Southern Tigers (60) lost to South Adelaide Panthers (67)

A close finish at Morphett Vale Stadium on Saturday night saw the South Adelaide Panthers jump their southern rivals, the Tigers, by 7 points (60-67).
 
After a slow start, with both sides finding it hard to score early on, the Panthers found a spark through Janae Howard, as she sunk three consecutive three-pointers to give them a 21-11 lead at the first break.
 
The pace was increased significantly in the second quarter by the Panthers and the Tigers found it extremely difficult to keep up. Howard helped to push the lead out to 21 points at one stage, with the lead at half time being almost as much (20-40).
 
A spirited 11-4 run from the Tigers at the start of the third quarter helped them back into the game. With the margin only 12 points, foul trouble for the Tigers didn’t support their comeback as the Panthers were given a large number of opportunities at the line, extending the scoreline back to 16 points at the final break.
 
South Adelaide maintained a good distance as the game drew closer to the end, however with just over a minute to go the Tigers pounced, with Rutland and Bunce hitting big shots to bring the game to 5 points. With 40 seconds left it seemed as if a miracle might occur, however it wasn’t the case as the Panthers closed it out with confidence, winning 60-67.
 
Howard was the stand-out performer, sinking 27 points along with 5 rebounds, before being fouled out with just minutes left in the game. Jess Mahoney played the whole 40 minutes for 10 points and 12 assists, while Denelle Fawcett and Jade Barber were the Tigers’ only real strength, both scoring 14 points each.
 
With this win South Adelaide returned to their good form, sitting in third place, while the Southern Tigers will look to bounce back against Forestville next week, with their season currently at 2-3.

By Sam Tugwell

Top Scorers Southern
Denelle Fawcett 14
Jade Barber 14
Lauren Fisher 10
Top Scorers South Adelaide
Janae Howard 27
Jessica Mahony 10
Teresa Kinross 10