WNBL Round Up - Week 10 - Hoopsfix.com

WNBL Round Up – Week 10

Five games took place over the weekend, with results showing just how competitive the league has become.

Sheffield had a successful weekend beating both Team Northumbria and Loughborough Riders taking them to the top of the league table, leaving Cardiff, Nottingham and Loughborough with a joint 6-2 record.

Loughborough Riders took a 4 point win over previous league leaders Cardiff Archers, giving Cardiff their second league loss in as many weeks. Nottingham Wildcats picked up a win against Sevenoaks, whilst Manchester Magic took a road win against Barking Abbey.

Nottingham Wildcats took control of their game against Sevenoaks Suns, gaining the lead after the first quarter and maintaining it throughout the game. The home side had a 13 point lead at half time and despite a big effort in the third quarter from the Suns, the Wildcats were able to win the game 79-61.

Jennie Rodgers led the Wildcats with 16, followed by 14 points from Richie and Bicane. The games top scorer was the Sun’s Catherine Carr who dropped 18 points, followed by Green (13) and Lewis (11).

The first game of Sheffield Hatters’ double header weekend was against Team Northumbria. The first quarter was a close contest, with Team Northumbria trailing just three points. The second quarter was equally as competitive, however the home side remained on top, taking a narrow 8 point lead going into half time.

The third quarter completely was a game ender for Team Northumbria, conceding 27 points whilst converting just 11. Northumbria had a massive mountain to climb in the fourth to come back from a 24 point Sheffield lead, and despite winning the last quarter 17-15, the third quarter proved to have done too much damage and Sheffield won the game 80-58.

Helen Naylor proved unstoppable for the Hatters with 31 points, followed by Gandy with 17. Hulme led Team Northumbria with 15, with Thompson adding 14 and Lonsdale with 13.

Loughborough Riders began their weekend with a 4 point win against Cardiff Archers. The game was a close encounter throughout all four quarters, with Riders showing composure and confidence to see out the win.

The home side started strongly, however the Archers responded, picking up the intensity on both the offensive and defensive end winning the second quarter 24-15 and taking a 5 point lead going into half time. The third quarter turned out to be the game deciding quarter, with the Riders taking control on the defensive end to turn their 5 point deficit into a 5 point lead going into the fourth. The Archers produced stronger fourth quarter, however the home side were able to hold on to the lead, winning the game by 4 points.

Riders Head coach Matt Harber was impressed with his team:

“Having dropped the season opener to Cardiff we were really determined to get this one back. Cardiff weren’t at full capacity missing some of their key players, but their uptempo and aggressive style can be really tough to deal with. We didn’t cope well in the first half, but we did a much better job in the second. I think this game highlighted some key areas for us to focus on and we’re going to need to improve to continue winning.”

Bratka led the Riders with 17, with Westcott and jones both adding 15. Sarah Wagstaff led the games scorers with 22, whilst Sanchez scored 15 and Steph Collins had 12.

With Sheffield and Loughborough both taking wins on Saturday, they were eager to continue when they faced each other on Sunday. Both teams started where they left off the day before, trading baskets throughout the first half, going into half time 44-44. Loughborough came out attempting to replicate their third quarter performance against Cardiff Archers the day before, successfully taking a four point lead against the Hatters going into the fourth quarter. A turn of events in the fourth meant the Hatters went on an offensive run in which the Riders were unable to respond, the closely fought game ended in a 94-82 win for the Hatters.

Riders Coach Matt Harber commented on his team’s performance after the game:

“With it being our first league loss since our opener to Cardiff, it’s tough to swallow. Bottom line is though, that you can’t let a team score 94 points and expect to win the ball game. There were phases where we looked in control defensively, but for the most part Naylor and Gandy made plays that really we couldn’t solve. It’s disappointing to lose, but I thought on the whole we played well. For sure the fatigue following the Cardiff game was a factor and that was evident down the stretch.”

Helen Naylor continued her impressive scoring form with 28 points. Steph Gandy also ended the weekend with big numbers scoring 27. Lee added 15 in Sheffield’s second win of the weekend. Bratka had another double digit game for the Riders scoring 15 points, followed by Elliott-King (12) and Westcott (11).

Both Barking Abbey and Manchester Magic were hoping to go on a two game winning streak after both teams picked up wins last weekend. Barking Abbey started the game strongly going on a 18-3 run, however the Mystics responded and were leading the game by 2 points at half time. The Mystics continued to have the upper hand in the third quarter, increasing their first half lead to 5. Barking were unable to convert opportunities to tie the game and Manchester were able to increase their lead, winning the game by 10 points.

Mystics Coach Rob Fairley was happy with his team’s performance:

“I was really pleased to come away from Barking with a win. I was happy with the way we executed in the half court and the work rate of our guards pressuring the ball. If we can continue to build on this performance and get a few players back from injury hopefully we will strong together a few more results”

Brown top scored for the Mystics with 23, followed by Fonglyewquee (13) and Lucas (11) Mary DuroJaye Led Barking with 18 points.

Week 10 Preview

Manchester will be hoping to take their recent good performance into their game vs Nottingham Wildcats, whilst a tough contest between Cardiff Archers and Sheffield Hatters is to be expected when the teams play each other in Cardiff.

Image Credit: Matt Withers

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *