By JARROD POTTER
WNBL – ROUND 16
SHAKING off fatigue from the dreaded Saturday-Sunday WNBL double header, Dandenong powered through to take back-to-back wins and also guarantee its spot in the finals.
Saturday’s showdown with finals-contender Sydney Uni was up for grabs from the jump ball as the sides exchanged the lead throughout the clash.
Sydney Uni’s nine-point margin at the main-break – bolstered by the shooting of Katie-Rae Ebzery (18 points), Tahlia Tupaea (16 points) and import Joslyn Tinkle (15 points) – could’ve broken the Rangers, but the visitors’ resolve was put to the test and stood tall in the second half.
Dandenong started to reel in the hosts as Steph Cumming (19 points) got her trademark jump shot going while Sara Blicavs (18 points, eight rebounds) started crashing the key and creating headaches for the under-sized Sydney defence.
Amazingly Dandenong turned minus-nine into plus-four by the final change as Lauren Scherf (17 points, seven rebounds) starred once again off the bench – nailing two tricky field goals to vanquish the deficit.
Blicavs proved the game-changer through the final term as she had the ball on a string. The Australian Opals’ forward plucked an o-board after her own missed three, hit the two-pointer before making a match-defining steal. Her next two shots left the Flames on the back-foot as Dandenong’s lead ballooned to eight.
From there Dandenong held tight, despite a clutch three from Flames’ Tinkle late in the clash, to take the 77-73 victory.
Off barely any sleep and a quick trip to Canberra for a match the next day, Dandenong shook off fatigue to beat back the Capitals in a 73-69 triumph, led by Annalise Pickrel (18 points), Blicavs (17 points, eight rebounds) and Cumming (14 points, seven rebounds, four assists).
“It was an absolutely exhausting weekend,” Dandenong coach Larissa Anderson said.
“Driving from Sydney to Canberra after the game – we thought it would be better than a red eye flight – so none of us got to bed until about 2am.
“Then playing against a desperate Canberra – it was a danger game; everyone is shocked that a list like that hasn’t won a game.
“The girls were absolutely exhausted and held on … so they’re certainly learning how to win close games.”
While the win secured the Rangers’ place in the final four – with only two games left in the home-and-away season – Anderson’s WNBL finals coaching debut is the last thing on her mind at the moment.
“It guarantees us a finals spot, but there’s lots of hard work to go – we can still finish first to fourth,” Anderson said.
“To be honest there’s so much work to be done – I’m very proud of the girls and knew we had an exciting group and could do special things together.
“It’s a great thing to make finals in the first year together and we won’t be happy just making finals – we want to do something great.”
Alex Bunton is also a strong chance to return to the roster after overcoming a knee injury sustained in round seven against Bendigo.
Dandenong faces Townsville away on Friday night.
