KEY POINTS:
The Canterbury Flames wiped out a strong start by the Auckland Diamonds to run out convincing 53-46 winners in first round National Bank Cup action in Christchurch yesterday.
A four-goal advantage to the Diamonds after the first quarter quickly evaporated as the Flames regrouped and returned to dominate all facets of the game in the remaining three quarters.
Goal attack Jade Topia excelled under the hoop with a fine shooting display. Goal defence Jodi Tod's nine intercepts were than the entire Diamonds team managed and centre Julie Seymour expertly marshalled her side.
"It was awesome, a great team effort," Flames coach Margaret Foster said.
"It took us a little time to find our bearings and we were a little rusty to start with but I had confidence we would come right."
Losing captain Stephanie Bond to a calf strain in the first quarter did not help the Diamonds, who lost their way after a strong start.
Silver Ferns squad shooters Maria Tutaia and Paula Griffin showed pinpoint accuracy in the opening 15 minutes, with the pair missing just one shot.
But the Diamonds' control as a team fell away under a more cohesive and robust challenge from the hosts.
The Flames had the match turned around by halftime when they sneaked into a 27-25 lead before reinforcing their superiority by moving out to a 10-goal advantage at three-quarter time.
Coach Sue Hawkins tried to reignite her team by reshuffling her midcourt and defensive ends in the second half but the Diamonds remained tentative until the final minutes, when a mini-revival came too late.
"It's about four quarters and we had two quarters where we didn't show any consistency. We left our run too late and it came back to bite us again," Hawkins said.
