By Benito Carbone

West Adelaide Bearcats 95 | Eastern Mavericks 52

In what ended up being a one-sided encounter, the West Adelaide Bearcats outrun the Eastern Mavericks last Friday, walking away with a comfortable 43 point victory. The Bearcats were led by Sky Langenbrinck and Ashlea Vordermaier, who combined for 32 points and 15 rebounds on the night, while Brooke Basham (18 pts) was a shining light for the hosts who shot at just 23% from the field.

The Mavericks were able to match the Bearcats early as the two sides exchanged blows. The fixture was shaping to be competitive throughout until West went on a 15-2 run late in the first quarter, reaching the first break with a comfortable 13 point lead. The Bearcats took their defensive game up a notch after the break and continued their run throughout the second period. Zecevic, who finished with a double-double off the bench (15 pts, 11 rebounds) led the way for the victors, while teammate Tahlia Fejo (6 pts, 6 rebounds) drained back-to-back shots from the perimeter in a strong second quarter performance from the team. The Mavericks had no answer to the relentless pressure on both offence and defence, scoring just 4 points for the quarter. West Adelaide scored 36 going into halftime with an irrefutable 45 point lead.

Out to regain their pride, Eastern came out a much more determined side in the second half, pressuring the visitors to commit fouls and turn the ball over on a much more frequent basis. The Mount Barker side outscored their opponents 18 to 5 in the third, finishing the quarter down 42-74. The Bearcats turned it in their favour in the fourth, largely thanks to consecutive scoring plays from Lappin, who ended 14 points, 8 rebounds. Jaimi Rock who was 1-9 with 3 pointers eventually converted a shot from the arc late on for the hosts, but it was West Adelaide who would take their first points back to Port Adelaide with a substantial 52-95 victory.

The loss leaves the Mavericks at 0-2 in their opening two games and with their next fixture against the Tigers in two weeks’ time, there’s a realistic chance the side will fall to 0-3. On the other hand, the Bearcats go into the Easter break with some momentum before facing the early ladder-leaders Sturt on April 2.

Round 3: Saturday, 2 April at 6.30pm

Eastern Mavericks VS Southern Tigers at Morphett Vale

West Adelaide VS Sturt Sabres at Port Adelaide