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No Comeback This Time, Cup Red Again
Orli Klinger
,03/08/2010 |
The women's cup is heading back to Ramat Hasharon. The girls in red played a great game and led by 17 in the 3rd when Plenette Pierson got hurt and didn't return until the 4th. Without her, Ramla staged a huge comeback and got the game tied in the final minutes but Ramat Hasharon held on, 69-65.
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Electra Ramat Hasharon 69 - Ramla 65
Boxscore
What a game. Ramat Hasharon played very well in major part thanks to a strong game by the Israelis, and led from buzzer to buzzer. The lead reached double digits in the 3rd, when Plenette Pierson tangled up with Kia Vaughn in a fight for position under the basket. She fell down holding her right shouler, the same shoulder she's had two surgeries on and was only able to get back on the court two months ago. The crowd held its collective breath until she got up. That must have lit a fire in Ramla as they came storming back led by Noell Quinn to cut the lead to 46-52 after 3. Pierson came back in early in the 4th and Ramla was able to tie the game at 62 with four minutes to play, but they never got the lead and Ramat Hasharon held on to win its 6th cup in club history.
Ramla won the fight in the stands from the tip, standing and signing through out though we are sick of hearing them curse. Ramat Hasharon's fans stayed in their seats much like their coach but they defintely could smile more. Ramat Hasharon started out well and went up 7-2 as Ambrosia Anderson outscored Ramla all by herself. Ramla cut it down to 14-16 with points in transition but couldn't get the ball inside against the zone, plus the 3s were not falling. Ramat Hasharon dominated the boards and got a 5 point lift off the bench from Yael Aharonov along with more points from Anderson & Sam to make it 23-14 after 1.
Ramat Hasharon kept up the good D in the 2nd and prevented Ramla from getting anything going inside. Ramla managed only 3 field goals in the quarter but they drew a lot of fouls and got to the line as Selwyn, Vaughn and Levitzky got in foul trouble. Ramla shot near 50% from the line and only got within 24-27 with four minutes til the break. Ramat Hasharon closed the quarter better as the Israelis were responsible for 13 of the team's 15 points in the quarter. Dori, Levitzky & Aharonov made it 33-25 as one minute passed. Ramla kept getting to the line and added a fastbreak layup by Pierson to cut it to 32-33 and get the crowd jumping, but Levtizky answered with a big three and Dori hit another jumper to make it 38-32 at the half.
Ramla's situation got a lot worse before it got better. Ramat Hasharon kept running away as Dori scored five in two minutes, 45-32. On the next play Pierson hurt her shoulder as she tangled up with Vaughn and was very slow to get up off the court. Ramat Hasharon soon made it 50-33 with 6 minutes to play in the 3rd. With Pierson still down behind the basket, Ramla started to re-create the comeback from the semi finals game. They started with some free throws and then transtion points, Lawson Wade's layup completed a 13-2 run to cut it to 46-52 after 3. Ramat Hasharon generated just 2 points in the last six minutes, turned the ball over and looked a lot like Natanya in the semis. But they had another quarter.
Ramla's comeback continued with good minutes by Quinn and Pierson got back on the floor which was a big relief for everyone. Quenn with two 3s and a basket completed the comback and tied the score at 62, four minutes left. Vaughn started to make amends for her off game so far and finished twice in the paint while Ramla turned it over and fell behind by 4 again. Another turnover and a bad shot from 3 by Jackson pushed the cup even further away, the lead got to 68-62 after Selwyn hit two free throws (her only points in the game). Sam saved a loose ball right to Lawson Wade for a 3 that made it 65-68 with 45 seconds left. Ramat Hasharon turned the ball over but they had 3 fouls to give in 25 seconds and Ramla didn't have a timeout. Lawson Wade took a chance on a good look from 3 with 12 seconds left but it didn't go this time and Ramat Hasharon held on.
For Electra Ramat Hasharon:
Ambrosia Anderson 18 pts
Merav Dori 14 pts
Sheri Sam 11 pts
Kia Vaughn 10 pts
Katia Levitsky 7 pts
Yael Aharonov 7 pts
Laine Selwyn 2 pts
For Elizur Ramla:
Edwige Lawson-Wade 17 pts
Noelle Quinn 16 pts
Plenette Pierson 16 pts
Shimrit Gigi 7 pts
Deanna Jackson 7 pts
Ina Gourevitch 2 pts
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Photo by: Motti Klinger |
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