Written and provided by Southern Districts Basketball Association, hosts of the 2014 Australian U14 Girls Club Championships.
CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION
CHAMPIONSHIP POOL AA
12 noon Court 4 – Newcastle Hunters v Perry Lakes Hawks
The opening match of pool AA saw the Newcastle Hunters looking to extend the perfect start to their tournament against the Perry Lakes Hawks. As expected from two quality sides, the teams looked to push the ball early which led to a tight, entertaining and high scoring first quarter with Newcastle holding a 2 point lead at quarter time 18 to 16. Perry Lakes came out of the break on fire, reeling off 10 straight points to take control of the game and build to a 10 point half time lead. Both teams continued to commit to their defensive pressure in the second half and with both teams looking to find open players they traded baskets for much of the third quarter until a late run by Newcastle, capped by an Isabel Palmer basket to open the fourth quarter, cut the lead to just 3 and set up a thrilling final term. Not to be outdone, Perry Lakes dug deep and, after a pair of baskets from Suzi-Rose Deegan pushed the lead back to 11, the Hawks finished on top, winning 62 to 54.
Perry Lakes Hawks 62 (S Deegan 16, S Rasova 15) def Newcastle Hunters 54 (I Palmer 29, E Pinkerton 12)
6.00pm Court 1 – Perry Lakes Hawks v Canberra Capitals
In the second pool game the Perry Lakes Hawks came out with the goal of cementing their place at the top of the pool against the Canberra Capitals and started strongly, picking up the first 4 points of the match before Canberra launched a blistering fight back to overrun the Hawks defence and build an 8 point lead late in the term before the Hawks steadied to close out the quarter, leaving the Capitals with the first term honours, 13 to 9. The second quarter highlighted both teams defensive intensities and with neither team able to make a run early, it was left to the Capitals Mikala Williams, whose four straight points pushed the Canberra lead to 10. Perry Lakes fought hard in the third term but every push they made was countered by an efficient Canberra team who maintained their 10 point lead heading into the final term. A Samantha Ashby three pointer to open the fourth term for the Hawks tightened the game and set up an exciting final stanza however the Capitals were able to withstand the Hawks pressure to run our winners 43 to 37.
Canberra Capitals 43 (S Cooper 13, Z Ramshaw 12) def Perry Lakes Hawks 37 (S Ashby 11, S Deegan 9)
CHAMPIONSHIP POOL BB
12 noon Court 1 – Bulleen Boomers v West Adelaide Bearcats
Championship pool B opened with a clash between the to date unbeaten Bulleen team and the West Adelaide Bearcats. West Adelaide’s game plan early on stifled the perimeter strength of the Boomers in the first quarter while some good switching on the Bulleen screens also cut off the driving lanes giving West Adelaide the best of the early running and a slim 10 to 9 lead in the first quarter. The Boomers settled well and ran the baseline to open up mid-range options on offence enabling them to retake the lead and win the battle of the first quarter 18 to 14. Some quick defensive adjustments by Bulleen at the break however resulted in them shutting down the West Adelaide offense in the second quarter and going on a decisive 20 to nil run. Going into the third down by 20, the Bearcats worked hard to try and get back in the match but, with the shackles off their offense the Boomers kept the scoreboard ticking over and when Amber Annetta’s three pointer at the end of the third found the bottom of the net, Bulleen had pushed its lead to 30 points and ensured that their unbeaten run in the tournament would continue, ultimately recording a 75 to 31 win.
Bulleen Boomers 75 (A Annetta 11, C Motufoaki 10) def West Adelaide Bearcats 31 (Z Turner 7, three players tied with 6)
6.00pm Court 4 – West Adelaide Bearcats v Brisbane Capitals
The Brisbane Capitals opened their Championship pool campaign facing off against a West Adelaide Bearcats team that had a tough opening game against Bulleen earlier in the day. Determined not to let previous slow starts get in their way, and seeking to capitalise on the tired legs of the West Adelaide team, the Capitals bolted out of the gate scoring the game’s first 10 points. Not to be outdone, the Bearcats showed their class by re-grouping on the fly and pushing the ball back at the Brisbane team in transition which led to an immediate response on the scoreboard with a 10 to nil run of their own tying up the game late in the first. Both teams pressured the ball in the back court in the second quarter with the scored locked up on six different occasions in the term and nothing separating the teams after the first half of play had been concluded. With nothing separating the teams early in the third, it took a decisive 8 point run in the term by the Capitals, powered by 6 points from Grace Champion, that gave the Capitals breathing space and a five point lead going into the final change that they were never to relinquish, despite the best efforts of the Bearcats.
CHAMPIONSHIP POOL CC
10.30am Court 2 – Forestville Eagles v Eastern Mavericks
Defence was the order of the day in the opening match of Pool CC where Forestville was looking to continue their perfect start to the Championships. With both teams have intense, structured defensive sets scoring proved difficult on both ends with each drive to the basket being met by smothering help defence, resulting in a tight, low scoring affair in the first quarter, and the Mavericks clinging to a one point lead going into the first break. With neither team giving an inch defensively in the second quarter, the scores remained tied 14 all deep in the period until the Eagles grabbed a few points inside late to lead by a single basket going into half time 20 to 18. The third quarter showed the heart of both teams as they cranked up the intensity even further with the great rotations and help from both teams limiting scoring opportunities leaving the Eagles with a single point lead at the final break 27 to 26. A tight fourth quarter saw Forestville grab an early mini break with a 7 to 1 run setting up a 7 point break before the Eastern Mavericks struck back. A quick timeout later and two unanswered baskets from Eagles pair Gabriella Vidmar and Olivia Mcnamara pushed the Forestville lead to 9 points and gave them enough breathing room to hold off the Mavericks, maintaining their unbeaten record 41 to 32 and setting a high standard for the other Championship division teams to follow.
Forestville Eagles 41 (O Mcnamara 10, M Griffiths 7) def Eastern Mavericks 32 (K Paech 8, T Levy 7)
4.30pm Court 4 – Eastern Mavericks v Knox Raiders
Knox Raiders came into this key game against the Eastern Mavericks without having lost a game over the first few days and they were keen to continue on their winning way against a team that had played out a tough game earlier in the day. The Maverick however were primed for this match up and came out hard, shooting to an 8 to 4 lead before the Knox offense was able to steady and take a lead of their own on back to back three pointers by Tayah Kelly and Isis Lopes which the team was able to hold for the rest of the quarter going into the first change up 16 to 12. The second term featured some wonderful individual performances on both offense and defence from both teams as well as some great ball movement to find the open shooters, however the Mavericks were unable to make any headway into the lead, and Knox was able to push out to a 9 point lead by the main change. In the second half the Mavericks fought hard but were not able to slow the Knox offence and when Matilda Preston hit back to back shots to end the term, the Raiders had extended their lead to 17, effectively ending the Mavericks chances to inflict Knox’s first loss for the tournament, with the Raiders running away with a 69 to 44 victory.
Knox Raiders 69 (M Preston 17, T Kelly & I Lopes 14) v Eastern Mavericks 44 (K Schulz 10, T Levy 9)
CHAMPIONSHIP POOL DD
10.30am Court 4 – Bendigo Braves v Norths Bears
The opening game of pool DD action saw Bendigo look to take their winning form from the first round into their clash with the Norths Bears. Early on Bendigo did exactly that, opening the game with a 7 nil run before Norths were able to get into the game. Norths offense clicked into gear behind Shyla Heal who scored 18 of her teams 29 first quarter points to overrun a scrambling Braves defence and take a 29 to 17 lead into quarter time. Bendigo switched up their defence and placed additional pressure on the Bears backcourt which led to some quick-fire transition baskets to match the polished offensive performance of the Norths team. Norths were up to the task however and met every Bendigo challenge with an effective counter-punch which enabled them to build an imposing 17 point half time lead. Bendigo came out firing early in the third term which resulted in a number of quick scores, but were unable to make major inroads into the lead by the end of the term. Needing a 16 point turnaround in the fourth, Bendigo continued to fight hard and never gave up, but in the end the Bears were too strong, and their ball movement and passing under pressure too much for the Braves in this game with Norths winning this key matchup 93 to 56.
Norths Bears 93 (S Heal 31, C Gorman 13) def Bendigo Braves 56 ( D O’Toole 28, R Barkmeyer 19)
4.30pm Court 2 – Norths Bears v Dandenong Rangers
After their resounding win over the Bendigo Braves in the morning session, Norths were keen to take the scalp of another team that had yet to drop a game at these Championships in the form of a Dandenong Rangers teams who were devastating in their pool matches winning through the first stage by an average margin of about 40 points. Buoyed from their win against Bendigo, Norths started the game on a roll jumping out to an early 5 to 0 lead before the Rangers could mount an effective fight back to tie up the game at 10 all. With the Bears interior defence struggling to contain the height and mobility of the Rangers front line, the fouls started to mount, enabling Dandenong to build a 9 point lead late in the half 26 to 17 and take a buffer into the main break. Early in the second half, the Bears inside/outside passing clicked finding the open players and when Charlotte Gorman’s three pointer found the bottom of the net, the Bears had tied the score up at 26 all. With both teams extending their pressure up the court and showing great style on their offensive end, the evenly poised game gave the huge crowd one exciting play after another and with the scored tied up on no fewer than 8 occasions, it was still anyone’s game deep into the fourth term tied 40 all. With a single point separating the teams minutes out from the end of the game four quick points by Shyla Heal gave the Bears a 6 point lead, their biggest for the game and allowed the Bears to weather a late Rangers surge to hold onto an enthralling game, and cement top space in their pool, 54 to 47.
Norths Bears 54 (J Maschmedt & S Heal 15) def Dandenong Rangers 47 (L Tear Poa 17, S Lovelace 11)
SHIELD DIVISION
SHIELD POOL EE
9.00am Court 1 – Ipswich Force v Manly Warringah Sea Eagles
In the opening game of the Shield Division, the Ipswich Force took on the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in a game that promised much, and delivered in spades. The tone of this game was set early with a Manly Warringah three pointers from Riley Crawford setting the tone of the game. Ipswich immediately countered before a 7 point run gave the Sea Eagles some early breathing space at quarter time 13 to 6. The lead extended to 12 early in the second term on the back of a second three from Crawford with the Sea Eagles maintaining their lead to the half, up by 10 at the main change. After two quick scores early in the third quarter, the Sea Eagles threatened to put the game out of Ipswich’s reach, before the Force dug deep and chipped away at the lead behind some impressive free throw shooting by Neferatali Notoa which found the Force down by only 4 heading into the final quarter. With both teams desperate for a first up win, the sides did not give an inch in a very entertaining final stanza that saw the best of both sides, although Manly Warringah were able to maintain their 4 point lead throughout. With the pressure mounting and the vocal crowd cheering on the teams, Ipswich capped a great fight back with a free throw tying up game at 41 all late in the final quarter before a go ahead free throw by the Force’s Talitha Cox put the Ipswich team ahead by one. Not to be outdone, and with the seconds ticking down the Sea Eagles Olivia Edwards nailed a three point bomb to give her team a 2 point lead and what looked like a first up pool win, before the Force’s Notoa nailed a three pointer of her own after a key time out in the dying stages to hand Ipswich a thrilling 1 point win in a thoroughly entertaining contest 45 to 44.
Ipswich Force 45 (N Notoa 15, T Cox 14) def Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 44 (K Henderson 19, C Mackie 9)
3.00pm Court 2 – Manly Warringah Sea Eagles v Southern Districts Spartans
In the second of the pool EE games for the day Manly Warringah were keen to shake off the disappointment of their earlier 1 point loss to Ipswich in their matchup against the host association Spartans team. Both teams looked to set the tone on the defensive end early in this match resulting in an intense, low scoring first quarter highlighted by great rotations and team defence across the court. With both teams desperate to gain their first win of the Championship sores were hard to come by and every shot challenged by the other team, with the Sea Eagles taking a slim 6 to 4 lead into the first break. With the Sea Eagles extending to their full court press to start the second quarter Manly Warringah were able to capitalise on a number of Spartans back court errors to score 6 straight points and take a 12 to 4 lead before the Spartans were able to take advantage of some Sea Eagles fouls and score 4 free throws to get back into the game. With a last minute conversion from the charity stripe by the Sea Eagles Riley Crawford however, the Sea Eagles were to come out of the quarter on top, 15 to 10. In the third term, both teams broke the offensive shackles of the first half with a faster pace game lending itself to increased interior scoring, however the Spartans were unable to make any inroads into the lead, trailing by 7 at the final change. With the Sea Eagles sensing the game being wide open for the taking made sure of it early in the fourth with 5 unanswered points from Crawford pushing the lead to 12 and ending the Spartans chance to get back in the game despite a late fightback, leaving Manly Warringah to win their first game of the tournament 42 to 36.
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 42 (R Crawford 17, K Henderson 12) def Southern Districts Spartans 36 (N Elliott 10, M Mcnamara 7)
SHIELD POOL FF
9.00am Court 2 – Sunshine Coast Rip v NT Southern Suns
Kicking off pool FF action, the Sunshine Coast Rip took on the NT Southern Suns in a crucial match-up. Keen to avoid another tight start, the Rip extended their defence looking to harass the NT Southern guards in the backcourt early. While NT Southern did a great job of keeping their composure and passing through the pressure, the Rip cut off any real scoring opportunities for the Suns in the first quarter building a formidable 22 to 2 quarter time lead. The Suns started the second quarter positively improving their ball movement resulting in a number of shots in the paint and picking up 8 quick points, however the Rip offense was now motoring on all cylinders and with Deni Hughes scoring five unanswered points spanning the end of the first half and the start of the second, NT Southern were unable to keep in touch, leaving the Rip to register their first win of the second phase of their tournament in style 92 to 34.
Sunshine Coast Rip 92 (C Fitisemanu 20, D Obah 19) def NT Southern Suns 34 (K Turner 14, T Pon 7)
4.30pm Court 1 – NT Southern Suns v Darwin Cyclones
The battle of the two Northern Territory teams also saw both teams chasing their first win of the Championship and both teams went at each other hard. Darwin took advantage of some early foul trouble form the NT Southern Team taking an early 10 to 5 lead on the back of some excellent free throw shooting which the Cyclones held for the rest of the quarter to go into the break up 12 to 7. The second quarter proved to be decisive, with the Cyclones denying the Suns any uncontested looks and keeping their quiet on the scoreboard to extend their quarter time lead to 17 points at half time. The Cyclones kept up the defensive pressure in the third to push the lead to 34 before the Suns Timika Pon broke the drought for the NT Southern team. By then the damage had been done, and after a Mattea Breed basket late in the final term had pushed the lead to 36 points, the Cyclones were able to cruise to their first win of the tournament 67 to 22.
Darwin Cyclones 67 (A Kowcun & M Breed 14) def NT Southern Suns 22 (T Pon 7, K Turner 6)
SHIELD POOL GG
9.00am Court 4 – Willetton Tigers v Cairns Dolphins
Pool GG commenced with a clash between two offensively gifted teams who have shown a lot of offensive flair to date in the tournament. With both teams looking to strike early the teams traded baskets throughout the first term with only a single point separating them at the first change. In the second, the Dolphins skipped out to an early 9 point lead with Meaghann Pearce leading the way on both offense and defence and the team showing great poise under Willetton’s intense pressure. The Tigers didn’t give up and worked hard to reel the Cairns team back cutting the lead back to just 3 points early in the third quarter through some great team shooting by the Tigers before Cairns stabilised their game and pushed back out to a 7 point lead by the last change 44 to 37. Both teams kept working hard on offence however it was the clutch free throw shooting of the Cairns team that proved telling down the stretch and enabled them to run out winners 67 to 47.
Cairns Dolphins 67 (S Licence 16, M Sagigi 12) def Willetton Tigers 47 (S Vuleta 11, C Stothard & L Richards 9)
3.00pm Court 1 – North West Tasmania Thunder v Willetton Tigers
The final game of the pool for the day saw Willetton backing up against a North West Tasmania team still searching for their first win despite logging some impressive games against tough opponents in the previous rounds. With both teams eager for the win, the game started at break neck speed with the teams repeatedly looking for any holes in the others defence to get to the basket. With both teams trading baskets early it would be the Tigers who would emerge from a tough first quarter with a five point lead 12 to 7. The Thunder pressed hard in the second behind the play of Olivia Crawford whose four points kept the North West Tasmania in touch but still trailing the Tigers by 7 at half time. With the intensity of the game causing both coaches to rotate their benches in the third neither team were able to go on a run, however Willetton were able to extend their lead by 1 to go into the final term up 41 to 33. It would prove to be a handy lead as, despite the Thunder’s best efforts, Willetton would hold on to win the game 54 to 44.
Willetton Tigers 54 (C Stothard 14, K Ashik 11) def North West Tasmania Thunder 44 (K Steward 12, S Rayner 11)
SHIELD POOL HH
10.30am Court 1 – Tamworth Thunderbolts v Southern Tasmania Junior Chargers
The opening game of pool HH pitted the Thunderbolts against the Junior Chargers with both teams eager to get their Shield campaign off to a winning start. With the Thunderbolts eager to keep the winning feeling from the previous night, and improve their campaign record, they jumped out of the blocks early and used their height and the hustle of Miah O’Sullivan to great effect to build a 14 to 2 lead early in the game to take control from the opening tip. Southern Tasmania regrouped effectively to stem the flow of baskets but were unable to cut into the 12 point lead by the end of the quarter. In the second quarter Southern Tasmania’s Samantha Williams was impressive under the basket to keep the Junior Chargers in touch, however half time saw Tamworth extend their lead to 18 points. In the second half the Chargers players were relentless on defence to attempt to reel in the Thunderbolts, and always played as unit, but in the end the Tamworth’s consistency and passing in offense proved too great to overcome, resulting in a 47 to 22 Thunderbolts win.
Tamworth Thunderbolts 47 (J Chick 14, P Johnston 10) def Southern Tasmania Junior Chargers 22 (S Williams 10, T Stevenson 5)
3.00pm Court 4 – Southern Tasmania Junior Chargers v Rockingham Flames
Southern Tasmania tackled the Rockingham Flames in the second game of the day for them, looking to stay in touch in their pool after the morning’s loss to Tamworth and were on a mission from the tip shooting out to a quick 4 – 0 lead before the Flames were able to counter from the free throw line. The Charters did not relent however and kept peppering the Flames defence from all areas of the court, helping them to a 21 to 12 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Flames however regrouped at the break and effectively shut off the passing lanes to get back into the game and after Jesnie Cooper’s three straight points the Flames had cut the lead to a single field goal 25 to 23. A decisive 8 to 1 run early in the third gave the Junior Chargers a 10 point lead and some breathing room on the scoreboard before a mini Flames revival tightened up the game again. A second run, including 13 unanswered points in the third for Southern Tasmania would prove the turning point however, giving the Junior Chargers a 21 point lead at three quarter time and setting up their 12 point win to stay in the hunt in their pool, 69 to 57.
Southern Tasmania Junior Chargers 69 (S Williams 27, T Stevenson 20) def Rockingham Flames 57 (J Cooper 19, C Jacobs 13)
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