WNBL1 recap: Week 28 (8/9 May 2021) - live streams, stats and more

It was an action-packed end to the WNBL regular season, with the field now set for next weekend's playoffs.

There were some exciting contests across the league, with the battle for post-season spots going right down to the final game of the year.

With Ipswich already confirmed as champions, it was Worcester who eventually missed out on the playoffs as BA London Lions II and Thames Valley sealed the #7 and #8 spots respectively.

There's a recap of all the action below, and each result is also clickable if you wish to view the live stats.

Worcester bow out

BA London Lions II (6-12) 101-71 Worcester Wolves (6-12)

Worcester were left on the outside of the playoff picture looking in following a two loss weekend that began with a 101-71 defeat against rivals BA London Lions II.

Barking's Paula Puzule starred for the hosts in a must-win game as she finished with a team-high 21 points as Inma Bautista's 22 point, 14 rebound double-double wouldn't be enough for the visitors.

Worcester's woes coupled by results elsewhere meant the Wolves, BA and Thames Valley all finished on 12 points, with a mini-league table being created between those three sides to decide their final positions.

In that scenario, only games between the three teams involved are counted. The Lions came out on top with a 3-1 record and were placed into seventh, with the Cavs at 2-2 finishing eighth and Worcester at 1-3 in ninth.

This result also capped a season of two halves for both these sides. BA starting the year 0-8 and still searching for the first win in late March before going 6-4 across their final 10 games to climb off the foot of the table and into the playoffs.

Newly-promoted Worcester began their first season in D1W by winning four of their first five before a 2-11 record the rest of the way saw the side drop down the standings, with the loss of Grace Brownell to a season-ending knee injury a tough blow to overcome.

Elsewhere this weekend

CoLA Southwark Pride (13-4-1) secured the #2 seed for the post season following a two win weekend that began with a 64-48 victory over Team Solent Kestrels (10-8).

Isi Ozzy-Momodu (22pts, 14reb) was the only Southwark player to make it into double-digits scoring but her double-double was a huge contribution in a low-scoring contest.

Sunday's 80-47 win over Worcester allowed the London side to leapfrog second-place Loughborough, ending Worcester's post-season dreams on the process.

Simona Henshaw's 14 points on 6-9 shooting were enough to get the hosts over the line as Worcester were held to just 14 first half points.

Champs Ipswich (16-2) finished their regular season in style as they easily handled Reading Rockets (9-9) 78-37.

Twenty three points from Harriet Welham were more than enough for the Player of the Year contender to claim the D1W scoring title, with a final tally of 25.8ppg.

Reading were held to single digits in three of the game's four quarters, less than ideal prep for next weekend's playoffs.

Loughborough Riders (12-5-1) closed their season with a 75-73 win against Midlands rivals Nottingham Trent University (9-9).

In a tight game where neither side led by more than eight points, it was NTU that were ahead by five with 77 seconds remaining. The hosts would notch the game's final seven points though, with Makana Stone (20pts, 14reb) contributing four of them from the foul line.

Thames Valley Cavaliers (6-12) left it late to dive into the post-season thanks to back-to-back wins over bottom side Cardiff Met Archers (2-16).

Saturday's 72-58 home victory came courtesy of 15 points and nine boards from Ezekiela Lisk, as captain Katherine Goldsby added a 13/10 double-double. Cardiff's Isobel Bunyan continued her recent good form to finish with 19 points and 12 rebounds.

Eleanor Bishop moved to the fore in Sunday's contest, with her game-high 17 points pushing Thames Valley to a 73-50 win. Katie Richards had 15 points for the Welsh side, with Carys Roy putting up a 10 point, 10 rebound double-double.

This weekend's results:

Saturday 8 May

2pm - BA London Lions II 101-71 Worcester Wolves - LIVE STATS
2:30pm - Loughborough Riders 75-73 Nottingham Trent University - LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM
3pm - Thames Valley Cavaliers 72-58 Cardiff Met Archers - LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM
3pm - CoLA Southwark Pride 64-48 Team Solent Kestrels - LIVE STATS
6pm - Reading Rockets 37-78 Ipswich - LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM

Sunday 9 May

1pm - Cardiff Met Archers 50-73 Thames Valley Cavaliers - LIVE STATS
2pm - Worcester Wolves 47-80 CoLA Southwark Pride - LIVE STATS/LIVE STREAM

Main image credit - Graham Hodges

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