RETURNING to the basketball court for the first time in nine years, star dual-sport athlete Erin Phillips played her part during Woodville Warriors’ tough loss to West Adelaide Bearcats in the NBL1 Central Women’s competition. Despite the three-point loss (70-73), Phillips contributed across the board as fellow cross-coders Jasmin Fejo and Olivia Levicki went toe-for-toe.

Phillips’ shooting was a little rusty, hitting just one of 10 from the field – ironically a three-pointer from just two attempts – though she pulled in eight rebounds, dished off six assists, and recorded three steals in the tough loss. Warriors teammate Fejo top-scored in the match with 28 points, four assists, two rebounds and two steals.

However by far the work of Port Adelaide AFLW listed ruck Levicki was the key to the match, with the Bearcat big crashing the boards repeatedly to pull in 16 rebounds to go with 25 points – including 11 of 17 from the field – while creating four assists. She did the bulk of the damage for the winning West Adelaide side, though Coco Hodges (10 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals) and Sienna Grieger (11 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals) were also important in the win.

For Woodville, aside from Fejo and Phillips, Naomi Allotey (13 points, seven rebounds) and Genna Anderson-Abbey (14 points, six rebounds) did their best. While the Warriors hit hard in the second half to win it 42-34, the damage was done early with West Adelaide opening up a 12-point lead at quarter time. Despite the best efforts of Fejo in the final three terms, the Warriors were unable to catch the Bearcats at the Port Adelaide Recreation Centre.

In other NBL1 Central Women’s results, Sturt Sabres held on in a tough win over Forestville Eagles by a point, while North Adelaide Rockets made light work of Norwood Flames by 31 points. On Sunday, Southern Tigers fell to South Adelaide Panthers, while Eastern Mavericks also produced a convincing away win with a 110-81 triumph over Central District Lions.

In the latter, Morgan Yaeger put up a ridiculous 47 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists and five steals in the victory, shooting six of 14 from long-range as part of a total 18 of 32 from the field. Yaeger teamed up well with Aspen Williston (24 points, 10 rebounds) who also notched up a double-double and shot 10 of 16 from the field. Opposing skipper Sydney Wright was a lone hand on the scoring front for the Lions, recording a double-double of 23 points and 10 assists, as well as seven rebounds.

CENTRAL ROUND 1 RESULTS:

Saturday, March 29:

Forestville Eagles (59) def. by Sturt Sabres (60)
West Adelaide Bearcats (73) def. Woodville Warriors (70)
North Adelaide Rockets (74) def. Norwood Flames (43)

Sunday, March 30:

Southern Tigers (58) def. by South Adelaide Panthers (70)
Central District Lions (81) def. by Eastern Mavericks (110)

ACROSS THE COUNTRY:

EAST: Round 1

Centre of Excellence started off its East campaign with a mixed bag, going down to Manly Warringah Sea Eagles on Saturday by 15 points, before toppling Bankstown Bruins by 21 on Sunday. The Bruins had a tough weekend, also losing to Norths Bears by 27. In other eye-catching results, Hornsby and Albury-Wodonga both notched up 90-plus points in respective victories.

Saturday, March 29:

Centre of Excellence (65) def. by Manly Warringah Sea Eagles (80)
Bankstown Bruins (52) def. by Norths Bears (79)
Sutherland Sharks (46) def. by Penrith Panthers (55)
Hornsby Ku-ring-Gai Spiders (90) def. Central Coast Crusaders (79)
Illawarra Hawks (56) def. by Maitland Mustangs (80)
Newcastle Falcons (83) def. Sydney Comets (51)
Albury-Wodonga Bandits (95) def. Canberra Nationals (87)

Sunday, March 30:

Bankstown Bruins (61) def. by Centre of Excellence (86)

SOUTH: Round 1

Dandenong Rangers produced a consistent offensive display by notching up 98 points in both of their Round 1 matches over the weekend. First the Rangers kept the Casey Cavaliers to just 56 points on the road, before grinding out a 25-point win over Diamond Valley Eagles on Sunday. Hobart Chargers won the Apple Isle clash over rivals Launceston Tornadoes, while Sandringham Sabres and Keilor Thunder both picked up two wins across Saturday and Sunday to join Dandenong with a record of 2-0.

Saturday, March 29:

Geelong United (112) def. Mt Gambier Pioneers (72)
Casey Cavaliers (56) def. by Dandenong Rangers (98)
Ballarat Miners (74) def. by Bendigo Braves (82)
Frankston Blues (62) def. by Sandringham Sabres (73)
Diamond Valley Eagles (74) def. by Keilor Thunder (90)
Eltham Wildcats (75) def. by Ringwood Hawks (82)
Knox Raiders (76) def. Kilsyth Cobras (47)
Waverley Falcons (84) def. Nunawading Spectres (63)
Launceston Tornadoes (66) def. by Hobart Chargers (76)

Sunday, March 30:

Keilor Thunder (100) def. Mt Gambier Pioneers (70)
Dandenong Rangers (98) def. Diamond Valley Eagles (73)
Melbourne Tigers (74) def. by Sandringham Sabres (79)