The third set of games this season was played over the weekend. The league now takes a weekend off for the holiday and then the All Star Game will be played the following Saturday. A number of players certainly made their case to participate in that game in these rounds. This break also marks the end of the games at Fremont High School as action moves to San Leandro High School when the season resumes.
Saturday
Phoenix 107 Wolves 82
The Saturday games started with a battle of teams with the same record, featuring an even first quarter and a close second quarter too. The Phoenix began to pull away in the second half, dominating the fourth quarter for the 107-82 win. The combination of Delia Moore from outside and Khalis Cain in the paint ended up being the key. Micah Gray, Nevaeh Asiasi, and Bianca McGee were the main trio for the Wolves.
Phoenix: Moore 36 Cain 22/14r Lawson 19/8a Ma 13/8r Duckett 7 Michelis 6/8r Wilson 4
Wolves: Gray 20 Asiasi 20 McGee 20 Huggins 9 Webb 9 Fitzgerald-Greer 4 Gonzalez 0
Blaze 89 Titans 51
The undefeated Blaze were quite shorthanded for this game, but did add league veteran IImar’I Thomas to give them six players against the team at the other end of the standings. The Titans also added a player, bringing in California native Tegan Thurman after she completed her rookie season in Hungary. Chandler Prater and Nette Howard led the Blaze, which had a great first quarter and built on that lead for the 89-51 win. Destiny Jackson continued her strong start to the season for the Titans.
Titans: Jackson 22 Hiraki 13/6r/6a Faasolo 4/7r Thurman 4/6r Dunn 4 Arnoldi 2/10r Andersen 2 Richter 0
Blaze: Prater 27/9r Howard 21/16r Range 15/8r Walker 11/11r Thomas 8 Mauricio 7
Riptide 86 Royals 77
The Riptide had a fantastic start to their game as Sidney Richards led the way, but they showcased their depth in having a full squad available. Miyu Mizukawa led the Royals, which made it closer in the fourth quarter, but still ended up losing 86-77.
Riptide: Richards 22 McDonald-Perry 10/8r Whitfield 9/6r Hamilton 9 Sterling 7 Woods 7 Smith 6/7r Tonga 6/6r Armendariz 5 Finau 3 Linzie 2 Cooper 0
Royals: Mizukawa 22/10a Mazyck 18/8r Hanna 9/8r Jackson 9/7r Roberts 6 Robinson 6 Hart 5 Stephens 2
Swish 103 Reign 94
The last game of the day ended up being quite exciting as the Reign looked to remain in second place. They trailed heading into the fourth quarter, but had their biggest offensive output yet on their way to a 103-94 win. Andriana Avent led the way for them and Amiah Simmons, who finished her college career at San Jose before heading overseas to start her professional career, had a strong debut. Kharyssa Richarson was fantastic for the Reign in the loss.
Swish: Avent 21 Simmons 19/7r Harris 15/7r Holland 14 Contreras 14 Lewis 13 Ogele 7/11r Jackson 0
Reign: K. Richardson 35/7r Thomas 19/6r D. Richardson 11 Williams 10/6r Julien 9 San Juan 7/10r/9a Ramirez 3 Latu 0
Sunday
Titans 83 Wolves 63
The Wolves opened up Sunday’s action as well, but had a tough start to their game even with Aaniya Webb leading the way. The Titans saw their best chance for a first win and made sure of it in the fourth quarter with Ashley Hiraki finishing a great weekend alongside Destiny Jackson for the 83-63 victory. They also got a debut from Rachel Harvey, who is a San Francisco native who spent her rookie season playing overseas.
Wolves: Webb 23/8r Gray 19 McGee 10 Fitzgerald-Greer 6/6r Asiasi 5/8r Huggins 0 Gonzalez 0
Titans: Jackson 27/7r Hiraki 21/10r Faasolo 12/7r Harvey 8 Thurman 7/7r Dunn 6 Arnoldi 2 Andersen 2
Phoenix 74 Riptide 59
The two teams sitting behind the lead duo met next with both teams trying to challenge for playoff positioning early. The Riptide had the better first quarter, but the Phoenix took the lead by halftime. They continued to improve in the second half, using a stifling defense in the fourth quarter and getting contribution from up and down the lineup for the 74-59 win.
Phoenix: Wilson 15/9r Michelis 14 Cain 10/8r Lawson 9/12r Moore 7 Ma 6 Duckett 6 Sadler 5 Tameilau 2
Riptide: Sterling 15 McDonald-Perry 12/11r Whitfield 11 Finau 9/6r Armendariz 6 Richards 2 Linzie 2 Hamilton 1 Smith 1 Tonga 0 Woods 0
Blaze 75 Swish 62
The top two teams in the standings also played with the Swish trying to hand the Blaze their first loss of the season with neither team at full strength. It was a good start for the Swish, but the Blaze dominated the second quarter. The Swish tied the game by the end of the third quarter only for the Blaze to show their championship mettle again the fourth quarter for the 75-62 win.
Blaze: Walker 19/11r Mauricio 17 Prater 16/14r Howard 12 Range 6/14r/6a Li 3 Thomas 2/7r
Swish: Lewis 15/9r Contreras 15 Jackson 13/8r Holland 10 Avent 6 Ogele 3/6r Harris 0
Royals 75 Reign 74
The last game of the day was between teams trying to avoid falling out of playoff contention and it ended up being the closest game of the weekend. The Reign had a great first quarter, but the Royals chipped into their lead before halftime. The third quarter was nearly even, setting up a fourth quarter that the Royals had the better of to edge past their opponents 75-54.
Royals: Hart 17/6r Jackson 14/9r Hanna 13/8r Mizukawa 13/10r Mazyck 11/7r Robinson 4 Roberts 3/7r
Reign: Julien 16 K. Richardson 15/10r Williams 13 Thomas 12/8r San Juan 8 D. Richardson 8 Yniguez 2 Jackson 0 Ramirez 0
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