WBBL game posts week 23 (Week ending Mar 31st)

WBBL Game Reports - 30th Mar

Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters 94-72 Cardiff Met Archers (29-16, 47-28, 71-52)

Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters ran out comfortable 94-72 winners over Cardiff Met Archers, in front of their home fans.
The title challengers responded in the best possible fashion, after Sevenoaks Suns picked up a victory on Friday, to keep their title challenge alive and move back to within four points of the league leaders.
Leading scorers – Sarah Toeaina 36, Alison Gorrell 21, Helen Naylor 16 (Hatters) – Sarah Jorgensen 18, Sarah Wagstaff 17, Robyn Lewis 9 (Archers)
Turning point – The hosts left nothing to chance, racing out to an 18-8 lead in the game’s opening minutes. Sheffield seized the game’s momentum early and never let it go from their grasp.
Key stat – Sheffield found plenty of joy inside the paint, scoring 64 points under the basket while shooting an impressive 60% from two-point range.
Game hero(es) – Toeaina stole the show with a spectacular 36 points and nine rebounds, while Gorrell contributed 21 points, 11 rebounds and six assists for the winners. Naylor also impressed with 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists

Oaklands Wolves 63-49 Caledonia Pride (11-13, 36-24, 41-37)

Oaklands Wolves are up to sixth in the WBBL Championship table after beating Caledonia Pride 63-49 to make it six wins in their last seven league games.
Improving their record to 8-10, Wolves also took the head-to-head over Pride after a seven point reverse in the previous meeting, and Pride remain winless in the league since the turn of the year.
Leading scorers – Roya Rustamzada 13, Beth Sarson 12, Lizzy Harrison / Anneke Schluter 9 (Wolves); Alix Henderson 13, Hannah Robb 8, Pollyanna Storie 7 (Pride)
Turning point – After leading by double-digits, Wolves scored just five points in the third quarter allowing the visitors back within four. But that was corrected immediately in the fourth period as Sarson hit back-to-back three-pointers, and 10 points in total, in what became a 12-3 opening to restore the advantage at 53-40, and the hosts never looked back.
Key stat – Defence won it for Oaklands as they allowed their visitors no more than 13 points in any quarter and held them to just two field goals in nine minutes to open the decisive fourth, with this becoming the third time this season that they have held an opponent to fewer than 50 points.
Game hero(es) – Wolves spread their scoring, led by 13 points from Rustamzada; but it was Sarson who came up big when it mattered as she scored 10 of her 12 points in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter.

BA London Lions 54-65 Manchester Mystics (16-9, 22-27, 35-51)

Manchester Mystics recorded their first victory in three games with a 65-54 win on the road over BA London Lions.
The visitors strengthened their grip on the fourth spot in the standings, as Nottingham Wildcats in fifth place continue to keep the pressure on them. London remain outside the Play-Offs places having been unable to pick up points in their two games over the weekend.
Leading scorers – Urysla Cotton 15, Kristie Velasquez 14, Lavinia Da Silva 7 (Lions) – Samantha Roscoe 19, Evelyn Ovner 15, Georgia Jones 14 (Mystics)
Turning point – Having trailed at the end of the first quarter, the Mystics turned the game on its head in the second period. Manchester held the Lions to just six points in the quarter to enter half-time with a five point lead.
Key stat – Manchester were ruthless under the basket on both ends of the floor. The Mystics poured in 42 points from close range, while holding the Lions to just 18 points from the same distance.
Game hero(es) – Roscoe set the tempo for the Mystics with a game-high 19 points, alongside Ovner’s 15 points and nine rebounds.

Newcastle Eagles 96-87 Leicester Riders (26-22, 42-44, 70-69)

Newcastle Eagles scored a huge win in the WBBL Championship Play-offs race as they beat Leicester Riders 96-87, for a first win in three games.
Eagles improve to a record of 8-11 and jump above local rivals Durham Palatinates into seventh place, handing Riders a first road defeat in the league since the opening night of the season.
Leading scorers – Georgia Ohrdorf 31, Keziah Lewis 21, Steph Gandy 13 (Eagles); Brea Elmore 26, Rebecca Navarro 16, Dee Hayward 14 (Riders)
Turning point – Trailing in the first half, Newcastle posted 13 unanswered points over the half time break to lead early in the third quarter on a Lewis three-pointer. But the teams were hardly separated by more than five points all game and there were four lead changes and two ties early in the fourth until, heading into the final five minutes, an Ohrdorf ‘and one’ sparked a run of seven straight points, including consecutive scores from Lewis, to make the score 82-77, and there was no way back for the visitors.
Key stat – In a great offensive display from both teams, the differences were the 23 trips Eagles made to the free-throw line, making 20 of those, and the 17 second chance points that they scored after 13 offensive rebounds.
Game hero – Ohrdorf was the hero, with a huge double-double of 31 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 10-15 from the field and a perfect 11-11 from the free-throw line.

Nottingham Wildcats 75-64 Essex Rebels (25-13, 41-27, 49-45)

Nottingham Wildcats took another step closer to a top five finish in the WBBL Championship with a 75-64 win over Essex Rebels, at Nottingham Wildcats Arena.
The hosts stay level on points with Manchester Mystics in fourth place, but remain in fifth position in the standings having played a game more than the side above them.
Leading scorers – Chelsey Shumpert 32, Jasmine Joyner 15, Jagoda Oses 10 (Wildcats) – Jessy Ward 24, DeAngelique Waithe 22, Cat Lutz 8 (Rebels)
Turning point – Having led for much of the game, the hosts found themselves down three with five minutes remaining in the contest. A decisive 8-2 run then followed to swing the game back in Nottingham’s favour and force the away team into fouling in an attempt to stop the clock.
Key stat – Turnovers proved costly for the Rebels, as 19 turnovers by the visitors led directly to 24 crucial points for the home team.
Game hero(es) – Shumpert poured in a game-high 32 points to pace the Wildcats, while Joyner stood out on both ends of the floor – collecting 15 points, six rebounds and four blocks.

Georgia Jones (Manchester Mystics)
It was an outstanding line from the Great Britain guard as she took Mystics to a fine win against Hatters. Jones finished with 30 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks and zero turnovers in a top-class performance.

Monika Bosilj (Durham Palatinates)
The Durham captain led by example in the win home win against Nottingham with a superb double-double. The guard took down the visitors with a standout double-double of 29 points and 12 rebounds, as well as 4 steals.

Ta’Yani Clark (Sevenoaks Suns)
The quality of Clark rose to the fore in the home game against Oaklands Wolves as Sevenoaks completed a weekend win-double to move closer to the title. She recorded a superb 19 points, 14 rebounds and 6 assists.

Georgia Ohrdorf (Newcastle Eagles)
Newcastle inked one of their most impressive wins of the season as they came out on top in a thriller at the Eagles Community Arena against Riders. Ohrdorf was at the heart of the victory with an eye-popping 31 points and 10 boards.

Sarah Toeaina (Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters)
While it ultimately proved to be a bitter-sweet weekend for Hatters, the first successful part was down to Toeaina. She paced the win against Cardiff Met Archers by putting up 36 points and 9 boards – shooting 83% from the field.

Off the Bench – Chelsey Shumpert (Nottingham Wildcats), Alison Gorrell (Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters), Cat Carr (Sevenoaks Suns), Jasmine Joyner (Nottingham Wildcats), Urysla Cotton (BA London Lions), Roya Rustamzada (Oaklands Wolves), Giulia Simioni (Newcastle Eagles).