Alex Smith and Dee Hayward lead Leicester Riders to derby win.
WBBL Championship
Nottingham Wildcats 70 – 83 Leicester Riders (9-26, 32-41, 47-65)
Leicester Riders were dominant in winning the East Midlands derby 83-70 against Nottingham Wildcats, led by Alex Smith and Dee Hayward to a first ever WBBL win in Nottingham.
Riders have now won three of the last four against their local rivals, staying third in the WBBL Championship table with a 5-1 record, while condemning Wildcats to a third straight defeat as the reigning champions just about hang on to a Play-off spot.
Leading scorers – Harris 29, Haley 9, Shaw 8 (Wildcats); Smith 20, Hayward 19, McGarrachan 19 (Riders)
Turning point – Riders built their lead from the outset, scoring the first 10 points of the game, shared equally between Smith and Hayward. Those two, and Kate Oliver, added three-pointers before the first quarter was done, making the score 26-9. That gave the visitors enough to hold off their hosts, and the game was settled when they scored the last seven of the third period for 65-47.
Key stat – Riders shot a scintillating 56% from the field, including 50% three pointers (9/18). That included 8/13 (61%) from the field, and 4/6 (67%) three-pointers, in that dominant first quarter.
Game hero(es) – Alex Smith led the scoring with 20 points and seven assists, while Dee Hayward only missed one shot on her way to 19 points, adding six rebounds and five assists.