IN THE end, Rush ran out of legs in the fourth quarter on Sunday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Relying on six players for a South East Australian Basketball League double-header, Harvey Norman Ballarat Rush was stretched. But it took a road-trip to Frankston to wear them out late.
Rush went from three points down at three-quarter-time to a 15-point loss. It was a massive effort for Rush, which shut down Albury-Wodonga by 14 points a night earlier at the MARS Minerdome in a South East Australian Basketball League double.
While Rush suited-up 16-year-olds Isabel Fraser and Taylah Wynne for the home game, neither hit the floor in a bid to try and keep both fresh if needed for Rush youth league team’s Big V elimination final on Sunday.
Olivia Thompson re-joined Rush from Emerging Opals duty in Korea but started on the bench against Albury-Wodonga. Rush coach Peter Cunningham said Thompson understood – he could not pull a young player like Molly Mathews, who had been most valuable player the game before. Mathews responded too, nailing big three-pointers that thrilled home crowd on the way to victory against the Lady Bandits.
This was Rush’s first weekend back after an extended SEABL break with more than two weeks’ rest. Cunningham was pleased the aggression, determination and positive energy his players had been building had not let up.
“At the end of the day, we could be critical – we got a lot wrong out there – but we want the girls to play for each other and they did,” Cunningham said. “It’s about keeping the girls’ confidence up. They’re playing well.”
The Lady Bandits brought a strong team to the Minerdome but it was only Kristina Baltic who scored in double-figures with 18 points. She had made 11 to half-time. Cunningham said his team made better decisions in the second half.
Rush scoring and rebounding was evenly shared among all six players to hit the floor. It was a similar scenario after the early bus ride to Frankston on Sunday. Rush co-captain Abbey Wehrung top-scored for her team in both games with 18 points each outing.
Cunningham was pleased how his team had turned its season around after the mid-season break. Rush has five wins on the board but, if games had fallen their way in a handful of close matches, the team could have been in finals contention. Importantly, Cunningham was proud players had pulled together and were enjoying the game more.
Rush has three games in two weeks left this season and only one game at home. That appearance is on August 8 against Nunawading.