By Hayley Wildes
The Dandenong Rangers’ new-look roster has got off to the perfect in season 2018/19 of the WNBL.
Taking on Townsville – the defending Champions – on the road is one of the toughest road trips in the league, but the Rangers showed resilience and mounted a second half comeback to win their season-opener.
The Rangers struggled to contain Fire superstar Suzy Batkovic early as she put up 13 points in the first quarter alone, helping the Fire to a 25-19 lead after one quarter. Import Betnijah Laney was looking ominous early and that trend would continue as the game progressed.
Despite losing the second quarter 17-16, Dandenong had begun to find their footing in the game as the likes of Bec Cole, Rachel Jarry and Tessa Lavey got busy.
A seven-point half time deficit required a lift from the Rangers and it was their defence that provided just that. Restricting the Fire to just six points in the first 7:40 of the second half had the Rangers right back in the contest.
With their defence forcing the Fire into tough shots, the Rangers were able to get out and run with the likes of Cole and Lavey firing on offence.
Kiera Rowe and Carley Mijovic hit triples in the final minute of the third quarter to see the Rangers boast a 58-55 lead, courtesy of a 23-13 quarter, with one term to play.
Having kept Batkovic in check for the middle two quarters, she came to fore early in the fourth with two quick buckets and when Micaela Cocks scored a lay-up after three minutes, the Fire had re-taken the lead, 63-61.
Laney and Cole ensured the Rangers wouldn’t go down without a fight though as Laney drained a lay-up, before assisting on a Cole lay-up to see the Rangers wrestle back the lead and the momentum halfway through the final quarter.
Holding onto a one-point lead with 3:35 on the clock, free throws down the stretch from Cole, Laney and Jarry, along with holding the Fire scoreless in those final three-and-a-half minutes, saw the Rangers claim a fantastic road win, 73-68.
After giving up 25 first-quarter points, Rangers defence turned the game around as they restricted the Fire to just 26 points in the second half.
Tessa Lavey started her season on a tear with 13 points (three triples), 5 assists and 4 rebounds, while new recruits Bec Cole (18 points and 7 rebounds), Betnijah Laney (16 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists) and Rachel Jarry (11 points and 7 rebounds) were all sublime.
When the Rangers were really challenged and required something special, it was the contributions from across the board that would most excite coach Larissa Anderson.
With one win under their belt, the Rangers return to action this Friday night in what will be a massive home-opener against the Sydney Uni Flames. Tip-off is from 6:30pm at Dandenong Stadium. The Rangers will then have to quickly turn their attention to the Bendigo Spirit, who they face a day later in Bendigo.
