Kate Oliver and Brea Elmore lead Leicester Riders through overtime and into the WBBL Trophy Final.
WBBL Trophy, Semi-Final
Leicester Riders 70-65 Sevenoaks Suns (11-17, 25-35, 44-44, 59-59)
After overtime.
The defending champions are back in the WBBL Trophy Final after Leicester Riders beat Sevenoaks Suns 70-65 in an overtime thriller.
Riders have now won seven games in a row in what was a repeat of last season’s final, and will meet Durham Palatinates this time around on Sunday 10 March at Emirates Arena in Glasgow.
Leading scorers – Brea Elmore 21, Dee Hayward 14, Kate Oliver 12 (Riders); Jess Good 24, Cat Carr 12, Julia Koppl 10 (Suns)
Turning point – A Brea Elmore three-pointer gave Riders a lead with a minute to play in regulation but, fittingly between the league’s top two, overtime was forced by Julia Koppl, and she initially put Suns up in the extra period. But a Kate Oliver triple turned that around before Brea Elmore attacked the basket with 20 seconds to play to give Riders a 68-65 edge that proved to be enough.
Key stat – Riders were much more accurate from long-range, making some big three-pointers at key times. They shot 9-24 (37%) from beyond the arc, compared to Suns at 4-24 (16%).
Game hero – Brea Elmore scored a key basket late in the game and she led the scoring for the victors with 21 points, including three triples to go with seven rebounds and two assists.