Otago showed signs of improvement but slumped to its second consecutive defeat when Southland edged away in the third quarter to win 53-43 at the Edgar Centre yesterday.
The defending national champion seized control of what had been an evenly contested match in the crucial third period.
Southland player-coach Natalie Avellino brought herself on and had a calming effect on her side, which, until that point, had been prone to error.
With the coach on the court, the silly mistakes dried up and Southland drew away, out-scoring Otago 16-8 and taking a nine-goal lead into the final quarter.
Otago battled hard and finished well, but laboured on attack.
Former Silver Ferns shooter Jodi Brown was sidelined with a thigh injury, which did not help the cause.
But the main problem was Otago's inability to feed its shooters.
Kate Shearer and Rihi Salter shared the duties at wing attack, but neither are naturals and struggled to thread the ball past an experienced Southland back three.
Southland goal keep Dana Bond snaffled plenty of ball in the first half and her replacement, Steel defender Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit, was equally effective.
Southland wing defence Erika Burgess also worked hard to slow down Otago's delivery.
"Erika Burgess was dynamic on defence and really cut our options down," Otago coach Nicola Jones said.
While Otago competed well and forced enough turnovers to win the game, a lot of ball was lost at the attack end.
However, Jones was pleased with the progress her side has made since suffering a 62-42 first-round defeat to Auckland.
"It was torrid out there, but we definitely stepped up from where we were last week."
Defensively, Otago was quite magnificent at times.
Goal keep Louise Thayer was simply outstanding.
While she conceded half a head in height to Southland shooter Ashleigh Smith, she more than made up for it in athleticism, grabbing intercept after intercept.
The Steel could do a lot worse putting a wing defence bib on her and giving her an ANZ Championship contract.
Thayer's defensive partner, Emma Moynihan, also impressed with her work-rate and effort.
In the midcourt, Southland had the edge, with busy centre Hayley Crofts making some nice touches.
Otago wing defence Hayley Saunders had a decent match against her former side but co-captain Debbie Hill was guilty of throwing too much ball away.
Former England and New Zealand international Jo Morrison produced an improved shooting display for Otago, landing 24 of her 30 attempts, and Southland's Smith looked a player with a good future, drilling 22 of her 25 shots on goal.
