The Otago-Southland side kept its semifinal hopes alive with an impressive 58-49 ANZ Championship win over the classy Adelaide Thunderbirds in Dunedin last night.
Most would have pencilled the Thunderbirds in for the victory before the first centre pass but it was the Steel's experienced trio of Donna Wilkins, Megan Dehn and Megan Hutton who stole the limelight from their much-vaunted opponents.
Wilkins just seems to get better every game and her combination with Dehn was magical to watch.
Even the star-studded Thunderbirds defence of Mo'onia Gerrard and Geva Mentor were left in their wake as Wilkins and Dehn raced around the court like players half their age.
The 30-plus pair had plenty of support from a patient midcourt which provided some excellent service.
Liana Barrett-Chase continues to shine and the underrated Wendy Telfer has made giant strides in the past few weeks.
The win lifts the home side in to fourth place with seven wins from 12 matches.
More importantly, it leaves the Steel well-placed to make the play-offs.
Assuming it wins its remaining round-robin match against the Swifts in Invercargill on Saturday, all eyes will be on the Firebirds-Fever match in Perth on Monday.
If the Firebirds lose, the Steel will advance to the play-offs but if they win the calculators will come out with the side with the superior goal differential joining the Magic, Vixens and Thunderbirds in the semifinals.
It was evident from the opening exchanges both sides meant business.
The Steel set the tone early, racing to a 4-1 lead.
The Thunderbirds counter-attacked, moving the ball through the court with blistering speed and quickly closed the gap.
Lanky Thunderbirds shooter Kate Beveridge used her height advantage well and Natalie Medhurst drilled all six of her attempts in the first period.
But Wilkins and Dehn were just as accurate down the other end despite the attention of the imposing figure of Mentor, who did her best to disrupt the Steel's supply of ball.
With her side trailing 16-13, Thunderbirds coach Jane Woodlands-Thompson rang the changes.
Midcourters Laura von Bertouch and Joanne Sutton were injected into the game with Gerrard shifting from wing defence to goal defence.
Laura von Bertouch's presence added pace to the midcourt but the bounce of the ball just seemed to roll for the home side.
Gerrard got a nice tip but it fell nicely for the Steel.
Moments later, she showed her frustration with a tiff with Wilkins.
The outcome was a penalty for the Steel.
Hutton lifted her game from the previous weeks and kept Beveridge to three goals.
By half-time the Steel had extended its lead to six goals and, with the camp's confidence growing with every play, the 2800-strong crowd began to sense something special.
And it got it.
The Steel executed superbly and pounced on any scraps in the midcourt.
The visitors fell off the pace in the third quarter and were outscored 16-11 but, to their credit, they kept battling and won the last quarter.
At one stage, they closed to within six goals but the Steel was not about to let its opponent back into the match.
Steel 58 (Donna Wilkins 36/41, Megan Dehn 22/28), Thunderbirds 49 (Kate Beveridge 26/31, Natalie Medhurst 23/26).
Quarter 16-13, half-time 30-24, third quarter 46-35.
