For the second week in a row the WBBL All-Star 5 is dominated by teams outside of the title race as a fascinating scrap for Play-off positioning continues, although it’s led by Shannon Hatch of Cardiff Met Archers as they had big back-to-back wins to climb up to 11th despite remaining out of post-season contention. At crunch time in the season, the team combines for the third-highest performance points total so far.
Shannon Hatch – Cardiff Met Archers
Sunday saw Archers knock-off Nottingham Wildcats on the road, as the hosts slipped out of the Play-off places, behind a captain’s performance from Hatch as she posted a huge double-double to make the All-Star 5 for a second week in a row, her only two appearances of the season. She scored a massive 33 points on 15-25 (60%) shooting, with 11 rebounds and two assists, including 16 points in the second quarter as Archers overturned an early deficit, followed by a key basket in the fourth to hold Wildcats off after they got back to within one shot.
DeAngelique Waithe – Essex Rebels
Rebels jumped up to fifth place in the WBBL Championship table with a home win over Gloucester City Queens on Saturday as Waithe makes her third All-Star 5 showing of the campaign, and second in the last five weeks. She also had a double-double, missing just twice on the inside as she shot 11-13 (84%) for 23 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, five of which were at the offensive end of the floor as eight of her team’s 18 second chance points came directly from her work on the glass. She had six points and four rebounds in a third quarter that Rebels won 24-6 to take control of the game.
Laken James – Caledonia Pride
Fresh from Bart Sengers winning Molten WBBL Coach of the Month, Pride made it eight wins in nine games with a home victory over third-placed Sheffield Hatters which leads to what is, amazingly, a first All-Star 5 appearance of the season for American star Laken James. The captain of her team, the league’s third leading scorer poured in a season-high 31 points, hitting all four of her three-point attempts and shooting 9-11 (81%) at the free-throw line, completing a double-double with 11 rebounds. That included 12 points in the second stanza as her scores book-ended a 13-2 start that put them up for good, before she beat the halftime buzzer with a triple in a big momentum play as Hatters got close.
Elle Hendershot – Durham Palatinates
Currently occupying the final Play-off spot, Durham have won six of their last eight games and beat the sixth-placed Manchester Met Mystics on the road on Saturday as Elle Hendershot goes joint-second among all players for All-Star 5 appearances, with this being her seventh of the campaign and fourth in the last five weeks during that rich vein of form. Another player with a double-double this week, she did a bit of everything with 14 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, three blocks and two steals – Hendershot is third in the WBBL in rebounds and blocks. Palatinates took charge in the third period as she scored four quick points after the break, before contributing elsewhere with five rebounds, two blocks and two assists in the last five minutes as they held their hosts off.
Hannah Robb – Leicester Riders
The fourth-placed Riders returned to winning ways after three straight defeats with a big road win in the East Midlands derby over Nottingham Wildcats, resulting in a third All-Star 5 appearance for Scotland and Great Britain international guard Hannah Robb. She finished with 21 points, six assists and six rebounds, shooting 5-7 (71%) on the inside, including 10 points in the second stanza as Riders took a double-digit lead, and then eight points in the last 11 minutes after they found themselves temporatily behind before winning the fourth quarter 27-17.
Off the bench: Helen Naylor (Sheffield Hatters), Brooklyn Pannell (Nottingham Wildcats), Oceana Hamilton (Leicester Riders), Cat Carr (Sevenoaks Suns), Kara Elderkin (Durham Palatinates), Lauren Saiki (Cardiff Met Archers), Shanice Beckford-Norton (London Lions).