Jasmine Joyner, Simone Costa and Moa Lundqvist make the first All Star 5 after win
The first All-Star 5 of the 2020-21 WBBL season is dominated by familiar faces from the East Midlands, as Leicester Riders and Nottingham Wildcats secured big double-digit wins.
Jasmine Joyner – Nottingham Wildcats
In her third WBBL season with the Wildcats, Joyner has started in the same fashion as always with a 17 point and 11 rebound double-double as a strong second half saw Nottingham past Newcastle Eagles. Ten of those points came in the last 20 minutes as Wildcats comprehensively turned around a half time deficit to win 64-51, with Joyner getting it done at both ends by adding five steals and three blocks.
Holly Winterburn – Leicester Riders
Leicester’s star guard returned to the club this summer after a year at the powerhouse University of Oregon, and she turned in a complete performance as Riders beat Manchester Met Mystics 65-44. Winterburn had 15 points on 6-10 (60%) shooting, to go with eight rebounds and six assists, and that included eight first quarter points as Riders were fast out of the blocks to win the first ten minutes 21-6.
Simone Costa – Nottingham Wildcats
The second Wildcat in the line-up is Portuguese guard Simone Costa, who in 36 minutes of action was just shy of a double-double on 16 points and nine rebounds, shooting 7-10 (70%) on the inside. Of those 16 points, 13 came in a second half that Wildcats won 33-19, including six points in the last five minutes of the third period in the spell that broke the game open.
Dominique Allen – Manchester Met Mystics
Allen, a GB international, spurred her Mystics team on in defeat at the hands of Leicester Riders, grabbing 12 rebounds – including 11 at the defensive end – along with three steals, and scoring six points. Her spirited defensive display wasn’t enough to stop the Riders on this occasion.
Moa Lundqvist – Nottingham Wildcats
Lundqvist – a Swedish forward – is the only new face to the WBBL to make the All-Star 5 this week, having joined Wildcats in the summer out of the University of San Francisco. She shot 62% (5-8) in her debut on these shores to post 11 points, along with eight rebounds and three assists. With Costa, Lundqvist was the only other Wildcat to score in that crucial spell at the end of the third quarter.
Off the bench: Chelsey Shumpert (Nottingham Wildcats), Ella Clarke (Leicester Riders), Christina Gaskin (Leicester Riders), Marina Fernandez (Newcastle Eagles), Maddie Mcvicar (Newcastle Eagles), Nicolette Fong Lyew Quee (Manchester Met Mystics), Rachael Bland (Newcastle Eagles)
Report/Image Source: WBBL