Basketball: Coach upbeat despite Ferns' poor record

Coach Mike McHugh remains positive about New Zealand's progress despite their one win-five loss record at the Australian Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) pre-season tournament in Sale, Victoria.

The Tall Ferns' only victory in the tournament which finished on Sunday came when they avenged their 53-54 loss to Perth Lynx the previous night with a 69-54 win over the same opponents.

The New Zealanders were soundly beaten by powerhouses Bulleen (41-65) and Adelaide (39-64), who both emerged from the three days unbeaten, and fell just short of the Australian Institute of Sport (65-68) and Canberra (42-46).

Already without Olympians Donna Loffhagen, Angela Marino and Julie Ofsoski, the rebuilding Tall Ferns also lost highly promising centre Jess McCormack with a sprained ankle in their second game.

Compounding these absences, Noni Wharemate and Charmian Purcell, two of those to step up in earlier games, both missed the closing loss Adelaide encounter for religious reasons.

While the coaching staff were generally happy with the defensive effort throughout the competition, holding opponents to 58.5 points per match, offence continued to be an issue. That was also the case against Australia in last month's Oceania Championships.

"The tournament was very satisfying in the development of the team, particularly the younger brigade," McHugh said after the Adelaide game in which New Zealand were outscored 17-1 in the third quarter.

Wharemate emerged as the team's leading scorer with 9.8 points, with Purcell, who will suit up for Sydney Flames in the WNBL this year, contributing 9.0 points and 8.0 rebounds.

RESULTS:

Perth Lynx 54 (Kat Hanks 14, Natalie Love 10), New Zealand 53 (Noni Wharemate 15). Halftime: NZ 37-30.

New Zealand 69 (Rebecca Cotton 14, Noni Wharemate 12), Perth Lynx 54 (Deanna Smith 16). Halftime: NZ 32-20.

Australian Institute of Sport 68 (Mikaela Dombkins 14, Lisa Scaglia 14), New Zealand 65 (Lisa Wallbutton 11, Rebecca Cotton 10, Jody Cameron 10). Halftime: AIS 36-28.

Bulleen Melbourne Boomers 65 (Hollie Grima 20), New Zealand 41 (Charmian Purcell 10, Noni Wharemate 9). Halftime: 46-17.

Canberra Cannons 46 (Angela Marino 12, Eleanor Sharp 11, Jenny Whittle 11), New Zealand 42 (Charmian Purcell 13, Rebecca Cotton 12). Halftime: Canberra 21-16.

Adelaide Fellas 64 (Erin Phillips 11, Rebecca Duke 10), New Zealand 38 (Kate McMeeken-Ruscoe 9). Halftime: Adelaide 35-30.

- NZPA