In the second South Island derby of the ANZ Premiership, the VIP Frames and Trusses Tactix came away with a 57-49 win over the Southern Steel representing their tenth win against the side.
The Tactix established a two-point lead after the first quarter, and their southern rival were unable to recover despite a strong last quarter effort.
The Steel were seeking redemption, coming off a 45-70 loss to the Pulse in Invercargill in Round 4 but were unable to level the score, with the Tactix walking away with a lucrative bonus point.
When the teams last met in Round 1, the Tactix claimed a 57-50 victory in Christchurch, with the side having won four out of five competition matches.
The game held significance for Tactix wing defence Paris Lokotui (23), who clocked her 50th Premiership game having amassed her half century for the Central Pulse and Mainland Tactix.
Lokotui rose to the occasion, maintaining pressure and executing two intercepts throughout the match, maintaining dominance on defence that saw her awarded the ANZ Player of the Match.
A repeat of Round 4 saw Ellie Bird and Te Paea Selby-Rickit starting in the shooting line-up.
Standing at 1.96m, Bird was a compelling presence under the hoop, often seen signalling for the ball from the mid-courters.
The Tactix started off strong in the first quarter, finding space to feed the ball down the court, with Selby-Rickit and captain Erikana Pedersen finding success feeding long-range passes into Bird, with the quarter finishing with a Tactix two point advantage.
A strong turnover by Jane Watson in the second quarter proved a strong demonstration of Watson’s ability to compete for the ball in the air, showing the Tactix had what it takes to fend off the Steel’s attacking efforts especially Aliyah Dunn’s successful two-point shots.
A strategic timeout called by Head Coach Donna Wilkins saw her tell the team to stand their ground and interrupt the flow of play, while noting the team’s ability to back each other up while the Steel stepped up pressure on defence, as they tried to level the score before half-time.
Burger showed her defensive prowess forcing obstructions in the Steel’s goal third, while maintaining a presence under the hoop to get three rebounds and two deflections.
At the third quarter break, Wilkins urged her side to be cautious not to throw the ball away, while introducing Martina Salmon onto the court replacing Bird at goalshoot.
A tight fourth quarter saw each team scoring point-for-point, with the Steel putting in a last effort to level the score, but were unable to catch the Tactix eight point lead.
