Steel survive scare
The Southern Steel held off a scrappy Northern Mystics side to tighten their grip on second place in the ANZ Premiership.
Few gave the last-placed Mystics much hope of leaving Dunedin with a victory but they took the fight to their southern rivals for much of the contest.
In fact, Helene Wilson’s side out-scored the Steel in both the first and third quarters but the home team’s class shone through at the end as they surged to a 66-60 win.
Goal shoot Lenize Potgieter was a tower of strength for the Steel, nailing 49 of her 56 attempts at 88 per cent while showing great athleticism at times.
Mystics goal defence Michaela Sokolich-Beatson stood out in a beaten side and young shooter Grace Nweke continued her impressive rise, shooting 40 from 45 (89 per cent).
However, the visitors lacked the composure needed when the game was there for the taking at the start of the fourth quarter.
It was a sloppy start from both teams with a combined 21 turnovers in the first quarter.
However, there was no questioning the Mystics’ enthusiasm as they out-hustled the Steel to take a surprise one-goal advantage into the opening break.
The home team seemed to come out in third gear but they soon settled into their rhythm to take control.
As the mistakes went down and their ball movement sped up, the Steel built a six-goal lead midway through the second quarter.
The Mystics were perhaps guilty of being over-reliant on long pass, which failed to find the mark far too often. However, they refused to roll over with a late rally in the final minute reducing the halftime deficit to three goals.
The visitors carried that momentum into the start of the third quarter, capitalising on several Steel turnovers to draw level.
They frustrated the hosts into mistakes with their energetic defence, who struggled to shut down Nweke. They couldn’t sustain the fightback, though.
The Steel responded with their own mini-run to take a two-goal lead into the fourth quarter.
And on the back of their superior experience, they kept the Mystics at bay until the final whistle, winning the final period 21-17 to clinch their seventh win of the campaign.
The win was a fitting way for defender Te Huinga Selby-Rickit to celebrate her 150th match.