Hatters & Gladiators dominate, Archers & Palatinates earn victories in exciting four-game week

Sheffield and Caledonia enjoyed major wins, while Leicester and Essex both fell for the second time this Championship campaign.

Cardiff Met Archers 48 – 45 Leicester Riders

The game week started at the Archers Arena on Saturday afternoon, with the 2-1 Leicester travelling to Wales to face a winless Cardiff team.  

Those following the Championship standings would not have been surprised by the way this one started. Scoring by committee, the Riders raced out to an early five-point lead in the opening minutes.

Midway through the first period Kiara Stewart responded at the line for Cardiff to pull the game within just two points. Leicester responded with a pair of their own from the charity stripe, but Laura Shanahan then sunk from deep to pull the Archers a single point behind.

Jenna Hoschouer made two major plays with around a minute left in the first, converting a lay-up and shooting cooly at the line, to earn Cardiff the lead. However, as the quarter drew to a close, a pair of buckets from Shahd Abboud and Katie Januszewska pushed the visitors back in front.

Stewart almost immediately tied the game for Cardiff at the start of the second quarter, before Hoschouer stepped up again with a lay-up to take the lead. Cardiff then scored eight unanswered points in a confident offensive run, creating a nine-point gap for the hosts.

Despite the efforts of Jessica Eadsforth-Yates, Leicester struggled mightily to keep up with Cardiff as the quarter developed, while Hoschouer scored steadily to ensure they went into the half-time break with an eight-point advantage.

When the game restarted, both teams went scoreless for over three minutes, as the game became incredibly cagey. Kaia Harrison opened second-half scoring to shrink the deficit to seven points and two minutes later pulled it to just three with a mid-range jumper.

Unbelievably, Cardiff scored just two points in the third period, with Leicester ramping up their effort levels on defence. However, the Riders just couldn’t take advantage on the other end, meaning that the Archers escaped the period with the three-point lead intact.

Stewart opened up the gap as the final instalment commenced, with three lay-ups in the space of three minutes. Shanahan joined in on festivities with a bucket from beyond the arc to put Cardiff up by nine points with just under seven minutes on the clock.

Eadsforth-Yates put in a valiant effort as the minutes ticked away, but with Shanahan and Hoschouer now finishing with regularity, Leicester found themselves behind by double-digits.

Leicester weren’t done just yet though. Down the stretch, the brilliant Harrison stepped up to give her team a lifeline with an impressive run of 10 unanswered points, pulling Leicester to within a single point with 30 seconds remaining.

A tense couple of offences then played out, before Hoschouer capped off a tremendous performance with a pair of clutch free throws, taking Cardiff over the line and earning their first victory of the Championship campaign.

Most Valuable Player: With zero points from the Cardiff bench, the Archers needed a star performance and they got it in the form of Jenna Hoschouer, who recorded 18 points and eight rebounds.

B. Braun Sheffield Hatters 83 – 66 Manchester Basketball

On Sunday afternoon, the Hatters welcomed Manchester to the Canon Medical Arena, with both teams leading the league with perfect 3-0 records and looking to remain unbeaten.

The visitors made a positive start, with Bride Kennedy-Hopoate sinking a jumper in the opening moments to earn Manchester their first and final lead of the game. Almost immediately, Georgia Gayle put her stamp on the game for Sheffield, scoring four consecutive points in the paint to push the Hatters ahead.

Danni Williams tied the game with a pair of converted free-throws, but back came Emma Gandini, sharpshooting from beyond the arc to reposition Sheffield on top. Laura Zolper then entered the fray, carving through the lane to score a contested lay-up to open up the gap. When Gayle made a pair at the line, the hosts earned a double-digit lead. The teams traded baskets for a few minutes and when the first quarter ended, Sheffield were ahead by 11.

Gandini put together a five-point offensive sequence that widened the gap for Vanessa Ellis’ team, before Zolper took the reins again, to add to the Manchester’s pain. Williams and Kennedy-Hopoate then combined to provide something of a response for the away team, but when Singleton made a lay-up in the final possession of the half, the Hatters remained up by 11 when the teams headed to the locker rooms.

At the restart, Manchester looked to their bench for an answer, but all they found was more questions. Krumesh Patel’s team struggled defensively, as Gayle an Gandini combined to pile on the points for Sheffield. The Hatters totally commanded the boards, outrebounding their opponents and creating second-chance opportunities with regularity.

Singleton made a turn-around jumper at the end of the third period and just like that, Sheffield found themselves ahead by 22 points.

Scoring as a team, the Hatters made a bright start to the final period. Singleton drained a pair of jump-shots with eight minutes remaining to create the biggest chasm of the contest – 26 points. Manchester offered a significant response midway through the quarter, chipping away at the deficit led by Williams, but the damage had been done.

At the final buzzer, Sheffield had secured the 17-point W, moving to 4-0 to start their season.

Most Valuable Player: Laura Zolper made an enormous impact, scoring 17 points and dishing out seven assists.

Essex Rebels 73 – 83 Durham Palatinates

Elsewhere at the Essex Sports Arena, the Rebels welcomed the Palatinates for a Sunday evening Championship clash.

The home crowd will have been encouraged by the start their team made, the Rebels scored by committee to run out to a six-point lead within the opening minutes. Minutes later however, Shanique Lucas put the Palatinates on her back, scoring seven unanswered points to earn Durham a lead of their own.

The teams traded blows for the remainder of the quarter. Tayor O’Brien earned multiple trips to the line for Essex, while Eliza Brault did the same, as neither team really took a stronghold on the contest. At the end of the first instalment, Essex led by four points.

Coming off the bench, Brault impressed as the second quarter began, combining a deep three with a pair of free throws to regain the Durham advantage. It didn’t last long though, Blazejewski and Brooke Flowers led an excellent offensive charge for three minutes, eventually earning Essex a double-digit lead.

Durham’s pushback came from Lucas for the final few minutes of the half and when she hit a mid-range jumper with 13 seconds left before the break, she reduced the gap to just three points.

After a well-earned rest, the teams returned to the hardwood and immediately got after it. Harriet Ottewill-Soulsby forced her way to the line to reduce the deficit, before Taylor O’Brien drained a shot from three-point territory to extend it again.

At the mid-point of the third, Durham suffered a frustrating spell, turning the ball over and missing makeable looks, while Essex continued to create open shots for each other, creating another sizeable lead. However, the final three minutes of the period were dominated by Durham, who saw baskets from Lucas, Ottewill-Soulsby and Brault shink the difference back to just one point.

The visitors’ momentum carried over into the fourth, as they combined to put together a 8-0 run to start the final quarter, positioning them on top by seven. Essex remained scrappy however; O’Brien, Blazejewski and Paxton hit crucial buckets and with just under seven minutes left in the fixture, the teams were level.

That however, was when the Rebel’s fortunes changed. Durham put on an impressive all-around display to fly ahead of their opponents, sharing the offensive load down the stretch and finding easy looks with regularity. When the unphased Lucas hit a pair from the line in the final minute, this one was done. Durham secured the hard-fought 10-point victory.

Most Valuable Player: Shanique Lewis impressive in every facet of the game, scoring 23 points, while also logging seven rebounds and eight assists.

Nottingham Wildcats 70 – 97 Caledonia Gladiators

The final game of the week took place at the Nottingham Wildcats Arena, where the home team were due to face the Gladiators.

Nottingham came flying out of the blocks, led by Erin Antosh who set the tone early with a string of mid-range jump shots to establish a lead for the hosts. Jiselle Havas then completed a three-point play shortly after, opening up a double-digit gap.

Caledonia responded effectively for the rest of the quarter; Hannah Robb and Erin McGarrachan teamed up for a sequence of offensive plays which clawed the visitors back into the game. McGarrachan finished in the lane as the opening period closed and the Gladiators had battled their way into a two-point lead.

Caledonia’s Kirsty Brown then exchanged buckets from close range with Antosh, as the hosts found an answer to every Gladiators make. However, McGarrachan then took the reins, widening the different to beyond double-digits midway through the second quarter. Robb cut through the paint with three minutes left in the period and just like that, the away team led by 23.

Havas earned three consecutive trips to the charity stripe and when the first half finished, the Wildcats were behind by 18.

As play resumed, Antosh lit up for Nottingham again, scoring multiple lay-ins to chip away at the deficit, but once again Caledonia found a formidable response. A pair of jumpers from Robb added to the offensive onslaught and the Gladiators remained in cruise control.

McGarrachan converted under the basket twice as the third quarter wound down and heading into the final break, Caledonia now led by 25.

The visitors put on a professional display down the stretch, scoring consistently to remain in total control of the contest. Nottingham turned the ball over 32 times throughout the game, rewarding their opponents 34 transition points from their errors and the game ended, Caledonia had earned the 27 point victory.

Most Valuable Player: Erin McGarrachan inspired her team to a major win, recording 25 points, eight rebounds and four assists along the way.