WHILE Wallan’s Big V division two women’s side did not emerge from Saturday night’s top-of-the-ladder showdown with Gippsland United victorious, the Panthers pushed the undefeated United closer than any team has this season.
A late Wallan surge nearly stole victory from the jaws of defeat, but the Panthers, who had trailed all game, came up just short in a 79-82 loss.
Star import Kylah Collins played one of her best games in the teal and black of Wallan, scoring a season-high 43 points, swiping seven steals and hauling down 16 rebounds – 11 of them offensive.
Collins’ steals, along with five by Olivia Dalmau and four from Sarah Scott, helped the Panthers win the turnover battle convincingly as they committed only 12 against United’s 27.
But despite taking better care of the ball, Wallan had trouble finding the bottom of the net, shooting only 31 per cent from the field and 13 per cent from three-point range compared to 51 per cent and 33 per cent respectively for United.
Dalmau was the only Panther other than Collins to score in double figures, but needed 22 shots to score her 15 points.
Gippsland’s MaKenzie Miller was her team’s best player, scoring 28 points and adding 11 rebounds.
Wallan trailed by 11 points with less than two minutes left in the game, but four straight free throws from Collins narrowed the gap to seven.
A Miller jump shot restored Gippsland’s lead to nine points, but back-to-back three-pointers from Dalmau and Collins trimmed the margin to three with 29 seconds left.
Only a pair of clutch free throws by United’s Shanara Notman gave the home side a winning buffer, with a final trip to the line by Collins only serving to narrow the margin in the dying seconds.
The Panthers dropped to third place on the ladder with a 7-2 record after the loss, and has a bye this weekend before playing Gippsland United again in round 10.
Wallan’s division two men will be back in action this weekend after a bye, taking on Maccabi in a road game at Bialik College at 12pm on Sunday.
The youth league division two men played two games at the weekend, downing the Bellarine Storm 79-76 on Saturday before going down to Sunbury 57-90 on Sunday.
Jayden O’Brien’s 23 points off the bench led the Panthers in their win, with Dion Stacey adding 17 and James Bonnici scoring 10.
The team struggled to generate scores in the loss to Sunbury, with only Bonnici, 12 points, and Dylan Lombardo, 11, registering double figures.
The team will play a home game against Melbourne University this Sunday at 1pm.
