ROUND 4 PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Making a triumphant return to the WNWBL in 2018, Mari Amimoto has won the Round 4 Player of the Week award after leading the Queensland Comets to a sweep of the weekend against the Sydney Metro Blues.
Finding a home at the Comets over the past two years, Amimoto was crucial to the club’s finals run last year and she will now be aiming to help them to a Championship in 2018.
In her first games back this season, she averaged 17 points, ten rebounds, 5.5 assists and 2.5 steals over two victories and Queensland now sit comfortably in second spot on the ladder.
On Saturday night, Amimoto had a quiet start with just two points in the first quarter but she exploded in the second term, scoring or assisting on all 18 points for the Comets as they opened up a double-digit lead.
She went on to score 16 points while shooting 57% from the field and at one point, was threatening a triple-double but with the win sewn up, Amimoto hardly played in the final term to finish with seven rebounds and six assists.
The following day, Queensland backed up against the Blues and with eight more minutes of court time, Amimoto claimed a double-double of 18 points and 13 rebounds with five assists and four steals.
She was all over the glass, collecting seven offensive rebounds which helped the Comets score six second chance points while her four steals was an equal-game high that enabled her side to earn a 26-8 advantage in points off turnovers.
Once again, after a relatively quiet start, Amimoto scored six points in the second term while Queensland stepped up their defence, restricting the Blues to six points as a team and they took a six-point lead into half-time.
Sydney Metro fought back to tie the game with six minutes remaining but Amimoto responded with four points in the last period while also setting up Ella Sabljak and Cobi Crispin for buckets as the Comets ran out ten-point victors.
Queensland will now enjoy an extended break with byes over Round 5 and 6, returning to the court in mid-June for Round 7 as they aim to hold on to a top-two spot heading into the playoffs.
Mari Amimoto Round 4 Stats: 17 points on 17-35 (49%) shooting, ten rebounds (3.5 offensive), 5.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game.
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