WCBA 2010 Ladies Finals – CPUT vs. Montana Vikings – Game 2

So how do you describe heart, commitment and dedication? Think about it.

CPUT just had to win this game to take the Ladies 2010 WCBA trophy and they had the team to achieve that goal. They seemed to be heading in the right direction after the first quarter with a 6 point lead.

The issue with CPUT is not that they don’t have the quality to compete with the Vikings, on the contrary, they have loads of good players but they don’t play as a unit most of the times. It seems as if the players get into this one pass one shot mode when the game gets close and this leads to bad shot selection, bad decision and works to their disadvantage.

After their first game win over the Vikings ladies who had led during the majority of the game only to let it slip in the fourth, coach Matthew Skade was hoping that his team would come out with the same intensity of that last quarter. He welcomed back Sashai Yhukutwana in the squad for game 2 to add some of her experience to the team.

Vikings on the other hand relied on their team spirit and the on-court leadership of Thesline Davids to get them to the finish line.  They kept taking the ball to the baskets like they had done the previous game but this time they maintained it throughout the game not just for 3 quarters. Thesline chief partner in crime again was Veranique Samuels who has a deadly 3 point shot as part of her arsenal. And the score at the half told its own story with the game tied at 31 apiece.

In the 3rd quarter, Vikings put in some extra effort on the back of Thesline and Veranique while CPUT was relying Sasha to keep them within touching distance. But this quarter again showed how important your free throws are with most points scored from the charity line.

With CPUT running out of players with Sasha fouled out alongside team captain Ayanda Vumazonke, the other players couldn’t rally enough in the last quarter to catch up to the Vikings despite their best efforts. There was no cohesion in the end and the girls looked a bit flat. Vikings were just feeding off the energy of Thesline and when the final whistle blew you could see their delight at this “upset”.

Game 3 should be an interesting proposition and to answer the question at the top, you will find all those attributes in Montana Vikings star player, Thesline Davids. With all odds stuck up against her team, she stepped up to the plate and delivered big time.

Score breakdown by quarter:

Q1: Montanan Vikings 10 – 16 CPUT

Q2: Montanan Vikings 31 – 31 CPUT

Q3: Montanan Vikings 41 – 45 CPUT

Q4: Montanan Vikings 64 – 57 CPUT (final score)

Article by Victor Shakineza

Tags: Basketball, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, CPUT, Montana Vikings, UCT, University of Cape Town, WCBA, Western Cape Basketball Association