Rnd 3: Rockets Women outlast a gritty Panthers side

By Sam Phillips

North Adelaide Rockets 77 | South Adelaide Panthers 52

North Adelaide women ultimately prevailed over a much improved South Adelaide at Marion Stadium on Saturday night.

With many tipping a one sided affair before the match, fans would have been pleased with the hard fought contest, especially over the first three quarters.

In what was a tense opening few minutes, strong defence from both sides made shots from inside the arc difficult.

The Rockets’ pressure on the ball carrier began to show, limiting the Panthers’ ability to get good looks at the basket – shooting at 1/16 FG in the first quarter.

Sarah Elsworthy and Lauren Badenoch brought good energy, tenaciously pressing South Adelaide on each inbound pass, which helped the Rockets to a 14-4 quarter time lead.

The second quarter saw a much improved South Adelaide, with the Panthers cutting the Rockets’ lead to just 6 midway through the quarter. Madeline Cunningham continued to work tirelessly and Ieva Nagy was busy, beginning to find the form that had seen her average 21 points a game coming into the match.

Shannon McKay looked dangerous from outside the arc, hitting 2 three pointers extending the Rockets’ lead to 15 points at the main break.

Continuing the pattern for the evening, the Panthers started the third quarter brightly, driving hard to basket and drawing a number of fouls.

However, North Adelaide seemed to have the answers when pushed. Strong board work from Mader and Tarran, as well as 5 players in double figures held South Adelaide at bay.

Ultimately the scoreboard did not reflect the close battle for much of the night, with North picking up some late baskets as the heat went out of the game.

Sarah Elsworthy was arguably best afield, top scoring with 15 points (also 4 steals, 2 assists). Opal Mader with a near double-double (11 points, 9 rebounds) and Lauren Badenoch (12 points, 6 rebounds) also featured prominently for the Rockets.

For the Panthers, Maddie Cunningham provided a strong showing scoring 11 points. Ieva Nagy (9 points, 10 rebounds) and Jess Nolan (9 points, 9 rebounds) were good contributors in Souths’ best performance this season.

BLOCKBUSTER ROUND: Saturday, 9 April at Wayville

South Adelaide Panthers V Norwood Flames @ 6.30pm

North Adelaide Rockets V Southern Tigers @ 8.15pm

 




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