The Forestville Eagles have guaranteed themselves a home Elimination Final, after defeating the Central District Lions 74-66 at Wayville on Saturday.

Jess Fergus was the Player of the Game with 21 points on 7/14 shooting and 5 rebounds in 33 minutes, while displaying her typical hustle towards the loose balls and at the defensive end.

Carla Borrego added 14 points, 13 rebounds and 4 steals.

Georgia Minear was down on her normal scoring output (12 points on 3/13 shooting), while also turning the ball over 6 times, but did provide 5 assists and 5 steals.

Monica Bello had 10 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists.

For Centrals, Kimberley Olsen had a team-high 18 points, although she shot just 6/19 from the field and 3/12 from beyond the arc.

Alisha Heglund was solid offensively with 17 points, but had 8 less rebounds than her opponent Borrego, despite playing over 8 more minutes more.

Jess Mahony finished with 14 points, 4 rebounds and 12 assists in another excellent all-round display, while Fiona Perso contributed 12 points.

Desinta Cummins had a mixed night with 13 rebounds and 5 steals, but only 5 points on 2/9 shooting and 8 turnovers.

Statistically, there was very little between the two teams. The biggest difference was in free throw percentage, with Forestville going 14/16 at 88%, compared to the Lions’ 10/14 at 71%.

The Eagles won the first quarter 23-21, with Borrego in the thick of things and Minear, Fergus and Bello filling it up from downtown.

For the Lions, Mahony had six points while assisting on a trio of trifectas.

Centrals lifted defensively in the second, as evidenced by two steals from Cummins and one each from Mahony and Heglund.

They led by four late in the half following two free throws from Olsen, before a trey from Fergus reduced that advantage to one at the intermission.

Trailing 36-37 at half-time, the Eagles seized control early in the third quarter.

Centrals had possession at the start of the half, but a bad pass from Cummins and a basket from Minear saw Forestville retake the lead within seconds.

The Eagles scored the first six points of the quarter, leading Lions Coach Ben Todd to take a quick timeout.

Centrals scored two of the next three hoops, before the Eagles went on a 9-0 run.

Even with Fergus picking up a couple of quick fouls, Forestville was fluent on offence and feisty on defence, with Minear, Fergus, Tara Robinson, Jamie-Lee Bow and Alex Duncan all getting involved.

Olsen broke the drought with a free throw, but a late three from Duncan saw Forestville out to a 58-44 lead.

The margin grew to 19 within 50 seconds in the fourth, thanks to a close range basket from Borrego and another from the land of plenty by Fergus.

However, the Lions peppered their way back to within 14, with Eagles Coach Sharon Simons taking a timeout as a result.

With 3.47 remaining, Tara Robinson scored a nice reverse layup to extend the lead to 15 and Forestville appeared to be headed for a comfortable win.

However, careless play at the offensive end from the Eagles, coupled with some fantastic manoeuvres from Mahony at the other, saw Centrals close to within eight by the final siren, and it could have been closer if not for a few open misses.

 

Forestville verdict: The Eagles should be pleased with the victory, but perhaps not so with the way they closed it out. Save for the third quarter, there is still room for improvement on this performance which could only be a good thing. The results of this round means Forestville will definitely finish fourth, with a rematch against Centrals well and truly on the cards. The final match for the Eagles is a road game against North Adelaide.

Centrals verdict: Again, versus Forestville, it was one quarter that proved the difference. The rest of the game, the Lions matched their opponents. Their goal following this match should be to bring their ‘A’ game for four quarters. Other results leave Centrals tied for fifth on the ladder at the end of the round. A win against the Warriors at Starplex next week would see the Lions into the finals, and a loss may see them miss out. Next Saturday may well be the biggest night in Centrals’ women’s basketball history.

By James Woite