Top Four Teams Reach NWBA Women’s Division Semifinals
All top four seeds advanced in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) Women’s Division Wheelchair Basketball Tournament. And all four did so handily on Friday at Lakeshore Foundation in Birmingham, Ala.
The No. 1 seed WASA Marquette Eagles, No. 2 seed LWSRA Lady Hawks, No. 3 seed Dallas Lady Mavericks and No. 4 seed Arizona Storm advanced to the NWBA Women’s Division tournament quarterfinals.
As the top three seeds, the WASA Marquette Eagles, LWSRA Lady Hawks and Dallas Lady Mavericks each received byes and all moved on after winning a quarterfinal game.
Top-seeded WASA rolled to a 64-20 victory over No. 9 seed Angel City Sports, the No. 2 seed LWSRA Lady Hawks downed No. 6 seed Lakeshore, 48-28, and the No. 3 seed Lady Mavericks defeated the No. 10 seed Ability360 Mercury, 48-21, in the second round.
No. 4 seed Arizona had to play two games, but won them both — cruising to a 46-14 victory over No. 13 seed BlazeSports Lady Ballers in the first round and then defeating the No. 5 seed Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets, 54-28, in the second round.
No. 1 seed WASA and No. 4 seed Arizona will meet in one quarterfinal, while No. 2 seed LWSRA and No. 3 seed Dallas will meet in another Saturday, with the winners advancing to an afternoon semifinal game.
Inaugural Military Tournament Starts
The Central Florida Warriors took down both Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) teams and sit atop the inaugural NWBA’s Military Division Wheelchair Basketball Tournament after the first day.
Central Florida (2-0) used its defense to dominate Friday, knocking off PVA 1, 40-31, in the tournament’s opening game and then rolled to a 72-12 victory over PVA 2 at Lakeshore Foundation in Birmingham, Ala.
Central Florida finished undefeated, while PVA 1 and ParaSport Spokane Warrior Team each went 1-1 and PVA 2 went 0-2.
In the opener, the Central Florida Warriors forced PVA 1 into 11 first-half turnovers and then held off a late comeback rally in their 40-31 win. Jason Ellis led Central Florida with a game-high 15 points and added eight rebounds, while Kevin Greene (eight points, eight rebounds) and Javier Rodriguez (eight points, five rebounds) helped give the team a lift.
Brent Garlic led PVA 1 with 10 points, while Freddie Smith had nine points and eight rebounds and Perry Price had eight points and 10 rebounds.
Central Florida rolled in its 72-12 win over PVA 2, with Ellis scoring 23 points, Greene adding 11 and Rodriguez scoring 10. Julius McManus led PVA 2 with four points, while four others — Jabrier Lee, James Beilfuss, Fain Grogg and Patrick Peterson — scored two points apiece.
As for PVA 1, it rebounded after the opening-game loss in a big way, defeating ParaSport Spokane, 60-47, in its afternoon game thanks to a more established offensive gameplan and fewer turnovers. Price scored a game-high 21 points, hitting his first nine shots and finished 10-of-12 from the field. He also added seven rebounds.
PVA 1’s Jhoonar Barrera scored 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 2-of-2 from 3-point range, while Garlic added 10 points despite missing the game’s first 10 minutes after he overslept. PVA 1 only had 11 turnovers.
Anthony Farve led ParaSport Spokane Warrior (1-1) with a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Christopher Hart added 10 points and two rebounds. Andrew Strother had eight points and nine rebounds and Gerald Blakely had eight points and four rebounds.
Farve also led ParaSport Spokane Warrior in its 46-12 win over PVA 2, scoring a game-high 17 points and adding six rebounds, while Blakely had 10 points and four rebounds. Beilfuss and Lee led PVA 2 with four points apiece, while Peterson and McManus had two each.
National Wheelchair Basketball Association Women’s Division Tournament
Friday April 21
First Round
No. 9 Angel City Sports 30, No. 8 ParaSport Spokane 11
No. 4 Arizona Storm 56, No. 13 BlazeSports Lady Ballers 14
No. 5 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Women’s 42, No. 12 Cincinnati Dragons 19
No. 6 Lakeshore Lightning 42, No. 11 Mary Free Bed-Women 7
No. 10 Ability360 Mercury 29, No. 7 Seattle Storm 21
Second Round
No. 1 WASA Marquette Eagles 64, No. 9 Angel City Sports 20
No. 4 Arizona Storm 54, No. 5 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Women’s 28
No. 2 LWSRA Lady Hawks 48, No. 6 Lakeshore Lightning 28
No. 3 Dallas Lady Mavericks 48, No. 10 Ability360 Mercury 21
Consolation Bracket
No. 12 Cincinnati Dragons 42, No. 13 BlazeSports Lady Ballers 19
No. 6 Lakeshore Lightning 38, No. 12 Cincinnati Dragons 17
No. 7 Seattle Storm 35, No. 9 Angel City Sports 25
No. 5 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets Women’s 42, No. 11 Mary Free Bed-Women 18
No. 10 Ability360 Mercury 36, No. 8 ParaSport Spokane 24
Military Division
Pool Play
Central Florida Warriors 40, PVA 1 31
ParaSport Spokane Warrior Team 46, PVA 2 1
PVA 1 60, ParaSport Spokane Warrior Team 47
Central Florida Warriors 72, PVA 2 12