South Women Upset Tigers for First Win
The Panthers jumped out of the blocks early to give themselves a handy 5-point advantage at the first change, with five players hitting the scoreboard in the first period alone.
Rather than shying away from the home team’s hot start, the Tigers came out physical under the basket in the second. Forwards Stana Vecezic, Kelsie Rutland and Shayde Quintrell battled well under the basket, helping to reel the lead back in by mid-way through the second.
However South Adelaide received some welcome offensive spark from their bench. Karen Rokicinski triggered another Panther run to push the lead back out to 10 at the half, finishing off a nice steal with a basket at the other end, before Jaimie Lee Bow poured in 5 points within a minute to give the Panthers some more breathing room.
The Tigers offence appeared somewhat out of sync in the third due to the defensive pressure applied by the Panthers. Only some laborious work from Denelle Fawcett (12 points, 5 rebounds) and Rutland stopped the game from slipping away for Southern.
But again it was veteran Panther guard Rokicinski that took charge for the home team. Organising the offence and looking after the ball for most of the quarter, Rokicinski sank a pair of crucial free throws and connected on a baseline jumper to beat the buzzer, sending the home team into the three quarter time break with a real sniff of victory.
Southern threatened to spoil the party when Tayla Fawcett knocked in a big three, followed by a driving basket by sister Denelle and Shayde Quintrell to slash the lead to 4 with four minutes remaining. But the game seemed to be destined for the Panthers to win, Dani Greaves answering for the home side with a deep triple that killed off Southern’s budding momentum.
Ultimately it was South Adelaide’s balanced offensive contribution and defensive pressure that proved the difference, with all ten players that hit the court scoring at least four points.
After the match, coach Vikki Kelson described the feeling as “Relief. Relief more than anything.”
The win lifts the Panthers off the bottom of the ladder on percentage. And with a game coming up against the recently leapfrogged Central Districts in Round 18, South have a chance to finish the season with multiple wins.
Post-game interview with Vikki Kelson
By Lachlan Sellar
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