Caledonia Pride got the WBBL Trophy underway with a home victory.
WBBL Trophy, Group Stage
Caledonia Pride 78-64 Newcastle Eagles (22-8, 37-32, 62-48)
Caledonia Pride got their WBBL Trophy campaign off to the ideal start with a 78-64 defeat of Newcastle Eagles at Oriam Arena, raising the curtain on the 2018-19 competition in the North 1 group.
The victory snapped a run of three straight defeats for Pride, which included a league loss in Newcastle, although they have now won three of their last four at home.
Leading scorers – Hannah Robb 14, Hansine Marshall 14, Tia Weledji 13 (Pride); Maya Price 19, Giulia Simioni 16, Steph Gandy 11 (Eagles)
Turning point – After dominating the early exchanges to lead 20-4, Pride were pegged back until a 12-2 third quarter burst as Hansine Marshall hit 11 points including a trio of three-pointers in the period, to see the lead reach 56-41. That was enough to hold off a late fightback, as Hannah Robb added a pair of late triples.
Key stat – In a high-intensity game both teams found it difficult to score, but Pride forced a huge 25 turnovers from which they scored 24 points, along with 17 fast break points for easier field goals.
Game hero(es) – Tia Weledji shot 60% inside for 13 points to go with eight rebounds and four assists, while Sian Phillips had a double-double of 12 points and 14 rebounds. Marshall came from the bench to be joint-leading scorer with Robb on 14, as both scored crucial long-range baskets.