KEY POINTS:
The night started with a dance. Suzanne Paul, to the delight of those still basking in her natural afterglow, reprised her Dancing With The Stars tango.
Everybody knows it takes two to tango. Ms Paul was dragged around the court by a skilled operator of Australian-Italian extraction.
A few minutes later, underneath the hoop, an entirely homegrown tango was taking place.
The choreography was less practised, the outfits more pragmatic, but nevertheless Daneka Wipiiti led Anna Scarlett a merry dance.
Those who carry calculators will tell you that Wipiiti's stats were a less than stellar 35 from 48 attempts. But that doesn't tell even half the story. Her willingness to shoot from distance, work the circle and mix it physically with some of netball's toughest defenders made her the game's dominant personality (although fans of livewire Liana Barrett-Chase could mount an argument in her favour).
The way Wipiiti started, she made shooting look as easy as throwing a tennis ball into a Para pool from two feet. It's this freakish ability that has made her all the more of an enigma.
At the Force, these hot spells were often followed by a cold patch and a mien that spoke of truculence.
Down south, that unique talent has flourished but more importantly she looks and plays like she really cares even when she starts missing. Last night, that moment came early in the second quarter but she kept battling and scrapping against Silver Ferns goal keep Scarlett, whose attentions have caused conniptions among the most mentally tough opponents.
After the match, Wipiiti was nursing an area officially known as the posterior. "I think it's from Anna's hips," she joked. "It's always a physical battle with her and maybe she's got a few bumps too."
The 1.94m 25-year-old can't put her finger on exactly why her game has taken off down south.
"Maybe it's my time," she said. "Maybe it's a different training routine. It's something I needed to do. It's probably lots of things but one thing I can tell you is I'm loving every minute of it. It's my home away from home."
She admits to having an eye on the world champs but for the moment, she wants to ensure the last National Bank Cup ends up the same place six others did between 1999 and 2004.
It no doubt helps Wipiiti that in moments of doubt, standing next to her is Donna Wilkins, the granite upon which much of the Sting's phenomenal success has been built.
If Ruth Aitken isn't preparing a lengthy spiel espousing the virtues of this seven-person sport over a certain five-person code, she'd better have a good explanation why not.
At halftime, in no small part due to this duo, the visitors held a handy seven-goal lead. Diamonds coach Sue Hawkins felt her shooting stars - Paula Griffin and Maria Tutaia - needed to swap bibs. Griffin went to shoot and Tutaia attack.
Unfortunately for Hawkins, the second half started like the first, with Wipiiti hitting swishes from all points of the semicircle, her momentum stopped only by a scary-looking injury to Sting defender Jenny Ferguson. The 28-year-old crashed to the floorboards racked in pain but was able to walk unaided from the court.
This was a match that told you several things: that week in, year out the Sting remain the National Bank Cup's benchmark franchise; that the Diamonds, while a more polished unit than in previous years, remain a step behind the very best; and that the Sting have gained one tough shooter.
Diamonds 42 (M. Tutaia 23/32, P. Griffin 15/20, G. Rasmussen 4/5) Sting 50 (D. Wipiiti 35/48, D. Wilkins 15/16). Halftime: 21-28.
