NBL1 North Women’s Championship Series preview: Southern Districts Spartans v Logan Thunder

When: Friday September 10- Sunday September 12  

Where: Rowland Cowan Stadium  

Broadcast: Kayo Freebies, NBL1.com.au and the NBL App  

Last time they met: Logan (77) defeated by Southern Districts (89)  

Spartans top scorers: M. Rocci- 21 points, M. Willey- 21 points, N. Payne- 20 points  

Thunder top scorers: M. Cann- 18 points, M. Ruef- 14 points, C. Paalvast- 13 points  

How they got here:  

Southern Districts  

Elimination Final: Southern Districts (108) defeated Northside (83)  

Top scorers: M. Willey- 22 points, M. Rocci- 21 points, N.Payne- 18 points  

Semi Final: Southern Districts (87) defeated Mackay (69)  

Top scorers: M. Rocci- 29 points, M. Willey- 20 points, N. Taylor- 12 points  

Logan  

Elimination Final: Logan (87) defeated Brisbane (29)  

Top scorers: C. Carroll- 17 points, M. Ruef- 16 points, C. Drennan- 14 points  

Semi Final: Logan (68) defeated Townsville (55)  

Top scorers: M. Ruef- 21 points, C. Paalvast- 19 points, A. Taia- 11 points  

The stats:  

Southern Districts  

Ladder position: 1st  

Win-loss record: 12-0 

Percentage: 159% 

Leading scorer: Nadeen Payne- 18.1 points per game  

Leading rebounder: Kalani Purcell- 9.6 rebounds per game  

Leading assist-getter: Madelyn Willey- 6.2 assists per game  

Logan  

Ladder position: 2nd  

Win-loss record: 12-1  

Percentage: 159% 

Leading scorer: Mikaela Ruef- 19.5 points per game  

Leading rebounder: Mikaela Ruef- 17.5 rebounds per game  

Leading assist-getter: Mikhaela Cann- 7.6 assists per game  

Key players:  

Southern Districts- Maddison Rocci  

Rocci has been leading the way for the Spartans all season and is coming off a 29-point game.  

Fresh off being named in the Opals’ Asia Cup squad, Rocci will be firing on all cylinders against Logan.  

The Southside Flyers recruit also had a big say last time these two teams met with 21 points in the Spartans’ regular-season win.  

Now with the chance to face Logan on its home court, Rocci is primed for a big performance.  

Logan- Mikaela Ruef  

Ruef has been dominant for the Thunder all season to guide them to a 12-1 record.  

By season’s end, she led the way in scoring and rebounding for her team, while her boards average extended to the top of the league tally.  

Ruef had a double-double in nearly every game for the Thunder and will need to keep that record going in the championship series if the Thunder are going to challenge for the title.  

Expect her to step up to the plate in this series after being restricted to 14 points last time these two teams met.  

What they said:  

Mikhaela Cann- Logan captain  

“We’re just excited to be playing. We’ve been working extremely hard this whole season. The season starts a long time before you start playing. It’s obviously a tough match-up for us which is what we've been after all season so it’s exciting times ahead. Hopefully, we can put it all together on the court over the weekend.” 

Kirron Byrne- Southern Districts coach  

“We’re excited. There’s positive energy around the group, they’re training hard. They’re confident in what we do and in each other. This week, we’ve really just focused on ourselves and what we want to achieve and play the best we can play. The COVID break was tough because we lost a lot of momentum. We played Logan before COVID took over and it was a really tough game. We expect this series to be really close and neck and neck. Both teams play physical and tough and have leaders that can stand up so it should be exciting.”