Women’s Norwood Flames vs Forestville Eagles
The Norwood Flames (3-9) go up against the Forestville Eagles (9-3) in a difficult matchup at the end of a back-to-back. Another tough game ahead for the girls who have struggled with consistency this season. A game against one of the top teams in the competition will be a true test of how competitive the team can be against anyone in NBL1.
The game started with the entire Flames squad firing, going up 8-2 early with efficient and effective offensive possession chained together by good defensive stops. Forestville adjusted, slowing down the Flames offensively. However, the defensive intensity which Norwood displayed wasn’t faltering and the Eagles continued to struggle. The Flames experimented on offence until a hole exposed itself and the Flames attacked this weak link until Forestville was forced into a timeout. Both teams’ defences remained elite for the remainder of the quarter, only giving up the occasional points. Unfortunately, the Eagles found more of these points than Norwood and clawed the score back to 6 points, 19-13, going into quarter time.
Coming out of the break both teams were being extremely aggressive. Maddy Hinton was being especially aggressive, looking for her shot and being a big part of the Flames keeping up with the sudden offensive burst from Forestville. Eventually, the scoring for both teams slowed down but Emily Saunders was extremely effective, keeping the score moving for Norwood. The Eagles were scoring slowly but just enough to keep up with the Flames. Both teams were fighting on every possession and the half ended 40-35.
The second half opened with a greater defensive focus, both teams unrelenting on that end of the court. This slowed the pace of the game down and allowed the Eagles’ elite defence to shine. Norwood tried to keep up but slowly their lead began to shrink, the Eagles getting closer and closer to taking control of the game, getting within 1-point for a stretch. Another offensive burst for Norwood allowed them to extend their lead again, the quarter coming to a close, 54-48.
The fourth began with a 6-0 run from the Eagles’ tying the game and forcing a timeout from coach Will Smith to try and rally the troops. Coming out of the timeout Polly Turner drained a triple to bring some momentum back to the Flames, followed by a quick score from Emily Saunders brought the lead back out to 5. The defensive intensity of the game continued to increase as the final buzzer drew closer. Neither team was going to allow any easy points and the game was only getting closer down the stretch. The Flames had a 3-point lead for the majority of the quarter and battled to keep it that way, but a tip-in followed by a tough jumper brought the Eagles the lead with a minute to go. Unaffected by the clutch moment, Emily Saunders and Eva Langton connected to get a good layup to go, taking back the lead with 38 seconds remaining. With a defensive possession to go the girls locked in, forcing a tough shot. Unfortunately, the Eagles secured an offensive rebound before turning the ball over with 24 seconds to go. The Flames were able to keep the ball safe for a full shot clock and with less than a second the Eagles couldn’t get a good look and the Flames won by a point, 65-64.
