4 Feb 2017 (TRO): Riders 90-66 Wolves

Erika Livermore and Alex Smith are unstoppable as Leicester Riders get back into contention in the WBBL Trophy.

WBBL Trophy, South Group
Leicester Riders 90 (21,48,66) (Livermore 36, Smith 10, Thompson 10)
Oaklands Wolves 66 (20,35,52) (Nelson 26, Harrison 10, Freeman 9)

Erika Livermore and Alex Smith combined for two of the performances of the season as Leicester Riders beat Oaklands Wolves 90-66 in an extremely tight WBBL Trophy South Group.

Riders have upped the offence in this competition, with 95 in their last game and this tally being their two highest scores of the campaign so far. That is in no small part down to Livermore, who registered 36 in this win – the joint-highest of any player so far this season – and 33 in the last one; while Alex Smith had a rare triple-double of 10 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists.

After a tight opening first quarter, in which the teams exchanged runs and Livermore scored 12 points, it was her ‘and-one’ play that helped to separate them in the second. And the score was 36-27 when Smith and Holly Winterburn added to that and Riders – the league’s best defence – held their visitors scoreless for three minutes.

The game was effectively won just before the half time break, with a rapid 12-0 burst as Harriet Swindells hit a pair of three-pointers, to make the score 48-32 just before the break. Riders were shooting 51%, with Livermore already on 26 points and 80% shooting.

Riders then came out to score the first eight points of the third quarter, holding Wolves scoreless for another four minutes; and they did the same to open the fourth period, four of those for Livermore as she went over 30 and the team’s lead went through 20 at 74-52.

This was a first home win in four games for Riders, and it puts them back into second place in this Trophy group, with group leaders Barking Abbey Crusaders to play on the road next weekend.