South Pac Magic makes gains

Georgia Te Au

The South Pac Magic moved into a tie for second with a 67-44 win over Andy Bay Kavanagh in Dunedin women’s club basketball on Tuesday night.

That took it to a 5-3 record, leaving it equal with a Varsity side that lost 63-51 to unbeaten Ajax.

Ball security proved key for the Magic.

Kavanagh looked to trap on defence and forced turnovers out of the Magic offence early on.

That held the Magic to just five first-quarter points, while Kavanagh managed 10 of its own.

As the turnovers stopped, the momentum swung.

Back-court duo Te Araroa Sopoaga and Georgia Te Au were prominent, scoring 16 and 15 each, as South Pac started getting to the hoop.

It reeled in the deficit in a tight second quarter, before a pair of baskets to Te Au, followed by two free throws to Millie Simpson (seven points) gave it a 24-18 halftime lead.

From there it pulled away.

Fay Fualau-Searle scored three baskets in a row for the Magic, opening a double-digit lead which it extended to 47-29.

Dre Whaanga (15 points) provided some late scoring for Kavanagh, but the deficit was too much to pull in as Sopoaga and Te Au stepped up to close the game out.

Meanwhile Zoe Richards had 34 points as Ajax maintained a double-digit buffer most of the way against Varsity.

Guards Olivia O’Neill and Nicole Ruske chipped in with 11 and 10 points each, helping Ajax hold Varsity off every time it threatened a comeback.

Hannah Riddle-Pelchen top-scored with 10 for Varsity, while Alana Wouters and Tara Clement had nine each.

In the late game, the Andy Bay Falcons claimed their second win of the season with a 52-48 win over South Pac OGHS.

Jenna Small had 17 points for the Falcons, while Abby Harris had another impressive night for OGHS with 25 points.