Southside overshadow young gun to cement fourth spot

Sebastian Tan |

The red-hot Dallas Loughridge scored 22 points for Adelaide, but they lost out to the Flyers.
The red-hot Dallas Loughridge scored 22 points for Adelaide, but they lost out to the Flyers.

Dallas Loughridge continues to dazzle in the WNBL, producing another statement performance despite Adelaide Lightning suffering a 24-point loss to the Southside Melbourne Flyers. 

The Lightning’s point guard has been one of the league’s most prolific scorers this season, and was in full flight at the RAC Arena on Saturday.

Against her former side, the 21-year-old fired 22 points, but despite her efforts Southside Melbourne won 82-58. 

Opals teammates Cayla George (13 points, 11 rebounds) and Issie Bourne (16 points) were inspirational, and victory for the Flyers (8-9) puts them one win ahead of the UC Capitals (7-9) in fourth spot. 

But Southside Melbourne face an uphill battle over the next week when they play the high-flying Bendigo, Townsville and Perth, the three sides above them on the ladder.

“I gave them a bit of a rip at halftime in the locker room. In the second half we were sensational defensively,” Flyers coach Kristi Harrower said. 

“We had moments where we struggled to score, but to keep that team to 17 points in the second half is pretty good.

“I keep saying to our group that if we want to be a contender, we’ve got to beat one or two of those teams. We’ve got to be able to make a statement.”

Adelaide (5-14) slump to last on the ladder after coughing up 23 personal fouls and conceding 17 turnovers.

Along with Loughridge, Steph Talbot (10 rebounds) and Sania Feagin were typically busy, grabbing 12 and 16 points respectively.

“Dallas is a baller. She can score at will on anyone. The next step for her is going to be controlling the game,” coach Aja Parham-Ammar said.

“I’m disappointed in the second half. I don’t think we showed who we are.”

The Flyers started fast, going on a 10-2 run before Loughridge hit three triples to cut the deficit to two points at quarter-time.

With the teams exchanging buckets in the second quarter, Adelaide conceded foul after foul, which the Flyers exploited to lead 44-41 at halftime.

The Lightning were messy in the second half, giving up countless turnovers while scoring just 17 points as they struggled to convert their looks.

Southside Melbourne capitalised as Maddy Rocci and George helped the side to a third-quarter 14-0 game-defining run, before Manuela Puoch scored back-to-back triples to seal victory.

AAP