ONE of Australia’s most impactful basketballers was at her best as the Eltham Wildcats proved a class above the Kilsyth Cobras, claiming a 15-point win in the NBL1 South Women’s on the weekend.

The match took place at Kilsyth Sports Centre on Sunday afternoon in one of the final games of Round 13, the penultimate batch of games before the postseason kicks off. Although the Cobras will not be making the finals, they still had the opportunity to upset the apple cart and upset an Eltham side that remains on the hunt for a spot beyond the last round of the regular season. Add Kilsyth’s home court advantage onto that and it was shaping up to be an intriguing battle.

The Cobras came out firing in the first term, taking a four-point lead into the first change and ensuring the ball stayed out of the Wildcats’ most dangerous players. However, the visitors improved their defensive work as the game went on, restricting Kilsyth from any easy looks while also getting their own offence rolling down the other end. In the end, a 24-14 final term sealed the result of the match as the Wildcats claimed a 77-62 win.

Despite their best efforts, the Cobras could not contain the dominance of Anneli Maley, who showed why she is one of the best bigs in the country with another huge performance.

Kilsyth Cobras (62) def. by Eltham Wildcats (77)

Anneli Maley – 24 points, 22 rebounds, six assists, three steals

Maley was the star of the show as the Wildcats overran the Cobras in the final three quarters, acting as the pillar of the team’s offence and leading by example.

In an affair that did not have the highest scoring, Maley was the game’s best at finding the bottom of the net, nailing eight of her 14 attempts en route to 24 points for the match.

She split her scoring between two-point territory and behind the arc, making half of her baskets in each range. Maley’s ability to knock down a triple makes her an even bigger threat with ball in hand, and she punished the Cobras accordingly.

Although her scoring is a standout, perhaps Maley’s biggest strength his her rebounding, and it was on display against Kilsyth in a big way. Of Eltham’s 48 rebounds, Maley was responsible for 22, including five of these being on the offensive end, although she did most of her work after an opposition miss.

Maley was the standout of the match as the Wildcats kept their finals prospects alive with a crucial win over the Cobras, leading her side in a number of crucial facets of the game.