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Caledonia Gladiators lifted the women’s Super League Basketball Betty Codona Trophy with a thrilling victory over Oaklands Wolves at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.<\/b><\/p>\n
The Scottish club claimed their first major title with a 61-59 victory as Mathilde Domenger led the scoring with a 17-point tally.<\/p>\n
St Albans-based Wolves trailed by three with 1.5 seconds remaining as Shanice Beckford-Norton hit the first of two free throws.<\/p>\n
They needed a rebound two-points to force added time but Lavinia da Silva hit the front rim as she gathered Beckford-Norton’s deliberate miss with her second attempt.<\/p>\n
“We’ve had a bit of a hard season. We knew it was going to be a battle. Wolves are a very good team,” Gladiators head coach Chantelle Handy told DAZN Sport.<\/p>\n
“It’s huge, it’s great exposure for Scottish basketball. We’re trying to develop things up there.<\/p>\n
“Today it was about aggressively going for the rim. We talked about it all season, about [the] need to get more depth inside. They made it difficult for us, they put on a show, we knew it was going to be a great game and it’s been absolutely amazing.”<\/p>\n
Although Tayjanna McGhee-Pleasant had the game’s first score, Wolves – who have a 100% record in the league – were 19-14 behind after the first quarter.<\/p>\n
Head coach Lee Ryan called two time outs in the second as he tried to gee up his team, as well as incurring a personal technical foul which Erin McGarrachan punished from the free throw line.<\/p>\n
Gladiators extended their advantage to six points at the interval but the game was quickly turned on its head after the resumption as a three-pointer by Samantha Ashby helped the Wolves race into a 34-33 lead.<\/p>\n
But Delaynie Byrne responded with a three of her own as the Gladiators recovered their composure, as the dangerous Beckford-Norton – Wolves’ top scorer with 15 – went to the sidelines after being penalised.<\/p>\n
Wolves faced an eight-point deficit at the start of the fourth and Domenger extended it to double figures with the first basket.<\/p>\n
But Ryan’s side were not finished and a three from McGhee-Pleasant was followed by a two-point steal by Ashby and when Ella Fotu burst through the middle for her first of the game, Wolves were just 51-50 in arrears.<\/p>\n
Terrinique Battle twice was presented with free throw opportunities, converting only one from two on each occasion, but when Dani McCray found the range, it was 59-58 to Gladiators with 13 seconds remaining on the clock.<\/p>\n
A foul enabled Tea Adams to score two from the line for Gladiators, whose 73% free throw success rate outstripped 48% by their opponents, and that proved decisive as Wolves failed to convert their last-ditch rebound ploy. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n