photo credit: @juniorfilmsnz
The Week That Was
The big winners of the week had to be the Northern Kāhu, who are rolling along to start the season after pulling out 2 wins on the road including a tightly contested championship rematch. In victory number 1 they were able to overcome the scoring ferocity of Ashley Joens (dropping a crossover laden 29pts) by locking down the interior attack of the Tauranga Whai by limiting the powerful duo of Lara McSpadden and Laina Snyder to a combined 11pts, 14rbs(the duo averaged 38pts and 19rbs coming into the round) while forcing the pair into 8 turnovers. Penina Davidson and IImar'I Thomas responsible for the stout defense on the interior. The Kāhu offense once again driven by Tahlia Tupaea (who dropped 18pts on a crazily efficent 5-8fg's @62%) who looks every bit of her MVP self upon return from injury in 2023.
The Mainland Pouākai may have surprised even themselves with a comeback of epic proportions as they took down the Southern Hoiho after going down by 17pts in the 2nd qtr. A tight game at the half (44-41 Hoihio) after the Pouākai made a second quarter run it looked as though the Southerners righted the ship going up 14 (59-45) points midway through the 3rd. But then the Mainlanders found a tail wind to outscore the home team 22-5 to end the term in front as a total team effort revitalised the teams spirt and chances for the win. Cassandra Brown finishing with 20pts, 7rbs 4stls to take top honours but it was a collective effort as all 6 players who saw the court for more than 1 minute hit double figures. For the Hoiho a lift in shooting the 3 (11-30 @36%) gave way to a lack of ball security which would be the biggest regret as 20 turnovers led to 22 points given up in transition.
In the final game of the round the only teams to hoist the Tauihi trophy met in front of a record crowd on hand to support their Queens and welcome WNBA star Jordan Horston in her first Tauihi action. Horston and Florencia Chagas carried the load for the Queens starters (combining 44pts, 6ast, and 5stls) but had issues with ball security, giving away possesion 14 times as the Queens totaled 21 turnovers in total. The battle in the paint would prove to be a decisive one, as the Kāhu duo of Thomas and Davidson again imposed their will (32pts, 12rbs as a duo) while making things difficult for their opposities Lou Brown and Tamari Key (11pts on 5 shots combined). Brown imposed her will on the glass again (16rbs for the 2nd straight game) but the paint belonged to the Kāhu on the whole as they outscored the Queens 38-28 in the paint. Tahlia Tupaea didn't do it alone, but she certainly shone again, dropping 24pts while going 5-9 from 3 including some daggers late that essentially clinched the the road win to keep the Kāhu undefeated and in pole position as we come upon round 3.
Worth a Mention
Kāhu Depth - Not having players the quality 0f Megan Mullings or Mary Goulding would be too much to bear for most rosters across the league, but not the Kāhu who even down two quality hoopers still had 8 players log over 13min against the Queens and had 9 log over 7min against the Whai. And it seems to be depth that can paper over any issues. Need some energy and defense? Well here comes Chloe Forster, Krystal Leger-Walker and Lilly Rotunno to harass ball handlers and drop sweet dimes to get the scorers going? Giving up too much on the interior? Well here is Stephanie Bairstown and Chevannah Paalvaast to over options off the bench that few other teams have.
Lou Brown Boards- Did I mention that Lou Brown is averaging 16 rebounds per game!?!? Well let me do so again, as her board work on both ends is superb. Playing with just the right amount of physicality she also displays great instincts on where the caroms are careening and gets to those spots fractions of a second before their opponents, a supremely undervalued skill on the glass
Samantha Bowman's hustle - It hasn't led to wins but the work rate has been superb. Leading the league in total blocks (4) she's also 4th in total minutes, 1st in steals (2.7stls pg), offensive rebounds (13) and second in total rebounds. Her totals of 13.3pts, 9.7rbs, 2.3ast, 2.7stls, 1.3blks give you an indication of her effort, but the work-rate needs to be seen to be believed. Giving up a bit of size on the interior will be an issue for the Hoiho this year, but the work rate of Bowman may just temper some of those disadvantages.
Tahlia Tupaea- First in total points and second in scoring average (21.7ppg) is impressive, but did i see correctly that she leads the league in second chance points with 13 over 3 games? Yeah, that's worth a mention.
What to Look for in R3
ANZCO Tokomanawa Queens v The Northern Group Tauranga Whai, Friday 7:30pm, Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua
The Queens look to bounce back on their home floor against a high scoring Whai outfit that has the tools to come into their house and sneak away with a win. There are matchups to watch all over the court but my most anticipated may be Ashley Joens v Florencia Chagas. League leading scorer Joens will be tested by the physicality of Chagas and you can bet the paint will be stuffed with help side D from Tamari Key, and Lou Brown. That strength of the Queens on the interior will be tested by Lara McSpadden and Laina Snyder who will both be looking to bounce back from subpar performances. Jordan Horston should be over the jet lag that would have affected her performance last time out and her versatility on both ends will be difficult for the Whai to counter.
But the Whai can counter anything with their ability to score as their league topping 86.5ppg tower above the current Queens average of 72.5. With McSpadden and Snyder on the interior they have the ability to start breaks with D boards and take advantage on the o boards as well, but with Lou Brown and Tamari Key providing a size and rebounding insidethat could neutralise the Whai league best 13.5 offensive rebounds per game
The Queens have reached some very high peaks over the first 2 rounds but have yet to put together a full 40 minutes of cohesive basketball. Which is of course to be expected for a team that traversed to China for the preseason and was bringing in players the day before R2. Surprisingly the Queens are only scoring 72.5ppg and that should lift as the team settles into a rotation and gains some familiarity with each other but a lift in the league worst 20.5% three point field goal percentage could help to.
X-Factor - Jiuhyn Park and Mckenna Dale - Park is playing with great efficency and may be the best scorer to come off any bench in the comp but Dale isn't too far behind, especially if she can get hot from deep and stretch out the Queens defense
Matchup to Watch - Florencia Chagas v Ashley Joens - All around play of Chagas lining up against the scoring prowess of Joens will be fun to watch.
Probuild ITM Mainland Pouākai v BNZ Northern Kāhu, Saturday 5pm, Cowles Stadium Christchurch
The Pouākai will defend their homecourt for the first time this season and will do so full of confidence after their huge come from behind victory. Cassandra Brown is responsible for keeping the scoreboard ticking over in the half court but the play ability of Mikhaela Cann in transition and as a facilitator may make her the Pouākai's most important player. Depth looks to be an issue as only Sharne Robati has seen more than 4 minutes off the bench this season, but starters have proven capable and, especially in the 2nd half of their win against the Hoiho, cohesive unit. Mckenzie Forbes is a key offensively and will need to take advantage of her ability to overpower smaller players and out skill stronger ones. Esra McGoldrick has looks to have taken a leap offensively after producing 17.5ppg in the first two rounds, but her defensive impact will be key for the Pouākai chances.
Despite all of the strengths the Kāhu will be a challenge. Strong defensively on the interior with the Davidson/Thomas pairing and on the perimeter with a bezy of guards to let loose (KLW, Forester, Rotunno and Tupaea) their ability to dig in defensively will test the Pouākai ability to hold onto the ball as they currently average 16.5 turnovers per game.
X-Factor - Sharne Robati and Krystal Leger-Walker - Robati will need to maintain her impact as a 6th woman to give her squad a bit of a chance and KLW already has pulled together eye popping statlines (12pts, 4rbs, 5ast, 4stl for instance) and her all around ability can band aid over many an imperfection.
Matchup to Watch - Mckenzie Forbes v Tahlia Tupaea - Forbes could be the best chance for the Pouākai to defend Tupaea 1on1, the more help they need to bring, the tougher the task gets to slow down the Kāhu.
Southern Hoiho v The Northern Group Tauranga Whai, Sunday 3pm
The Hoiho have no time to lick wounds after what would have been a disappointing loss on the home court where good 1st and 3rd quarters went unrewarded due to an inability to finish the half strong. The offense looked to be clicking with Paige Bradley, Ahlise Hurst and Natalie Chou reviving the 3point game to ignite the offense. Zoe Richards and Samantha Bowman are doing the dirty work on the interior and the work rate is impressive, but the Hoiho have still given away something on the interior through the first two rounds. Chelsea D'Angelo provides the spark off the bench. But they need to find a way to put points on the board to get sneak a win on their home court against the highest scoring team in the league.
The Whai seem to have the capability to weather the early season injuries to key players and of particular interest in Pahlyss Hokianga and her ability to take the keys to car at the pg spot. 23 minutes with just 2 turnovers against the Kāhu is a promising sign. Overall this is just a team that knows how to score and has plenty of depth to call on if needed.
X-Factor - Chelsea D'Angelo and Jade Kirisome - Both have been scoring well and their abilities to come into the game for some scoring pop off the bench will be key.
Matchup to Watch - Ahlise Hurst v Ashley Joens - Hurst has to stay relatively even on the scoring leger with Joens for the Hoiho to have a chance in this one.
All games live on Sky Sport
Rapid League Tips off 1 hour before Tauihi
