Otago hitting form at the right time

BASKETBALL Women’s NBL

Semifinal

Otago Gold Rush v Waikato Wizards Auckland, tonight, 7.30pm

Final

Tomorrow, 5.30pm

BY normal standards the Otago Gold Rush has had a rough preparation for tonight’s semifinal.

As far as this year’s National Basketball League goes though, it has almost been a luxury.

The team does not have half its players travelling on game day from different starting points.

It is not having to play two nights in a row — although it will if it makes tomorrow’s final.

Perhaps most significantly, it was able to train together for the first time in several weeks yesterday.

On top of that, it is taking good form into its match against the Waikato Wizards in Auckland.

The Gold Rush has won its last three games.

That followed two losses to open the campaign, one of which came against Waikato, the other against the unbeaten Harbour Breeze.

But being a relatively new team, those opening games were a good experience.

‘‘I think the first couple of games were real learnings as to what the level was,’’ coach Gavin Briggs said.

‘‘When we played Harbour in the first game they had, what, five Tall Ferns?

‘‘They realised the level they had to play to.

‘‘I think now they realise that they can compete at that level, the belief is there as well.’’

Briggs felt limiting turnovers was the biggest area for improvement.

He said everything else was starting to click — notably the shots were beginning to fall.

It had been key for the side that many of its younger players were stepping up at different moments.

Te Araroa Sopoaga was tied with the team’s Tall Fern Zoe Richards in fourthplace on the league’s most valuable player points table.

She was one Briggs said was key, while he also felt Olivia O’Neill and Fay Fualau had shone against Auckland and Canterbury respectively.

However, when the team’s offence was not clicking, its defence was keeping it in games.

‘‘We had our minicamp before we came up here, that was one of the big focuses for that week,’’ Briggs said.

‘‘Just knuckling down defensively.

‘‘It’s a cliche but we’ve got a catchphrase we’ve been really focusing on here is that ‘our defence gives us our offence’.

‘‘So the harder we play defence, the more opportunities we get to run in transition and everything else.

‘‘And they’ve bought into it.’’ He was expecting a tough game from Waikato, which had threats all over the court.

In Esra McGoldrick it has one of the league’s key threats, bringing both size and skill.

Makayla Daysh also provides strength inside, while guard Kayla Manuirirangi leads a handy back court that can threaten in transition and from the threepoint line.

If the Gold Rush wins it will face the winner of last night’s semifinal between the Harbour Breeze and Capital Swish tomorrow.