By Benito Carbone (@_DavidCarbone)

West Adelaide Bearcats 99 | Central Districts Lions 46

The West Adelaide Bearcats put on an impressive show in front of the Port Adelaide crowd, cruising past the winless Central Districts Lions to move to 7-5 on Saturday night. The Bearcats can attribute some of their success to a brilliant opening term, where they piled on an astounding 22-0 lead to begin the match. Ashlea Vordermaier top-scored for the game, with 20 points to go with her 5 steals, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Sky Langenbrinck was also lethal, with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists, while Stana Zecevic, Tahlia Fejo and Michaela Lappin also reached double-figures for the hosts. Alisha Carlin managed a double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds) for Centrals, while Demi Skinner contributed 10 points, 7 boards and 6 assists.

West were forcing turnovers at one end and making plenty of shots at the other. Tahlia Fejo (14 points, 6 steals, 5 assists, 6 rebounds) made an incredible play to prevent Carlin from dragging her side onto the scoresheet, coming out of nowhere to reject what looked to be the Lion’s first points. This dominance manifested into a 26-4 lead at the first break and there were no signs of stopping the home team. West Adelaide destroyed any idea of a Centrals comeback, with accurate shooting and fierce pressure forcing all sorts of turnovers for the travelling side. Despite a skilful turn and conversion from Demi Skinner, the half was a nightmare for Centrals fans with the score sitting at 53-17 at the break.

Coming out of the half, the Lions were unable to make amends for their poor first-half showing, as the Bearcats continued to exert their dominance over their opponents. Langenbrinck sank a clean triple after increased pressure from her Bearcats side and the hosts cruised to the final interval with a massive 52-point lead. The Centrals rallied to outscore West Adelaide in the last quarter, but the effort failed to atone for a season-high 47 turnovers throughout the match. A late hip injury to Bearcats rookie, Jasmine Fejo was the only sour note for the hosts, as the match finished 99-46, a great result for the in-form side.

West face the 7-5 Sturt Sabres in two weeks where they will be looking to consolidate fifth place and a potential finals berth. In contrast, the Lions have fallen to 0-12, with their disappointing season continuing against the Warriors in Round 13.

Round 13: Saturday, 18 June at 6.30pm
West Adelaide Bearcats v Sturt Sabres @ Pasadena
Central Districts Lions v Woodville Warriors @ St Clair