The Central Pulse have stormed into the ANZ Premiership grand final with an assertive 58-44 victory over their closest rivals, the Mainland Tactix, in Wellington.
The Pulse earn the right to host the grand final back at TSB Arena on Sunday August 4, and an extra week to prepare.
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Tactix will now meet Mystics in the Elimination Final this Saturday at their home court, Wolfbrook Arena in Christchurch.
Pulse and Tactix were evenly poised going into the final showdown of the regular season, sitting on equal points from 11 wins and one bonus point, and desperate to execute a victory after both suffering disappointing losses in the previous round. Both have been in the top three since round three.
Their previous clash went into overtime – won by the Tactix – so it promised to be another close encounter. But for three quarters of the game, it was the home side in control.
A self-assured, well-connected Pulse dominated the first two quarters to lead by nine at halftime, and although Tactix won a hard-fought third quarter, a stunning run of 11 unanswered goals in the final spell ensured Pulse took out the Minor Premiership title.
Pulse, back at home after a month on the road and with their full roster back after a season peppered with injuries, had the first run of three resulting from intense midcourt pressure. They continued that intensity, and with goal defence Parris Mason in the thick of the action from the outset, the Pulse took a seven-goal lead after just 10 minutes.
They started with one of the real finds of the season, Martina Salmon, at goal shoot ahead of Amelia Walmsley, paired in the circle with Tiana Metuarau.
Aliyah Dunn continued her comeback from injury starting at goal shoot for Tactix, and was sweetly fed by Erikana Pedersen and Kimiora Poi when she could escape the cloying attention of Mason and Kelly Jackson.
But the Pulse attack, marshalled by Whitney Souness, found it much easier to thread the ball through to their shooters, and they led 16-10 at the first break.
Both sides made changes to start the second quarter. Kate Lloyd came on at goal keep for Tactix, with Karin Burger moving out of the circle to wing defence to try to contain the Pulse attack. But Pulse turned to their very strong bench players – Maddy Gordon at centre and Walmsley at goal shoot, and then Fa’amu Iaone at wing defence – to continue their charge.
Tactix still struggled with their connections on attack, as Jackson displayed why she leads the competition with defensive rebounds, intercepts and deflections.
Another defensive change for Tactix, pairing Paris Lokotui and Jane Watson in the circle, helped the visitors close the gap from nine to six. But Pulse stepped it up again in the final two minutes to reverse that trend and take a 31-22 lead into halftime.
Early in the third quarter, an awkward fall saw Walmsley hurt her arm, but she remained on court to carry on shooting the majority of their goals for the next 10 minutes, pushing the Pulse’s advantage out to 11.
But Tactix proved they weren’t out of the running, going on a scoring spree with Dunn adding six to Pulse’s one. Her shooting partner, Te Paea Selby-Rickit, also lifted her game and Tactix entered the final stanza within six, 42-36.
A run of three after the break brought the Tactix within four, with the Watson-Lokotui-Burger trio disrupting the Pulse’s feeding flow.
But Pulse then found their rhythm again scoring 11 goals in a row, and Tactix had no answer other than to inject the height of Ellie Bird at goal shoot. But the outcome was by then decided.