Stars down Magic to remain unbeaten At a glance
The Stars made it three wins from three in the ANZ Premiership last night, holding on to beat the Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic 55-51 at Trustpower Arena in Tauranga.
Resurgent goal defence Anna Harrison set the tone on the first play of the game, winning a turnover that allowed Stars goal shoot Maia Wilson to open the scoring.
They looked comfortable throughout most of the game from there, only to come under the pump in the final 10 minutes, where the Magic gave them a real fright.
Ultimately, they were able to prevail by four goals, but it got a lot closer than they would have liked.
The Magic were without wing attack Grace Kara, absent injured, and began the game with regular goal defence Erena Mikaere on the bench.
But when they were trailing by five at the end of the first quarter, coach Amigene Metcalfe decided to shake things up, bringing Mikaere in and moving starting goal defence Georgia Tong forward to wing defence.
That meant starting wing
ANZ Premiership – round three
In Tauranga: Northern Stars 55 (Maia Wilson
42/52, Jamie Hume 13/21)
Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic
51 (Caitlin Bassett 21/23, Khiarna Williams 20/21, Chiara Semple
10/13)
Quarter scores: 1Q: 18-13, HT:
33-25, 3Q: 46-38
In Southland: Southern Steel 56 (George Fisher 48/52, Tiana Metuarau 8/8)
Central Pulse 52 (Aliyah Dunn
38/39, Te Amo Amaru-Tibble
14/18)
Quarter scores: 1Q: 14-10, HT:
29-22, 3Q: 39-37
Points (games played): Stars 9
(3), Steel 6 (3), Pulse 5 (3), Mystics
4 (2), Magic 4 (3), Tactix 0 (2)
defence Georgie Edgecombe moved to centre and that centre Sam Sinclair moved to wing attack, where she fared better than starter Tori Kolose.
But while the Magic improved in the second spell, the Stars were still able to extend their lead, and at halftime they were well on track to winning a third match in a row.
At the big break the Stars had only made 75 per cent of their shots, while the Magic had made 93 per cent of theirs.
The difference was in how many shots the two teams had attempted, with the Stars putting up 44 and the Magic putting up only 27.
That was because they were zipping the ball around with some serious intent thanks to wing attack Gina Crampton and centre Mila Reulelu-Buchanan.
It took the best part of two minutes for either team to score at the start of the third quarter and when they did, it was through Magic goal attack Chiara Semple, who had come off the bench in the second period to give her side a boost.
But the Magic needed more than a boost – they needed a run. Yet every time they had a sliver of an opening, the key pass would go astray, usually because it had been overcooked.
The lead hung around the eight-goal mark throughout the third quarter and that was where it remained heading into the final spell, with Harrison and Elle Temu holding strong at the back for the visitors.
It was getting close to now or never for the Magic, who had Semple and Khiarna Williams in the shooting circle, and Caitlin Bassett on the bench, while Stars coach Kiri Wills made changes in the defensive circle, bringing Oceane Maihi in first for Harrison, then for Temu.
The Magic closed within six with nine minutes to play after Temalisi Fakahokotau won a crucial turnover, then within four, then within two, and Wills brought Temu back while swapping wing defence Lisa Mather – on a warning – for Greer Sinclair.
A 7-0 run had the home crowd vocal, but it was halted when Wilson scored the Stars’ first goal in almost six minutes of action, and a turnover by the Magic on the next possession allowed them to build back their buffer.
The Magic closed within two again with just under three minutes to play, but the Stars were able to breathe easy after Temu won a final turnover.
Meanwhile, make no mistake – the Southern Steel are the real deal.
They were pushed hard by the two-time defending champions at Stadium Southland yesterday afternoon, but ultimately beat the Central Pulse 56-52.
Having opened up a nine-goal lead early in the third quarter, they made life hard for themselves by contriving to fall behind later in that spell.
But some good work by goal attack Tiana Metuarau – an offseason acquisition from the Pulse – helped them find their groove and run away down the stretch.