The NWBA Women’s and Military Wheelchair Basketball Tournament rolls into day two
The top-seeded WASA Marquette Eagles kept a quick pace and rolled their way into the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) Women’s Division Wheelchair Basketball Tournament championship game Saturday afternoon at Lakeshore Foundation in Birmingham, Ala.
An 18-0 mid-first-quarter run keyed the Eagles, as they dominated with their height inside in a 62-39 victory over the No. 3 seed Dallas Lady Mavericks during one NWBA Women’s Division Wheelchair Basketball Tournament semifinal. The second semifinal will be played Sunday morning before the championship at 11:30 a.m. ET Sunday.
Emily Oberst finished with a game-high 20 points and had seven rebounds. Becca Murray scored 16 points and had six rebounds, and Natalie Schneider finished with a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds as the Eagles (3-0) continued their streak of winning every game by 20 or more points.
Tied at 4-4 with 8 minutes and 55 seconds left in the first quarter, WASA scored 18 straight points to take a 22-4 lead with 1:05 left in the opening period. Murray scored eight, Oberst added four, Amber Infalt had three points and Schneider added two during the run that blew the game open.
Despite a couple players dealing with food poisoning the night before, including Murray, they still came out on top.
“We’ve all played together a long time, and we do like to push the pace so that people have to meet our energy, I guess,” says WASA Marquette Eagles player Christina Schwab, who scored four points.
WASA went 17-of-35 (48.5%) from the field in the first half and 30-of-62 (48.4%) for the game.
Meanwhile, Dallas struggled offensively — going 6-of-34 (17.6%) from the field in the first half and 19-of-63 (30.1%) overall.
Morgan Wood led Dallas with 14 points, while Princess Kindred added eight points off the bench, Mikila Salazar had six points and three rebounds and Darlene Hunter had five points and five rebounds.
Military Tournament
Central Florida stayed undefeated and advanced to the National Wheelchair Basketball Association Military Division Wheelchair Basketball Tournament’s championship game.
Kevin Greene, Pierre Sturgis and Jason Ellis each scored in double figures to lift the Warriors to a 47-25 victory over the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) 2 team in one NWBA Military Division Wheelchair Basketball Tournament semifinal. Central Florida will meet PVA 1, which defeated the ParaSport Spokane Warrior Team, 54-36, in Saturday night’s Game 2 semifinal.
Greene scored 16 points and pulled down nine rebounds, while Sturgis added 11 points and seven rebounds and Ellis had 10 points and eight rebounds. Their three-headed monster attack and balanced scoring front dominated another opponent.
Leading 14-7 with 1 minute and 34 seconds remaining in the first period, Central Florida (4-0) went on an 11-0 run that extended until less than 4 minutes remained in the second quarter and led 27-9 at halftime. PVA 2 didn’t get any closer than 17 points the rest of the game.
PVA’s Jhoonar Barrera switched teams from PVA 1 to PVA 2 to help out the inexperienced squad and led the team with 17 points. He was the only player to score in double figures. Jabrier Lee, James Beilfuss II and Clint Waltz each made baskets, while Durand Yates and Patrick Peterson each hit one free throw.
PVA 1 got a major boost from Robert Jones off the bench. With PVA struggling to find its rhythm offensively, Jones rallied the team. Trailing 9-4 with 3:10 left in the first quarter, he came in and scored 12 of his game-high 18 points in the final 13 minutes of the first half and helped give PVA 1 a 26-23 halftime lead. Jones went 9-of-13 from the field and had two rebounds. Perry Price (13 points and 10 rebounds) and Freddie Smith (13 points and eight rebounds) also scored in double figures for PVA 1, which capitalized off a defense that forced 23 turnovers.
Andrew Strother led ParaSport Spokane with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Gerald Blakely added 10 points and four rebounds. Anthony Farve was held to six points and three rebounds, while Christopher Hart had six points and four rebounds.
Earlier in the day, PVA 1 finished its pool play 2-1, as it defeated the PVA 2 team, 59-38, in both teams’ final pool play game.
Behind Brent Garlic’s 22 points and six rebounds, Price’s 19 points and eight rebounds and Smith’s 13 points and three rebounds, PVA 1 defeated PVA 2, 59-36, to close pool play on a two-game winning streak.
Leading 40-32 after three quarters, PVA 1 opened the game up in the fourth — going on a 14-0 run to start the period. Garlic scored six points during the run, while Price and Perry added four each. Garlic finished 10-of-15 from the field, while Price went 9-of-15, and Smith went 6-of-8.
Barrera provided PVA 2 with more of a point guard and scoring boost and it worked. He finished with a team-high 14 points and six rebounds that helped keep PVA 2 within striking distance until the fourth quarter. Lee added 10 points and five rebounds, while Yates had four points and six rebounds.
National Wheelchair Basketball Association Women’s Division Tournament
Saturday April 22
Quarterfinals
No. 1 WASA Marquette Eagles 75, No. 4 Arizona Storm 46
No. 3 Dallas Lady Mavericks 50, No. 2 LWSRA Lady Hawks 41
Semifinals
No. 1 WASA Marquette Eagles 62, No. 3 Dallas Lady Mavericks 39
Consolation Bracket
No. 8 ParaSport Spokane 41, No. 13 BlazeSports Lady Ballers 14
No. 6 Lakeshore Lightning 45, No. 7 Seattle Storm 25
No. 5 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Women’s 48, No. 10 Ability360 Mercury 20
No. 9 Angel City Sports 23, No. 8 ParaSport Spokane 12
No. 12 Cincinnati Dragons 31, No. 11 Mary Freed Bed Women 18
No. 2 LWSRA Lady Hawks 41, No. 6 Lakeshore Lightning 36
No. 4 Arizona Storm 51, No. 5 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Women’s 19
No. 4 Arizona Storm 51, No. 2 LWSRA Lady Hawks 36
13th-Place Game
No. 8 ParaSport Spokane 41, No. 13 BlazeSports Lady Ballers 14
11th-Place Game
No. 11 Mary Freed Bed Women 27, No. 8 ParaSport Spokane 13
Military Division Tournament
Pool Play
PVA 1 59, PVA 2 38
Central Florida Warriors 47, ParaSport Spokane Warrior Team 25
Central Florida Warriors 47, PVA 2 25
Semifinals
Central Florida Warriors 47, PVA 2 25
PVA 1 54, ParaSport Spokane Warrior Team 36