The Newcastle Eagles and Leicester Riders secured wins on the road, while it was home comforts for Caledonia Gladiators and Essex Rebels in a four-game Betty Codona Trophy slate this weekend.
Manchester Basketball 68-79 Newcastle Eagles
Newcastle Eagles inflicted a third loss of the season on Manchester Basketball as a double-double from Andrea Daley gave the Tyneside outfit a 79-68 success at Belle Vue.
Daley had a double-double of 22 points and 14 rebounds in the win, helped by 18 points and nine boards from Maria Mongomo.
Despite the win, it wasn’t all plain sailing as the Eagles had to come from behind to seal their victory, fighting back impressively from a 44-29 half-time deficit to hold their north-west counterparts to just eight third-quarter points.
Still trailing 52-50 heading into the fourth, Newcastle eventually took the lead at 60-59 through a score from Alyssa Marin, midway through the final period and from there, they never relinquished their advantage.
Player of the Game: Andrea Daley (Newcastle Eagles)
Caledonia Gladiators 84-57 Nottingham Wildcats
Caledonia Gladiators ran riot in the third quarter to take care of the Nottingham Wildcats at PlaySport.
Anastasia Warren led a balanced scoring attack from the Gladiators with 25 points, helped by 20 from Brynn Masikewich as the hosts outscored the Wildcats 21-7 in the third to push clear and seal an 84-57 victory.
Defending Trophy Finals MVP Mathilde Domenger was also instrumental for the hosts as she tallied 13 points, six assists and a massive seven steals – only two less than the entire Wildcats roster managed in total – as she helped Head Coach Chantelle Handy’s side secure another win.
Emma Nolan had 14 for Nottingham as they fell to their second straight loss, with Shaniya Rose’s 12 points off the bench signifiying the only other Wildcat to score in double-figures on the night.
Player of the Game: Anastasia Warren (Caledonia Gladiators)
Cardiff Met Archers 40-94 Leicester Riders
Leicester Riders got their season off to a perfect start with a resounding 94-40 win over Cardiff Met Archers on the road in South Wales.
The Riders raced out to an early 23-6 lead and never looked back as they were able to muster 30 points from 28 Cardiff turnovers. The result signified a first win of the season for Leicester in their opening encounter, but a second defeat of the Betty Codona Trophy for Cardiff.
Brooke Bigott paced the Riders with 22 points, eight rebounds and six assists, whilst Katie Januszewska was a rebound shy of a double-double with 20 points and nine boards. Kian Omer Jones was also imperious on her Leicester debut with 17 points and 14 rebounds, as well as shooting an incredible 50% from the perimeter (5 makes from 10 attempts).
The Archers roster remains heavily depleted by injuries, however Sheridan Flauger and Sarah Wagstaff made the biggest impact for Head Coach Stef Day’s side as they notched 12 and 11 points respectively.
Player of the Game: Brooke Bigott (Leicester Riders)
Essex Rebels 81-50 London Lions
Essex Rebels ruthlessly dismissed the London Lions as Natalie Chou starred in the 81-50 success in Colchester.
The hosts led for the majority as they handed the Lions their first loss of the season, with Chou leading the Rebels with 23 points and five rebounds. Essex won every quarter of the encounter in their first outing of the campaign, slowing the Lions who came into the game following a strong opening weekend last time out where they bested Cardiff and gave Oaklands Wolves a challenge on the road.
As Lions Head Coach Kyla Nelson’s young roster continues to adjust, road experiences like this and their last battle against the defending Championship winners of Oaklands will be invaluable learning opportunities as the group grows throughout the season. A bright spark in this encounter for London will doubtless be Jada Lewis, who led the team with 15 points.
Player of the Game: Natalie Chou (Essex Rebels)
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