The New South Wales-Victoria rivalry was well and truly alive at the Lauren Jackson Sports Centre on Tuesday.
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The NSW Waratahs and Vic Bushrangers played out an absolute thriller in the girls under 18’s, with the Bushies ultimately prevailing by a solitary point.
Some ice-cool nerves at the free throw line saw Abbey Noblett sink both shots in the dying seconds to give her side the exciting victory.
Coach Emma Henry said it had been a well-deserved win, after her charges were slow out of the blocks.
“To win the way we did was incredible, I’m really proud of the girls,” she said.
“We were trailing by as much as ten points early on in the game, and we really had to work our way back into it.
“They were getting a lot of easy threes in the early stages of the game.
“Our offence was running pretty smoothly throughout, but their perimeter shooting probably made it look a little more one-sided than it was.
“We worked our way back in nicely once we got the defence tightened up.”
Henry said their early defensive efforts amounted to too many cooks spoiling the broth.
“We were probably over-helping a little bit, which was allowing them to find space outside,” she said.
“Once the girls realised they had to back their teammates in and found that they could trust each other, we were back in it.
“It was a great way to rebound from what was probably a disappointing loss on Monday.”
The other fixtures in the under 18’s weren’t quite as close, with the NSW Waratahs and Vic Goldminers recording convincing victories over the New Zealand Kea and Koru respectively.
The Goldminers outclassed the Koru in what was a very physical encounter.
Lady Bandits youngster Steph Gorman play a pivotal role early on in the 49-point win, proving accurate from the perimeter.
The Goldminers din’t have it all their way though, with the Koru frequently displaying some telling flashes of attacking flair.
It was a similar story in the Kookaburrahs-Kea matchup, with Albury’s Melanie Kirby helping the Kookaburrahs to a 62-point win.
SA Magpies defeated the SA Sharks in the final match.