Magic search for answers after tough loss to Stars

Delivering in all areas of the court, the Robinhood Stars maintained their dominance over the Avis Waikato Bay of Plenty Magic to register their first ANZ Premiership points of the season.

Leading at every break, the Stars were always in the box seat for a commanding 66-47 win over the Magic at Trustpower Baypark Arena in Tauranga.

It was the Stars ninth straight win over their opponents, and they signalled to the rest of the competition that, despite losing some key players from last year’s Grand Final appearance, they remain a force in the league.

They dominated in every area of the court – from the back where Elle Temu and Holly Fowler shut down the Magic’s strike weapons in Bailey Mes and Ameliaranne Ekenasio, to the midcourt hustle from Samon Nathan and Mila Reuelu-Buchanan and rounded out from a sharp shooting performance from Maia Wilson, Amorangi Malesala and Jamie Hume.

It was also a stand-out performance from wing attack Gina Crampton who conducted play up front and finished with a mammoth 55 feeds and 35 goal assists.

Little went right for the Magic who again struggled with their links and offerings of just one option on attack.
Coach Mary-Jane Araroa went with the seven players who finished strongly in the one-goal loss to the Pulse in Round 1 with Mes running on at goal attack and Ekenasio at goal shoot while Georgie Edgecombe got the nod at wing attack.

That mobile shooting end saw Stars coach Kiri Wills opt for Fowler at goal defence with Temu back at keeper at Nathan on the wing, while Malesala started at goal attack at the other end of the court.
Both teams were deliberate with their early play, showing patience with ball in hand and nothing separated them after five minutes.

The mobility of Temu and Fowler, who played schoolgirl netball together in the defensive circle,  caused some hesitation from the Magic feeders and the hunger from Reuelu-Buchanan and Nathan on the outside saw the Stars pick up plenty of ball – their high work-rate paving the way to a five-goal run mid-way through the spell.

There was little the Stars could do wrong, forcing the Magic into errors and showing composure on attack to wait for openings in the circle, enjoying a 15-10 advantage at the break.

The Magic made one change heading into the second stanza with Mes and Ekenasio switching bibs, but the hosts, who haven’t beaten the Stars since 2019, struggled to bring any urgency to their play and took over three minutes to add to their first quarter score.

There were no such problems in the Stars camp, the midcourt given too much space as they hit the circle edge and found their shooters who were confident with their radars.

With 12 goals the difference, Magic went to the bench and replaced Edgecombe with Simmon Wilbore at wing attack.  It settled those connections up front, but the hosts weren’t able to make any inroads on the scoreboard, trailing 20-34 at halftime.

Wills made just the one change heading into the third quarter with Jaime Hume coming on for Malesala and it did nothing to slow the Stars juggernaut.

Leading 47-33 heading into the last term, the Stars kept their foot on the gas adding some flair to the clinical display they had delivered for the first three quarters.

Personnel changes were made from both teams with just over five minutes to play and 20 goals the difference – Amy Christophers making her Magic debut and Kelera Nawai-Caucau and Lisa Putt both coming on for the Stars.