ROUND 4 PREVIEW
Queensland Comets v Sydney Metro Blues- Saturday 12th May @6pm
Queensland Comets v Sydney Metro Blues- Sunday 13th May @10am
Second place on the ladder is on the line when Queensland take on Sydney Metro in Round 4 with the Comets currently sitting just a win above the visiting Blues.
This will be the first time they have met since the opening night of the season when the Blues claimed a 55-37 victory and for Cobi Crispin, these two contests provide her with another chance to claim a maiden win against her old club.
She has been a very strong addition to the Comets this season, averaging 21.9 points and 12.2 rebounds, both team-high’s, while also adding 5.1 assists.
Alison Herring joins her with a double-double average and together they are two of just eight players to be averaging double-digits in rebounds across the league.
Their work inside will provide an issue for Georgia Munro-Cook (17.3 points, 12.6 rebounds per game) and she will need assistance from the likes of Kylie Gauci and Jess Cronje.
A couple of players will renew hostilities on Saturday and Sunday as well after they clashed in the Kevin Coombs Cup a fortnight ago- the Australian Junior Championship for wheelchair basketball where players get the opportunity to represent their state.
Georgia Bishop-Cash claimed the bronze medal with Queensland in a 64-53 win over NSW- a team that consisted of Ashlea and Jess Pellow, Maryanne Latu, Jess Cronje and Munro-Cook.
The Comets will be hoping they can ride that state pride into more success this weekend as two losses will see them drop to third and move the Blues into second spot.
Be Active Western Stars v Kilsyth Cobras- Saturday 12th May @6pm
Be Active Western Stars v Kilsyth Cobras- Sunday 13th May @10am
A top four clash will also take place this weekend with the Stars, currently sitting first, hosting the Cobras who are in fourth place.
The Stars have not lost a game so far in 2018, carrying a nine-game winning streak into this weekend and while Amber Merritt and Chihiro Kitada are pacing an electrifying offence, their team defence has been just as impressive as they have given up ten less points than Kilsyth while playing only two less games.
They held the Cobras to 38 points in their previous Round 1 meeting, winning that clash by 30 points courtesy of big games from Kitada (27 points including a three-pointer, 14 rebounds and eight assists) and Georgia Inglis (six points, 12 assists).
Kilsyth own a 2-5 record and are currently on a four-game losing streak but they pushed Queensland all the way in their past two contests while two players, Isabel Martin and Teisha Shadwell, are coming off a gold medal victory at the Kevin Coombs Cup.
That win came against Western Australia, a team that included Inglis, Mary Friday and Lauren Hardbottle which could provide those Stars players with some incentive to get their revenge on Saturday and Sunday.
Shadwell’s rise in the wheelchair basketball scene continues to impress though and she sits third in the league for rebounds this season which means she will have an important task to match Kitada and Merritt.
Her offensive production will also be key, alongside Leanne Del Toso (20.1 points per game) but without as many scorers, the Cobras must be at their best defensively to keep the Stars quiet and take a win off them this weekend.
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