WBBL Cup, First Round
Team Northumbria 87-65 Durham Palatinates (16-22, 38-38, 63-54)
Team Northumbria booked their place in the WBBL Cup Quarter-Finals with a battling 87-65 display to overcome local rivals Durham Palatinates.
A back-and-forth encounter early on, the visitors produced their best stretch of basketball of the season to enter half-time with the scores level.
The hosts turned up the intensity either side of half-time, however, to ensure they held a healthy advantage down the stretch. Evelyn Ovner led all scorers with 27 points for Northumbria.
Leading scorers – Ovner 27, Gorrell 23, Simioni 19 (Northumbria); Fong Lyew Quee 26, Ottewill 16, Tarnachowicz 10 (Palatinates)
Turning point –Having conceded 22 points in the opening quarter, Northumbria locked-in defensively to hold Durham to 16 points in the second quarter, 16 again in the third and just 11 in the fourth.
Key stat – Northumbria proved to be the more aggressive team on offense, attempting 18 more free-throws than Durham. The hosts connected on 20 shots from the foul line compared to only 3 from the road team.
Game hero(es) – Northumbria trio Evelyn Ovner (27 points), Alison Gorrell (23 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists) and Giulia Simioni (19 points, 11 assists) proved the difference, each finishing with an individual efficiency rating of over 30.