Newcastle bag a big away win over Cardiff.
WBBL Championship
Cardiff Met Archers 49-82 Newcastle Eagles (24-17, 38-29, 46-55)
Newcastle Eagles snapped a four game losing streak in all competitions after an impressive second half display saw them beat Cardiff Met Archers 82-49 on the road.
All three of those previous defeats in the league had come away from home, and the win saw them draw level with Archers in sixth place in the WBBL Championship on a record of 3-4.
Leading scorers – Tijana Dukic 21, Paulina Kutycka 10, Laura Shanahan 6 (Archers); Kara Bonenberger 26, Steph Gandy 17, Maya Price (15)
Turning point – In an amazing spell, having trailed for virtually the entire game, Eagles scored the final 15 points of the third quarter as Kara Bonenberger hit the last seven including a buzzer-beating three-pointer to make it 55-46. There was no way back for Cardiff, as the run extended to 26 in the opening minutes of the fourth period and the hosts were held scoreless for nine and a half minutes in total as Eagles outscored them 53-11 in the second half.
Key stat – Eagles dominated the glass, more than doubling Archers’ rebounds (62-29), including 19 offensive rebounds from which they scored 24 second chance points, led by eight offensive boards from Steph Gandy. They dominated the paint in general, scoring 48 points in the paint compared to their opponent’s 18.
Game hero – Kara Bonenberger put the Eagles in front for good, and she led all scorers with 26 points, shooting 62% from the field, completing a double-double with 13 rebounds and adding three assists.