Pulse dominant over Mystics
The Central Pulse put in a dominant performance against the Northern Mystics in Auckland on Sunday night, winning 60-38.
The victory sees the Yvette McCausland-Durie coached team remain undefeated in this year’s ANZ Premiership and with the season not even at the halfway point, it would seem inconceivable for them to not make the finals.
The Pulse came into this game flying high on the ladder and high on confidence, thumping the Steel 71-40 in their previous game.
The Mystics had a slow start to their campaign but had been building each week and there was a feeling inside the camp that they could take down the Pulse.
That never happened and this was a contest where the Pulse again showed they’re the team to beat this season.
The game had a free flowing start, with both teams able to move the ball quickly through the midcourt and combined the first 12 shots went in.
But towards the end of the first quarter the Pulse started to get their noses in front, with goal shoot Aliyah Dunn showing superb skill under the net and the competition leaders went into the initial break up 18-12.
At the start of the second quarter, the Mystics still hadn’t regained their shape and there were a few too many long, speculative passes.
For the Pulse however, wing attack Whitney Souness seemed to be in total sync with Dunn and Tiana Metuarau.
By halftime the biggest crowd at Trusts Arena so far this season no doubt felt the writing was on the wall for this one, as the Mystics found themselves down 31-18.
The Mystics brought on Samon Nathan at wing attack during the third quarter and Ameliaranne Ekenasio replaced Metuarau at goal at for the Pulse, but the pattern of the game continued, with the Pulse winning that quarter 16-10.
The thunder sticks remained quiet for most of the final 15-minute period, as there was too big a margin on the scoreboard for any comeback to be considered.
Katrina Grant continued to frustrate Mystics scorers Bailey Mes and Jamie Hume, while the points kept coming at the other end of court, with Dunn and Ekenasio both scoring at around 90 per cent success.
These two teams square off against each other next weekend in the second Super Sunday of the season in Christchurch and the Mystics have a lot of work to do to reverse this result. Central Pulse 60 (Aliyah Dunn 39/42, Tiana Metuarau 5/7, Ameliaranne Ekenasio 16/18). Northern Mystics 38 (Bailey Mes 19/27, Jamie Hume 19/28). Q1: 18-12; HT: 31-18; Q3: 47-28 Points (games played): Pulse 12 (6), Steel 8 (6), Tactix 7 (5), Mystics 6 (6), Stars 3 (5), Magic 3 (5).