The oil
Well, nobody would have predicted the Whai and the Tokomanawa Queens to be in the final, if you had looked at the final seedings. The top two seeds — the Mainland Pouakai and the Northern Kahu, the defending champions — were knocked out in the playoffs last weekend. The Queens came from behind, and were in big foul trouble, to beat the Pouakai 75-70, and the Whai had a comprehensive 78-63 victory over the Kahu.
The Whai looked classy and just got better deeper in the game, while the Queens showed some real resilience to come back against the form team of the league. The Whai, who were third seeds, get the hosting rights in Tauranga tomorrow afternoon.
The match-up
The Queens have had the wool over the Whai in the regular season, winning two of their three encounters. They won 92-90 in their first meeting and 85-73 at the end of October.
WNBA player Jordan Horston starred in the latter for the Queens with a massive 20 points and 17 rebounds. The Whai, however, responded strongly in their last meeting to run away with a 97-63 victory and hold the Queens to their lowest tally this season.
The Queens were without Horston and captain Stella Beck in that thumping.
Two very evenly-matched teams. Watch out for some big battles across the court between Morgan Yaeger (Whai) and Florencia Chagas (Queens), and Ashley Joens (Whai) and Horston.
The Whai
The Whai really have come home with a wet sail, and the return of Mikayla Cowling and Yaeger has played a big part in that. Yaeger, the Australian point guard, has been the extra piece they needed, after she and American Cowling after missing the opening rounds through injury, as did American Cowling.
Former WNBA player Joens has been big all season in her ability to bank points from anywhere. She has also been a player people target, picking up the most fouls on and she makes teams pay from the free throw line.
McKenna Dale has quietly chipped away all season as well and deserves her flowers for her work across the floor. She added 23 points and seven rebounds last week. The Whai split their load across the floor, with quality stepping up when needed and making them a handful for teams to put away when they are humming. Expect them to be up for their first Tauihi final — let alone in front of a home crowd.
The Queens
The Queens will become the only team to feature in all three Tauihi finals tomorrow. They really have set the standard since the league began.
Horston, who plays for the Seattle Storm, has been a game changer this season and her experience has lifted everyone around her. But they have got the best out of Chagas, South Korean international Jihyun Park and Australian Lou Brown, who has come up with countless rebounds to help the Queens punish teams. Beck, a stalwart of Wellington basketball, has been the glue and much of her work goes unnoticed.
They showed a lot of heart last week to be down by as much as 16 to come back and win the game. Horston and Park found themselves in foul trouble last week but managed to find their way back into the game.
While Horston did not return her usual figures, Park really stepped up another level and brought the intensity to help drive them through the rough patches. More of that will be needed against a gritty Whai team desperate for their first championship.
The tip
Went 0-for-2 last week, so possibly best not to take my word for it. It should be an evenly matched contest, but if Horston can stay out of foul trouble, she knows how to bring the big games home. Queens win their second title in three years.
