Written by Greg Jeffers
WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISON
Bellarine (98) def Hume City (56)
The two teams involved in heartbreaking losses in Round 12 faced each other on Saturday night in Drysdale. Sadly, for the Broncos, once the Storm got their noses in front midway through the first quarter, the home team never looked back, performing strongly and consistently throughout Saturday night’s clash. The defensive pressure from Bellarine led to 21 Hume City turnovers, which equated to 30 fast break points. Bellarine featured 9 nine players hitting the court for 16 or more minutes, 5 of them hitting double figure points, including Georgia Varley with 13 off the bench. Strait led the way with an impressive stat line of not only 23 points @ 70%, 6 rebounds, and a couple each of assists, steals and blocks. Olivia Virt also was also strong with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. The win keeps Bellarine’s noses ahead of Bulleen for the coveted second spot on the ladder and that home advantage in the first final. It wasn’t all bad news for Hume City as they started the game strongly against a title contender, keeping in mind the Bronocs went within of Bulleen last week. The experienced group certainly have the talent to go with the top teams; which again was demonstrated in the last quarter which included an 8 point run, as one small sign. Megan Ormiston led the way with 19 points, 9 boards and 4 shot blocks, whilst Tegan Hindle finished with 13 points.
Sherbrooke (73) def McKinnon (66)
It might be still a few weeks to go but the Suns from Sherbrooke in collecting this win are back into the top 5. They’re a different group from the norm on offence at the Suns and this was demonstrated again in the matchup with McKinnon. Across the season, they shoot 20% less 3 point attempts than any of the other playoff contenders in the competition. The Suns sit top 4 in a wide range of categories including ‘Points in the Paint,’ ‘Fast Break Points,’ 2FG% and more without being dominant in any of them; but on defence, they force low percentage 2 point shots, don’t allow second chance points and points in the paint. They’re different to most of their opposition and the benefits are starting to show, as they move themselves into a playoff position. The differences in their style were evident in this matchup. For all intents and purposes. McKinnon won a lot of statistical categories and played far better than the ladder positions might indicate. They lost with a low 2FG% (28%), a lack of second chance points, which stemmed from a low number of offensive rebounds and unable to convert the 15 turnovers they forced Sherbooke to commit, into transition buckets. McKinnon started strongly through the first half, finishing at a high percentage and getting 16 of the 20 points they scored in the key, in the first half. It was this area where Sherbrooke shut things down and limited the Cougars, eventually grinding out a 7 point win. Despite Sherbrooke getting to a 16 point lead with 3 ½ minutes remaining, the Cougars made a final run, but unfortunately it wasn’t enough. Gartner and Carline controlled things for Sherbrooke in their win with 40 points between them at just over 50%, but the 36 rebounds between Carline (24) and Pal (12) demonstrated the control Sherbrooke had close to the rim. Lots of minutes were shared with the McKinnon team of eight, but it was young star Emily Maltezos with 23 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists who was the main contributor.
Sunbury (74) def Warrnambool (53)
Sometimes after claiming a big scalp, a team falters the next game, but the Jets couldn’t afford that to be the case coming up against fellow playoff contender – Warrnambool. The Jets have made a statement over the last two weeks with wins over Bulleen and now Sunbury “Don’t forget about us!” The Hildebrand combination was going to be tough in 2024 and it is starting to pay dividends, as is Veronika Mirkovic. 48 points between the three of them sets a tone for the Jets playoff run. The Mermaids are a tough combination though and have had no issues making the transition from Division 1 Champions into the Championship Division and with an 8-8 record are well in the playoff hunt still. Crichton (13 points) and Sewell (12) were strong for Warrnambool, but Sunbury clearly put efforts to restrict the number of shots that star Julia Nielacna was able to put up, and it worked. Despite tying up the last quarter, the Mermaids weren’t able to make an impact on the margin that Sunbury had set up early. The run the playoffs is on!
Bulleen (73) def Pakenham (64)
The Boomers have steadied the ship and continue to put the pressure on Bellarine for second spot on the ladder. Whilst they’re not locked in yet, things are looking almost secure for the defending champions. For Pakenham though, they’re one of the four teams competing for the 4th/5th spots and a ticket to the finals! These two teams are both in the top 3 for 3FG% at a tick over 30%. In this battle however, whilst Bulleen shot a low volume (14 attempts) they shot from the perimeter at 42%, whilst the Warriors went 6/30 – for 20%. Both these teams are known for being strong defensive units in this competition, but with differing styles. Pakenham forced turnovers from Bulleen and benefitted from transition baskets, due to their challenging of the ball carrier and the passing lanes. Bulleen however live for forcing low percentage shots in the half court, whether that be contested, and/or late in the shot clock. The Boomers achieved this against Pakenham, with the Warriors getting 31 more shot attempts across the game. Both teams have experienced point guards that organise their group well with Keli Romas and Brianna Whatman amongst the best in their role within the competition. Romas in particular shone in this one with 21 points. For Pakenham, they score by committee generally, with a broad range of scoring options, five who regularly score in double figures, but it wasn’t enough on this occasion despite Mackenzie and Nickerson leading the way.
Wyndham (75) def Camberwell (52)
The home teams got a clean sweep this weekend as ladder leaders Wyndham brought the Dragons back to earth after their victory last weekend. Wyndham are a high level outfit, taking 10 more 3 point attempts per game than anyone else, yet to do so at a higher percentage than any other team. They secure more steals per game than any other, so when faced the team with the most turnovers per game…. The writing was on the wall. In line with the seasons stats, Wyndham racked up 20 steals and Camberwell committed 29 turnovers and such the result of the game eventuated. In a strong 23 point win, it is easy to be glowing of Wyndham and negative on Camberwell, but in terms of perspective of where their season is at, there are many positives for the Dragons. The Dragons forced Wyndham to shoot only 20% from the perimeter, they scored more points in the keyway and contained a team who is strong in their transition game to only a couple in that category. Let’s not take anything away from Wyndham though, they all but secured top spot on the ladder and a week off in round 1 of the finals. With a 61-6 record from 2022-present, they rightly sit as favourties for the 2024 championship title!
