WBBL game posts week 11 (Week ending Dec 23rd)

I'm heading to the Hatters v Riders game this Saturday - looks too close to call, should be a good one.

Sat 22th Dec 2018 - WBBL Game Reports

Caledonia Pride closed out 2018 with a big 31-point victory over Cardiff Met Archers.

The win now puts Caledonia just ahead of Cardiff in sixth place and will surely boost hopes heading into the New Year.
Leading Scorers – Tia Weledji 26, Shawnisay Millar 12, Hannah Robb 12 (Pride), Tijana Dukic 20, Justine Ferland 8, Sarah Wagstaff 6 (Archers)
Turning Point – Caledonia had a comfortable 10-point lead heading into the 2nd Quarter, and Cardiff recovered well in the opening minutes to bring the difference back to just four, but Caledonia then responded with a 13-2 run to push the home side back ahead heading into half-time, a lead they wouldn’t then give up for the remainder of the game.
Key Stat – Caledonia were dynamite on the fast-break during the contest, with 28 points coming on the fast-break compared to just eight for Cardiff.
Game heroes – Tia Weledji led Caledonia to victory with an impressive 26 points, and also had valuable support from 12 points each from Shawnisay Millar and Hannah Robb.

Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters 71-74 Leicester Riders (20-16, 37-36, 54-49)

A buzzer-beating winner from Brea Elmore has sent Leicester Riders to the summit of the WBBL Championship table after a 74-71 road win at title rivals Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters.
Riders have now won 10 straight games in all competitions since the opening day of the season, and hold six straight wins over Hatters after they met five times across each of the WBBL competitions last season.
Leading scorers – Sarah Toeaina 25, Luiana Livulo 15, Alison Gorrell 12 (Hatters); Holly Winterburn 22, Brea Elmore 21, Claire Paxton 11 (Riders)
Turning point – The teams were level in the league table, and they were level until the dying seconds of this game. After 14 lead changes throughout, they were tied three times in the last two minutes, meaning that it went down to the final possession as Riders emerged from a timeout and Brea Elmore hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer to win it. She had also scored consecutively to level the game approaching the final two minutes after Riders had trailed by as many as seven in the fourth quarter.
Key stat – In a hard fought game defence was key, and Riders scored 14 points from the 18 turnovers that they forced, while also holding key threats Alison Gorrell and Helen Naylor – both top ten scorers in the league – to a combined 17 points on 5-21 (24%) shooting.
Game hero – Elmore hit the big shots late on, including the buzzer-beating heroics, and she finished with 21 points, shooting 66% inside, to go with nine rebounds and six assists.

Durham Palatinates 74-82 Oaklands Wolves (26-20, 37-45, 56-65)

Oaklands Wolves ended their 2018 capturing their second WBBL Championship win.
The away victory over Durham Palatinates now moves Oaklands off the bottom of the Championship table.
Leading scorers – Betsy Macdonald 23, Hannah Ottewill-Soulsby 19, Rudiane Eduardo 13 (Palatinates), Roya Rustamzada 21, Tia Freeman 19, Lizzy Harrison 19 (Wolves)
Turning point – Durham had high hopes at the end of the first quarter, heading into the second with a six point lead, but Oaklands came out the gate hard with a 10-2 run in the opening three minutes of the second period to give them the lead and the eventual victory.
Key stat – Oaklands’ bench proved a big difference during the game, with 16 points coming from the bench.
Game heroes – Roya Rustamzada and Tia Freeman together combined for a massive 40 points, with Rustamzada also adding nine rebounds and four assists.

Manchester Mystics 70-78 Nottingham Wildcats (17-14, 39-38, 50-59)

Nottingham Wildcats have moved clear of Manchester Mystics in fourth place in the WBBL Championship after a 78-70 road win at their close rivals saw them to a 7-2 record.
Wildcats now hold four straight league wins over Mystics, who had knocked them out of the WBBL Cup earlier this campaign, while Manchester slip to a fourth straight home defeat in all competitions.
Leading scorers – Evelyn Ovner 24, Samantha Roscoe 22, Jorjah Smith 11 (Mystics); Chelsey Shumpert 26, Siobhan Prior 25, Jasmine Joyner 19 (Wildcats)
Turning point – With the teams separated by just one point in Manchester’s favour at half time, Wildcats scored nine points in a row late in the third quarter to establish a double-digit lead at 59-48 on a pair of Chelsey Shumpert free-throws, after Siobhan Prior had hit a three-pointer. There was no way back for the hosts as they couldn’t get back within five points.
Key stat – In a tight encounter, Wildcats won the battle of the boards 54-43 and their 16 offensive rebounds proved to be key as they scored 13 points from those, compared to just five second chance points for Mystics – that gap of eight points equalled the final margin.
Game hero(es) – Jasmine Joyner came close to a miraculous triple-double, finishing with 19 points, 23 rebounds and an unbelievable nine blocked shots. Teammate Chelsey Shumpert led the scoring with 26 points, and nearly had a triple-double of her own with nine rebounds and nine assists.

Essex Rebels 50-81 BA London Lions (25-25, 35-44, 43-65)

BA London Lions picked up their second WBBL Championship win on Saturday, beating Essex Rebels 81-50 on the road.
London’s win gives them a big step towards the Play-Off places, whilst Essex now sit at the foot of the table.
Leading scorers – Catherine Lutz 17, DeAngelique Waithe 13, Barbara Corominas 7 (Rebels), Loren Christie 20, Tereza Brantlova 17, Urysla Cotton 14 (Lions)
Turning point – Things were all tied up at the end of the first quarter, and it continued to be a closely tied game until about six minutes into the second period when Essex exploded on a 10-1 run putting them ahead at half-time. London would continue to hold the lead for the remainder of the game seeing them to their second Championship win.
Key stat – Rebels turned over the ball 23 times during the game, which lead to London capitalising on them with 20 points coming from turnovers.
Game hero(es) – Urysla Cotton picked up an impressive double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds whilst Loren Christie and Tereza Brantlova combined for 37 points.

Sun 23rd Dec 2018 - WBBL Game Reports

Nottingham Wildcats 60-59 Durham Palatinates (16-11, 32-27, 45-44)

It was a nail-biter, but Nottingham Wildcats continued their recent renaissance after pipping Durham Palatinates in their pre-Christmas meeting.
In the last game to be played this calendar year in the WBBL Championship, Wildcats signed off on a high with a thrilling victory – thanks mainly to some eye-bulging numbers again from Jasmine Joyner.
Leading scorers – Chelsey Shumpert 18, Jasmine Joyner 15, Siobhan Prior 8 (Wildcats); Harriet Ottewill-Soulsby 22, Monika Bosilj 15, Betsy MacDonald 13 (Palatinates)
Turning point – Durham had the chance to win the game with only a handful of seconds left but missed the shot and who else, but Joyner grabbed the rebound to make the game safe for the hosts.
Key stat – Durham gave up a staggering 26 offensive rebounds to their opponents. Meanwhile Wildcats made hard work of things after missing more than half of their 13 free-throws.
Game hero(es) – Joyner posted her second amazing performance of the weekend to make it a win double for her team. While she had a shocker shooting-wise in the first half, it didn’t stop her recording a huge double-double of 15 points and 26 rebounds, as well as five blocked shots and 3 steals.