Fever suffered their first defeat at the hands of the Vixens during First Nations Round, going down 65-76 at RAC Arena.
The Vixens put Fever under pressure from the start of the contest, forcing the Fever into an uncharacteristic 22 general play turnovers. Fever did win the super shot battle, scoring nine to five in a positive sign for the remainder of the season.
Meanwhile the Lightning are coming off back-to-back wins after a slow start to the season. Last week, they recorded an 11-goal victory over the Firebirds to move into the top four at the halfway mark of the season.
Ash Ervin led the way for the Lightning last week with 109.5 Nissan Net Points, nine deflections and four intercepts
Head-to-Head
The big question will be whether former Fever defender Courtney Bruce returns to the Lightning’s line-up to take on Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard. Bruce has missed the Lightning’s past three matches with a calf injury.
In the midcourt, the potential battle between Leesa Mi Mi and the versatile Fever combination of Jess Anstiss, Kelsey Browne and Jordan Cransberg will be crucial to control that area of the court.
Fever’s defensive trio of Kadie-Ann Dehaney, Sunday Aryang and Fran Williams will be looking to shut down the international experienced duo of Steph Fretwell and Cara Keonen. Add into the mix the super shot abilities of Reilley Batcheldor and the battle will be pivotal to determining the outcome.
From the Court
West Coast Fever Vice Captain Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard said the team is hungry for the win against the Lightning.
“We will focus on coming on strong in attack, using all of our structures and everything in our toolbox to get the win,” she said.
Details
You can catch Fever take on the Lightning from the Sunshine Coast this Saturday night on Kayo Sports and Foxtel
West Coast Fever v Sunshine Coast Lightning
5pm AWST, Saturday 1 June 2024
UniSC Arena, Sunshine Coast
Watch here.
