AN excellent offensive performance off the bench from Shannon Webber has led the North Adelaide Rockets to a win over the South Adelaide Panthers in an National Basketball League (NBL)1 Central Women’s elimination final.

The finals kicked off over the weekend, with the best sides fighting it out for the ultimate prize in the coming weeks. The sole elimination clash saw the Panthers host the Rockets at the Mitchell Park Sports and Community Centre on Saturday night. South Adelaide finished one spot higher on the ladder and earned home court advantage, although it was shaping as a clash that could go either way.

The home side got off to a ripping start, restricting North Adelaide to just 10 points for the opening term and jumping out to an eight-point lead by quarter time. The Rockets got going in the second term to cut that deficit back to four at the main break, before producing a match-defining third period where they outscored the opposition 20-11 to snag the lead heading into the last. Although the Panthers tried to even things up in the last, they fell by three points as North Adelaide advanced.

One of the biggest factors in the match was the scoring punch of Webber, who came off the bench and had a massive impact on the scoring front.

South Adelaide Panthers (69) def. by North Adelaide Rockets (72)

Shannon Webber – 23 points, four rebounds, one assist

Webber’s shotmaking ability off the bench helped change the game for North Adelaide, after being injected early in the match and helping the Rockets bounce back after a rough start to the game.

Webber came into the game with just a couple of minutes left on the clock in the first quarter, and made an immediate impact with a three-pointer to close out the term and give her side a much-needed score.

The second term was reasonably quiet for Webber, making just one triple, but it came at a crucial stage as it brought the Rockets back to within five points.

Quarter number three is where she truly began to make her mark, posting nine points in six minutes and helping North Adelaide take the lead for the first time in the match. Webber also knocked down a jumpshot in the final seconds of the term to put her team up by five points and give them the momentum heading into the last.

Webber continued to knock down important shots in the last period, scoring from all three levels and delivering the knockout blow with another three-pointer to put her side up by 12 points and steering them to victory.

She finished the game with 23 points to her name, the most of any player on the floor on 8/12 shooting from the field and 5/7 shooting from behind the arc.