Eagles can take great Pride in win
NEWCASTLE Eagles WBBL celebrated their first fixture at the newly-named Vertu Motors Arena in style after accelerating to a third big win on the bounce.
Chris Bunten’s side raced clear of Caledonia Pride in the final 15 minutes to move joint-fifth in the Championship table.
A team transformed heads to old foes Sevenoaks Suns on Saturday looking every inch the play-off contender.
Newcastle tossed away two points in the corresponding clash north of the border last month after losing focus down the stretch.
That missed chance had been preying on the minds of Bunten’s side prior to a hotlyanticipated rematch on Tyneside.
From tip-off the homecourt Eagles looked like a team hungry for revenge and determined to maintain March’s winning run.
Six unanswered points from Ali Gorrell, who went on to cap another MVP display with 30 points and nine assists, opened up an 18-6 Newcastle lead.
A 12-4 tear from the Scots closed out a hugely entertaining opening quarter.
Without the outside shooting of Maud Ranger and Rose Harvey it would have been a different story for Donnie MacDonald’s side and Pride’s phenomenal shooting from downtown continued throughout the first half as Newcastle failed to plug an alarming leak. As Ranger and Harvey rained down threes it was left to Gorrell and Lowe to maintain the hosts’ decreasing advantage.
A 10-3 Pride tear reduced the deficit to three points with two minutes of the first half remaining but worse was to come.
When Ranger hit her sixth triple seconds before the half-time buzzer it was the 10th time in 20 minutes the visitors had converted from beyond the arc.
However, Newcastle captain Gorrell looked in the mood for another hefty personal haul as she finished the first half with 16 points, seven assists, four rebounds and three steals.
A strong start to the third period saw Pride draw level at 46-46 and Bunten must have feared a repeat of February’s tough loss.
However, the Scots went into yesterday’s clash on the back of an energy-sapping homecourt loss to Essex Rebels just 24 hours earlier.
Fatigue finally started to kick as the Eagles restored their double-digit lead with 10 minutes on the clock.
League MVP contender Gorrell hit her 30th point midway through the final period as Newcastle surged 75-56 ahead.
With the win in the bag, it was exhibition basketball from the hosts down the stretch – a huge Lowe pass to pick out Rachael Bland for the transition lay-up the stand-out highlight of a stirring finish.