NBL1 South Round 11 Sunday Women’s Recap

See what happened across the final five games of the NBL1 South women's competition in Round 11.

See what happened across the final five games of the NBL1 South women's competition in Round 11.

Eltham Wildcats 53 def by Knox Raiders 75
The Knox Raiders have improved to 8-1 on the season, leapfrogging Eltham on the ladder after a road win over the Wildcats.
The Raiders led for all 40 minutes, pulling in front by eight points in the first term and only building on its lead over the next three quarters.
The three-ball was a major weapon for Knox, connecting on 12 of its 37 attempts from beyond the arc, including eight makes from the corners, which stretched out the Eltham defense and created room for cutters like Klara Wischer (15 points, 13 rebounds).
Missing star Anneli Maley, it was always going to be an uphill battle for the home side.
The anchor of the Wildcats’ defence and rebounding, and a primary option on offense, Eltham struggled to find its rhythm, only managing to top 15 points in the final term.
After winning its first five games of the year, Eltham have gone 3-3 over its last six, dropping to fifth on the ladder, while Knox extended its winning streak to three games.

Waverley Falcons 70 def by Frankston Blues 78
The Frankston Blues have narrowly avoided its second loss of the weekend, overcoming Waverley on the road to win in overtime.
It was the Falcons in control for much of the first half, with the home side leading by as many as nine points in the second term before Frankston hit back, tying the game before the main break.
Renae Mokrzycki (22 points, 13 rebounds) and Kelly Bowen (18 points, 14 rebounds) kept the Blues under pressure throughout the contest, scoring frequently at the rim.
Despite this, Frankston appeared to have wrestled away control of the game in the final term.
Having led for the entirety of the second half, the Blues extended its lead to eight points with less than five minutes remaining.
Leading 66-58, the Falcons put the clamps on the Blues, charging back to tie the game in the final minute and send the contest into overtime.
Looking to ride its momentum to victory, Waverley ultimately fell short, unable to complete the upset.
Frankston outscored the Falcons 12-4 in the extra period, with Taylah Gilliam (18 points, five assists) connecting on perhaps the biggest shot of the game, a bank three from the top of the arc with two minutes remaining that seemed to suck all the energy out of the Waverley arena.
The win will see the Blues remain on top of the competition ladder.

Diamond Valley Eagles 85 def Ballarat Rush 78
The Diamond Valley Eagles have ended its league-longest losing streak, beating the Ballarat Rush at home to snap a run of 10 straight defeats.
It was a back and forth contest, with each side putting together impressive runs in the first half.
The Eagles led by as many as eight points in the first term before Ballarat got into a scoring groove.
Over the end of the first quarter and start of the second, the Rush went on an 18-4 run to take control of the game, however thanks to some strong play from Diamond Valley scorer Olivia Bontempelli (22 points, five assists, five steals), the home side retook the lead going into the main break.
The second half played out much the same, with neither side able to put the other away.
Taylah Wynne did her best to lock down the victory for Ballarat in the final term, scoring 11 points in the final 10 minutes of action, however the Eagles were able to run away with the win, outscoring the Rush 13-4 across in the last three minutes.
The loss is the eighth in nine games for Ballarat.

Nunawading Spectres 92 def Mt Gambier Pioneers 66
In a tale of teams heading in different directions, the Nunawading Spectres have secured its third win in a row after handing the Mt Gambier Pioneers its third consecutive loss on Sunday afternoon.
Outside of a brief flurry to open the game, the Spectres led throughout the contest.
Building on a 30-13 first quarter lead, Nunawading held the advantage on the interior, scoring inside often and controlling the game on the glass.
Rachel Antoniadou (22 points, five assists) and Izzy Wright (21 points, six rebounds, five assists) led the way for the Spectres offensively, while teammate Rachel Brewster (nine points, four steals) hounded the Pioneers into constant mistakes.
Sherrie Calleia did her best to get Mt Gambier back into the contest, scoring 24 points in 25 minutes and helping the Pioneers reduce the deficit to just eight points in the final term, however that would be as close as the visitors would get to causing the upset, with Nunawading going on a 20-2 run to close the contest and secure the win.
Sandringham Sabres 49 def by Melbourne Tigers 100
The Melbourne Tigers have ended its two-game skid, slamming the Sandringham Sabres on the road by 51 points.
The Tigers scored 18 of the game's first 20 points before extending its lead to 21 points at the quarter time break.
Melbourne’s offense looked unstoppable in the first half, particularly from beyond the arc, as the Tigers connected on eight of its 12 three-point attempts.
While the first half was impressive offensively for Melbourne, the Tigers’ defence was equally as spectacular across the final two quarters.
Sandringham were stifled by the visitors in the second half, scoring just 21 points.
It was a difficult evening for the Sabres, with the home side tallying more turnovers (20) than field goals made (16).
The huge loss is Sandringham’s third in a row and drops the Sabres to 11th on the competition ladder.