DANDENONG Rangers got a wake-up call on Friday night which could prove vital ahead of the WNBL play-offs.
The second-placed Rangers lost 87-75 to third-placed Adelaide Lightning at Dandenong Stadium and now hold second place by just two matches.
In this year’s WNBL play-off system the top two teams get a double chance while the third and fourth placed sides face an elimination semi-final.
But more concerning than the rising Lightning was the Rangers’ inability to control the ball and the rebound count in a physical and wildly unpredictable game which included some referees’ decisions that left both sides perplexed.
The Rangers gave up 25 turnovers to 23 from the Lighting while losing the rebound count 41-35.
Tegan Cunningham led the Rangers with 18 points while Monica Wright added 15.
Rangers coach Mark Wright was left fuming about the officiating from the match which he felt allowed the Lightning to defend his side too physically.
He also questioned the consistency of the referees and a possibly game-changing call early in the fourth quarter in which Steph Cumming was given a technical foul for staging after she fell to the floor after trying to defend Lightning centre Suzy Batkovic.
On the play Batkovic made a lay-up, then Angela Marino made two free throws which left the visitors two points ahead.
While Wright fumed about the referees, he also said the Lightning had deserved to win and had adapted to the conditions of the match better than his side.
Wright said the Rangers would come back better for the loss.
“It’s better to lose now than four weeks from now [when the play-offs start],” he said.
“They identified some weak spots in our game and we will need to address them.
“I think they came up with a lot of loose balls. Whenever a loose ball came up, Adelaide got it. For me that questions how hungry we are to win that tight loose ball. Those plays are all important.
“I think we let the officiating get to us, I think we let the frustration creep in. It did with me so I know it did with the players.
“And we didn’t finish the shots we should finish, which gave us no chance to put scoreboard pressure on them.”
The result also means the Rangers have to make sure they win the majority of their remaining matches to make sure they hold second spot.
“They are biting us right on our backsides so we need to step up and win the rest of our games,” Wright said.
The Rangers host Logan Thunder at Dandenong Stadium this Friday night at 7pm.
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