MK Breakers Women suffered mixed fortunes this weekend, extending their perfect start to league play on Saturday before bowing out of the National Cup on Sunday to Division 1 side Loughborough Riders.
MK Breakers Women (90) v North Herts Knights Women (25)
MK Breakers Women continued their winning streak in the league with a dominant victory at home against North Herts Knights.
MK missed some of their early shot attempts, but it didn’t take them long to find their form. Lauren Dabbs hits the first of a barrage of 3-pointers in the first quarter which contributed to a 27-9 lead. The standout performance in the quarter came from Tetiana Shevchyk who was making her debut for the team in the league. Soon after entering the game she ignited the crowd by hitting back-to-back 3-pointers as well as a couple of free throws.
The Breakers scoring rate slowed slightly in the second quarter, but not by much. Throughout the first half, Breakers had been guilty of allowing the Knights to claim too many offensive rebounds, but the visitors weren’t able to convert their second chance opportunities and only managed six points in the second period.
At the start of the second-half, Coach Round asked his team to up the tempo on offence and the intensity on defence. The players responded well with a number of them earning a trip to the free throw line after attacking the basket, and the collective efforts of the team at the defensive end held North Herts to just four points in the third quarter.
In the final quarter, Jordan Elliott-King added two more 3-pointers to the three she’d hit earlier in the game and she finished the contest with a game-high 16 points. She was one of the five Breakers who achieved double-figures and two others were just one point short of joining them. The spread of scoring highlighted the strength of depth in the team and the willingness to play for each other.
As the buzzer sounded , the enthusiastic crowd rose to congratulate the MK players on the impressive team effort that gave them a 90-25 victory.
Loughborough Riders D1 Women (81) v MK Breakers Women (53)
The Women’s team faced a much tougher test on Sunday as they travelled to Loughborough to face the Riders D1 team in the Women’s National Cup. The Riders team included a number of current SLBW players, but MK approached the game with a positive mindset and a determination to show that they could compete against the higher-league opposition.
Riders set the tone in the first quarter with their up-tempo, physical style and they were rewarded with a 21-8 lead by the end of the first quarter. Once MK players that the referees were going to let the players play, they became more comfortable and grew in confidence.
A combination of tougher defence and attempts to attack the rim meant that the teams were better matched in the second period, but there were lapses with MK’s weakside help and Riders were able to claim too many offensive rebounds. Although the Breakers did much better, Rider were able to increase their lead by another six points, giving them a 41-22 half-time lead.
In the second-half, MK made some more defensive adjustments and forced several turnovers. Their play-hard-to-the-end attitude wasn’t enough to turn the game around, but the in-game improvements were highlighted by the fact that Riders had won the first quarter by 13 points but could only win the second-half by 9 points.
In their well-deserved win, the standout performers for Loughborough were SBLW-players Miriam Carrasco Menendez (5/7 from 3-point range), Louisa Gibbins (16 rebounds, 9 of which were offensive) and Alex Shaw (19 points). Whilst MK matched the Riders in terms of steals and turnovers, the main differences between the two teams were the rebound count (53 v 33) and the shooting percentage (44.1% v 36.2%).
For the Breakers, once again there was a good spread of scoring. Sarah Round leading the team with 13 points, but Jordan Elliott-King (9), Vanassa Obanor (9), Lauren Dabbs (7) and Charleene Tom (6) all made great contributions.
Overall, Coach Round was pleased with the two performances. He commented: “On Saturday, we demonstrated that we could stay focused and the game on Sunday was perfect preparation for some of our upcoming league games as it showed we could maintain our composure and stay positive when put under pressure.” He added: “We enjoyed the game against Loughborough and we wish them well in the next round of the Cup.”
The women hit the road again on Saturday 18th October as they travel to Walsall Wizards to try to keep their winning streak alive.