There was a return to WBBL Championship action over the weekend and the latest All-Star 5 all come from the top five teams in the league table, led by double-doubles from Erin McGarrachan and Karly Murphy as they both appear for the second week in a row.
Erin McGarrachan – Caledonia Gladiators
British forward Erin McGarrachan makes her second consecutive All-Star 5 appearance after Caledonia Gladiators improved to 6-1 in the WBBL Championship by beating Oaklands Wolves at home on Saturday. She scored 31 points on 12-18 (66%) shooting, completing a double-double with 14 rebounds, along with three assists, two steals and two blocks as she did a bit of everything at both ends. The game was won with a 23-9 second stanza, during which Caledonia’s captain had nine points, nine boards, two blocks and two assists.
Karly Murphy – Sheffield Hatters
Joint-second in the table, Hatters are 7-1 after a good road win at Cardiff Met Archers, leading to a fourth All-Star 5 appearance in a row for American forward Karly Murphy and a seventh overall, which paces all players by some distance, four clear of anyone else. The league’s leading rebounder had yet another double-double, her eighth of the season, with 21 points and 13 rebounds, this time also nabbing five steals and contributing two assists. Hatters were down double-digits early on, before Murphy scored 10 points in a second quarter fightback as they took the lead on her score to cap a 17-2 burst, before she scored four points at the start of each of the third and fourth quarters to keep Hatters in front.
Georgia Gayle – Sheffield Hatters
Great Britain international guard Georgia Gayle led the scoring for Hatters in that win, resulting in her second All-Star 5 showing of the campaign but her first for seven weeks. She went 4-8 (50%) from the three-point line, including some important makes and a pair of ‘and-one’ plays, on her way to 26 points, along with eight rebounds and three assists, including seven points, five boards and all of her assists in that key second quarter spell, before a triple to open the fourth quarter that sparked the run to put Hatters up double-figures.
McKenzie Johnston – Leicester Riders
American guard McKenzie Johnston put on a show for the visiting Leicester Riders as they beat Newcastle Eagles in front of a WBBL record crowd of 1,303 at the Vertu Motors Arena on Friday night, improving to 7-1 in the league as she makes her third All-Star 5 appearance, joint-second among all players. She completed a triple-double of 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, shooting 4-5 (80%) inside and also nabbing three steals, as Riders won all four quarters and led by double-figures at halftime with Johnston pulling the strings with six first half dimes.
Araion Bradshaw – Sevenoaks Suns
Suns bounced back from WBBL Cup and WBBL Trophy departures with a fifth straight WBBL Championship win on the road at Nottingham Wildcats, with Araion Bradshaw also now among the five players who are joint-second in overall appearances as this is her third. She had an incredibly efficient 21 points on 8-9 (88%) shooting from the field, with seven assists and four rebounds, including seven points in an 11-0 finish that won the game after they had slipped behind having led throughout.
Off the bench: Samantha Keltos (Manchester Met Mystics), Kayla Shaw (Nottingham Wildcats), Daniela Turner (Essex Rebels), Sune Swart (Essex Rebels), Holly Winterburn (London Lions), Abbie Wolf (Caledonia Gladiators), Taylor Murray (London Lions).