’s WBBL Championship success both gets them off the mark and also meant revenge for a recent WBBL Cup loss at the hands of their Scottish opponents.
Leading scorers – MacDonald 25, Bosili 23, Tarnachowicz 9 (Palatinates); Millar 15, Weledji 14, Robb 13 (Pride)
Turning point – It was a super 10 minutes either side of the interval that gave Durham the confidence, and a healthy points cushion to push on and take that precious opening success of the season.
Key stat – Look no further than the fact that the Durham defence restricted Pride to less than 60 points and that is always going to give you a great chance of winning any game.
Game hero(es) – It was a two-punch combo of Betsy MacDonald and Monika Bosili that got it done for Durham with a super combined 48 points.

Difficult game for Eagles ... Suns are on fire at the moment

Wolves are struggling ... Easy win for Riders ?

Hatters and Mystics always do well !!

My semi predictions Suns, Riders, Hatters and Mystics

...or am I wrong ?