Tokomanawa Queens Reign Supreme: Back-to-Back Wins in Pivotal Tauihi League Showdown

Game seven of the Tauihi League season for the Tokomanawa Queens took place in front of a lively Te Rauparaha Arena crowd this past Saturday evening against the Northern Kāhu. This is the second matchup this season after they faced off in the final last year. The game also marks the start of the second half of the competition as teams battle for seeding and look to get in a groove come finals time.

Fortunately, for the passionate Queens' crowd, they were treated to not only one but two wins, courtesy of victories in the Rapid and Tauihi leagues. 

RAPID LEAGUE

After losing their previous Rapid League outing, the Queens returned to their winning ways and moved to five wins on the season. The 42 points for the Queens, as a part of the 42-36 win, is the most recorded by a team this season. The scoring was balanced, with no player recording more than 10. Paris Lokotui was the lone double-digit scorer for the Queens with a highly-efficient 10 points on five from six shooting. Letava Kenny followed closely behind with an all-around performance of nine points, four rebounds and two assists. 

This strong scoring extended to the bench and was one of the main reasons for victory, Queens leading 11-0 in bench points, their depth and experience paying dividends again. The story for the Kāhu was the polar opposite. They decided to play Tall Fern, Krystal Leger-Walker and American Imar'i Thomas in the Rapid League, showing how vital every point will be in the tight season.

Both these players excelled in their minutes, Thomas putting up a game-high 19 points while only missing two shots. Meanwhile, Leger-Walker became a distributor, dishing six assists and seven points. 

The close contest can be attributed to the 12-6 third-quarter Queens' win, mainly because the other three periods ended with a 10-10 scoreline. The win also put extra pressure on the impending Tauihi League game. Because the Queens were able to lock up one point, whoever won this game would move up to first on the table.

TAUIHI LEAGUE

After winning the first game against the Kāhu this season, the Queens were able to take a lot of lessons from the previous matchup and build on them. However, it will be a very different Kāhu team as they miss Tall Ferns Tahlia Tupaea and Penina Davidson. Additionally, for the Queens, it won't be the same starting five played in their last matchup; with Grace Hunter and Josie Trousdell inserted into the five, it will mark their fifth different starting lineup. 

Despite the missing players, a grand final rematch will always add a bit of extra spice and competition to the game, and that is precisely what happened in the 92-88 Queens win. The close final scoreline was a key theme throughout the game, the most significant lead only being eight points for the Queens. This resulted in some excellent back-and-forth basketball. The contrasting styles of the two teams were really on show with the fast backcourt of Carr and Watts for the Queens pushing to get the fast break, compared to the Kāhu, who looked to slow it down and get the ball in Leger-Walker and Thomas' hands.

Star guard Carr said one of the main goals for the Queens was "Pushing the ball in transition, finding the open person and hitting the shot".

Chrislyn Carr had arguably her best game of the season, a bounce-back game after recording her lowest scoring output against the Whai last week. Carr's 32 points were the most she's scored in the seven games this year. She also added six rebounds and six assists to have a great game. The other two Americans for the Queens were as impactful as ever, with both Steph Watts and Maya Dodson scoring 17 points. Dodson missed their previous game due to an ear infection and made sure everyone could hear her in her return, recording a double-double with 10 rebounds. Unbelievably, all her 10 rebounds came on the offensive end, not recording a single defensive rebound. She also blocked five shots which is a season-high. 

Kāhu was led by a strong bench performance, mainly from key contributions for Thomas and Leger-Walker, who dominated the Rapid League. Again like the Rapid-League, Thomas led the Kāhu in scoring, this time with 25 points. Likewise, Leger-Walker continued her excellent passing performance, registering a double-double with 19 points and 13 assists. The Kāhu had some great individual performances but couldn't match the depth of the Queens. 

Thomas and Leger-walker playing a whooping 53 minutes may have contributed to the Kāhu letting a fourth-quarter lead slip and losing the last period by 22-16. As Queens' guard Steph Watts said after the game, "It was a complete team effort… everyone came together collectively and stepped up in the big moments". A strong team performance is critical if you want to go far in the season.

The win means the Queens move up to top spot on the ladder, setting up a top-of-the-table clash against the Southern Hoiho on Wednesday. You can catch this game live on Sky Sport, with coverage starting at 6:30 pm. The next home game will be a Friday night clash at Te Rauparaha Arena against the Mainland Pouākai. Rapid League starts at 6:30 pm and Tauihi League at 7:30 pm.

RAPID: Queens 42, Kāhu 36 ➡️ Full Stats
TAUIHI: Queens 92, Kāhu 88 ➡️ Full Stats