Round 10 WNBL Review | Thebigtip

Another extraordinary round has just been concluded and again we’re looking to answer some questions. Are we looking at the possibility of an Adelaide vs Sydney Grand Final? Are Dandenong the team travelling under the radar the most? Will Bendigo even survive the season (more on this later)?

 Bendigo vs Bulleen
 25 points from Rachel Jarry has helped Bulleen overcome a brave Kristi Harrower inspired Bendigo by 8 points in a Wednesday night thriller at Bendigo Stadium. After leading 19-16 at quarter-time, Jarry took over scoring 16 points in the second quarter however just when it looked like Bulleen were going to edge away, Harrower took over bringing Bendigo back into the game. Jarry went quiet after half-time but that simply allowed Elizabeth Cambage and Samantha Richards to step up and while Harrower continued to drive Bendigo, she didn’t have the help that she needed and Bulleen were able to escape with the 8 point win. Jarry top-scored for the 7-3 Bulleen Boomers with 25 points while Harrower top-scored with the same for the 5-6 Bendigo Spirit.

 3 – Rachel Jarry (Bulleen)
 2 – Kristi Harrower (Bendigo)
 1 – Elizabeth Cambage (Bulleen)

 Bendigo 68 (Kristi Harrower 25, Gabe Richards 15, Tess Madgen 8)
 Bulleen 76 (Rachel Jarry 25, Samantha Richards 20, Elizabeth Cambage 16)

 West Coast vs Logan
 A game-high 30 points from West Coast star Rohanee Cox has unfortunately failed to inspire her team as they slipped to a demoralizing 21 point loss against Logan. It was a competitive first half as Logan held an 8 point lead at half-time however the game then blew out in a 19-9 third quarter which helped Logan cruise to a comfortable win. The key difference in this match was the shooting as Logan shot at 54% compared to West Coast’s 32% but now only that, Logan enjoyed a massive dominance scoring 42 of 86 points in the paint compared to West Coast’s 10 of 65 points. Cayla Francis and Renae Camino both top scored for Logan with 18 points while a game high 30 points for Rohanee Cox wasn’t enough to help West Coast win. Logan improve to 6-4 while West Coast slump to 1-12.

3 – Rohanee Cox (West Coast)
 2 – Cayla Francis (Logan)
 1 – Renae Camino (Logan)

 West Coast 65 (Rohanee Cox 30, Melissa Marsh 13, Nikita-Lee Martin 6, Kara Hargreaves 6)
 Logan 86 (Cayla Francis 18, Renae Camino 18, Sarah Graham 14)

 Canberra vs Sydney
 A 26-14 second quarter has paved the way for Sydney to defeat Canberra by 6 points in a game that should never have been a thriller. With both teams tied at 16-16 after the first quarter, Sydney took complete control in the second quarter however then had to wear a determined Canberra fightback from 15 points down with 6:30 left in the game. Canberra managed to get the margin down to 3 points with 30 seconds left and were forced to foul however clutch free-throw shooting from Belinda Snell and Alicia Poto enabled Sydney to escape with the win. Amy Denson returned to form with 24 points for Sydney while Marianna Tolo led Canberra with 20 points. Sydney improves their record to 9-3 for the season while Canberra slip out of finals contention barring a miracle at 4-9.

 3 – Marianna Tolo (Canberra)
 2 – Amy Denson (Sydney)
 1 – Lauren King (Sydney)

 Canberra 70 (Marianna Tolo 20, Carly Wilson 16, Jessica Bibby 12)
 Sydney 76 (Amy Denson 24, Lauren King 20, Belinda Snell 16)

 Adelaide vs Logan
 Another powerful performance from Suzy Batkovic has led Adelaide to an impressive 21 point win over a fatigued Logan. Backing up from playing West Coast the previous night Logan actually opened the better of the 2 teams to take a one point lead into the quarter-time break and they managed to hold the lead until 6 minutes left in the second quarter. From there though, things went wrong and quickly. Adelaide took a 4 point lead into half-time before extending the lead to 17 late in the third quarter only to see Logan cut it to 11 at the last change. Logan sadly had no fight in them left by this stage due to fatigue and a 22-12 last quarter saw Adelaide run away with it to win by 21 points. Suzy Batkovic as always top-scored for Adelaide with 27 points and 12 rebounds as they improved their record to 10-2. As for Logan, Renae Camino was their top scorer with 24 points as they split the away double to be at 6-5 for the year.

 3 – Suzy Batkovic (Adelaide)
 2 – Renae Camino (Logan)
1 – Abby Bishop (Adelaide)

 Adelaide 88 (Suzy Batkovic 27, Angela Marino 13, Abby Bishop 12)
 Logan 67 (Renae Camino 24, Cayla Francis 12, Natalie Taylor 9)

 Bendigo vs AIS
 A third quarter drought has failed to stop Bendigo recording a comfortable 22 point victory over a plucky AIS. The students actually opened better than Bendigo however from midway through the first quarter, Bendigo took complete control of the game led by Kristi Harrower. That was, until the most extraordinary 3rd quarter that Bendigo are ever likely to see. Bendigo went scoreless for the first 5 minutes as the AIS sought to cut the 17 point half-time defecit. They got it down to 13 before Madgen scored a basket for Bendigo but they kept coming and got it down to 7 with less than a minute left in the 3rd before a couple of late baskets saw Bendigo lead by 10 at the last change. That was the end of what could’ve been an interesting contest as Bendigo then regained control of the game and ran away with it to win a lot easier than what the game suggests. Kristi Harrower continued her return to form leading the 6-6 Bendigo with 21 points while Olivia Thompson and Sara Blicavs top scored for the 1-11 AIS with 13 points each.

 3 – Kristi Harrower (Bendigo)
 2 – Deanna Smith (Bendigo)
 1 – Sara Blicavs (AIS)

 Bendigo 80 (Kristi Harrower 21, Deanna Smith 12, Tess Madgen 10)
 AIS 58 (Sara Blicavs 13, Olivia Thompson 13, Casey Samuels 10)

 Townsville vs Dandenong
 Dandenong have recorded their fourth straight with an impressive 9 point win over Townsville. The added bonus is that Dandenong claim the season split which could be important come season’s end. This game was close and competitive and it never blew out at any stage. Besides the opening salvos, Townsville couldn’t hold a lead and Dandenong held a lead despite not fully being able to put Townsville away. With 90 seconds Townsville closed the margin to within 3 however they failed to score from that point onwards as Dandenong reeled off 6 straight points to claim the win. Stephanie Cumming top-scored for Dandenong with 20 points (including 5 three-pointers) while Shanavia Dowdell had a double-double of 16 points and 13 rebounds. Dandenong improves to 8-4 and 4th spot while Townsville slip to 5th on 8-5

 3 – Shanavia Dowdell (Townsville)
 2 – Stephanie Cumming (Dandenong)
 1 – Jenna O’Hea (Dandenong)

 Townsville 64 (Shanavia Dowdell 16, Mia Newley 13, Nadeen Payne 13)
 Dandenong 73 (Stephanie Cumming 20, Jenna O’Hea 17, Kathleen McLeod 14)

Bulleen vs AIS
 Backing up from a match the previous night was always going to be tough for the students, but to back up playing the defending champions, that’s an impossible task. For a half however, there was a great deal of shock as the AIS led Bulleen 25-23 at quarter-time but despite Bulleen slowly taking control, only trailed by 6 at half-time. Sadly after half-time, the AIS fell away and suffered further embarrassment being restricted to just 4 points in the last quarter as Bulleen cantered away to a 29 point win in a game that was not as comfortable as the score suggested. Elizabeth Cambage top-scored for Bulleen with 23 points while Olivia Thompson played an outstanding game with 20 for the AIS. Bulleen improves their record to 8-3 while the AIS slump to a 1-12 record and a trip back to the wooden spoon spot on the ladder.

 3 – Elizabeth Cambage (Bulleen)
2 – Olivia Thompson (AIS)
 1 – Samantha Richards (Bulleen)

 Bulleen 89 (Elizabeth Cambage 23, Rachel Jarry 14, Samantha Richards 13, Kerryn Harrington 13)
 AIS 60 (Olivia Thompson 20, Carley Mijovic 15, Sara Blicavs 8)

 With all the results in, the ladder sits as follws

 Adelaide 10-2
 Sydney 9-3
 Bulleen 8-3
 Dandenong 8-4
 Townsville 8-5
 ------------------------------
 Logan 6-5
 Bendigo 6-6
 Canberra 4-9
 West Coast 1-12
 AIS 1-12

 The player of the year still looks like a battle for second place too with Shanavia Dowdell moving up to second after her three vote game against Dandenong

 35 – Suzy Batkovic (Adelaide)
 26 – Shanavia Dowdell (Townsville)
 24 – Belinda Snell (Sydney)
 23 – Elizabeth Cambage (Bulleen)
 21 – Marianna Tolo (Canberra)
 21 – Cayla Francis (Logan)
 20 – Rohanee Cox (West Coast)

 THE BIG STORY – BENDIGO SPIRIT FINANCIAL CRISIS

 Over the weekend it emerged that the Bendigo Spirit were being affected by financial difficulties that they were struggling to handle. These difficulties led to the decision to end Kristi Harrower’s off-field job as the Bendigo Spirit GM (General Manager) and explain the issues earlier in the season with regards to Harrower’s contract issues before the opening round.

 There are genuine fears that Bendigo may struggle to get through the season and all I can say is that this is a real shame considering how much they’ve contributed to the competition.

 In my view they need a rescue similar to Townsville at the end of last season where they had a group of investors come on board and made the necessary changes needed to enable their survival but at the present moment, I can’t see a group of investors out there for Bendigo.

What Bendigo failed to do in their inception was link with the BBA (Bendigo Basketball Association) and Bendigo Stadium Limited to help manage their costs. This has proved very costly as when local teams the Bendigo Braves and Lady Braves have a bad year, their costs get covered while the Spirit doesn’t have that luxuary.

As a concerned basketball fan, we need to have Bendigo in the WNBL and it’s up to the Bendigo community to help save the club as without them, the league will be poorer for it.

So ends the Round 10 WNBL Review