Mystics take win over Steel
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Staff Writers
ANZ
The LG Mystics have vaulted to the top of the ANZ Championship table, but not without being pressed hard by the Ascot Park Hotel Southern Steel for their 60-49 victory in Auckland tonight.
In their eighth win of the season, the Mystics were forced to fight back from a halftime four-goal deficit to a side desperate for victory after seven consecutive losses. But it was the introduction of Cathrine Latu into the game in the second half that was the defining factor for the home side.
Looking for a different attacking style, Mystics coach Deb Fuller left Latu – the most accurate shooter in the championship - on the bench in favour of the little-tried combination of Maria Tutaia and Grace Rasmussen.
Although the pair have been working together well in training, they took time to settle into the job on court. A flurry of errors midcourt by the Mystics allowed the Steel to leap ahead by three halfway through the opening quarter.
A classic struggle of youth versus experience was shaping up between Mystics defender Kayla Cullen and Steel shooter Donna Wilkins. When Wilkins went down in a heap rolling her ankle on Cullen’s foot, a fright ran through the already injury-hit Sting camp, but she was soon mobile again and getting the better of the match-up.
As the quarter wore down, the Mystics began to find some cadence in their attack, but the Steel were just as quick to respond, especially in drilling the ball down court through the hands of midcourters Phillipa Finch and Gina Crampton.
Taking a 15-13 lead into the first break, the Steel carried their impetus into the next spell. Circle defenders Demelza McCloud and Storm Purvis made life increasingly difficult for the Mystics shooters, and Wilkins and Jodi Brown were in harmony at the other end. The difference soon stretched out to seven goals.
With Jess Moulds injected into the defence, the Mystics closed to within four, trailing 24-28 at halftime. But it was no surprise when Latu entered the game for the third quarter, scoring in the first 10 seconds. In just over three minutes, the Mystics had stolen the lead.
The home side’s dynamics changed completely, with Temepara George and Jade Clarke stepping up their pace and precision in the midcourt.
But the Steel weren’t ready to lie down, with Finch counteracting with a pair of blinding intercepts that kept her side on equal footing.
It was only in the last few minutes that the Mystics regained some authority, up 42-39 at the break, and kept the crowd happy when Scarlett and Moulds finally attempted a hoist.
