The Adelaide Lightning fought hard in their Round 5 fixture with the Townsville Fire, before ultimately losing 103-69.
At the Townsville Entertainment Centre, in what was the Fire’s first home game of WNBL26, a Tayla Brazel triple, assisted by Steph Talbot, got the Lightning’s scoring underway.
Back-to-back baskets by guard Dallas Loughridge gave Adelaide an early 7-4 lead, which quickly became 10-6 when Sania Feagin nailed a three-pointer.
Ensuing scores by Loughridge and Sharne Robati kept the Lightning’s noses in front for the majority of the first quarter, before an Abbey Ellis triple gave the hosts a 16-15 advantage.
The two rivals then traded baskets, with Loughridge and Feagin continuing their strong games for the visitors.
At the end of the first quarter, Townsville, who were celebrating their annual Indigenous Round, led by four points.
Consecutive two-pointers by Feagin closed the margin to 28-26 before the hosts went on a 13-4 run, led by Alex Fowler, Milea Sowah and Ellis.
But the Lightning didn’t drop their heads, with Talbot rattling off seven straight points to close the deficit.
When Loughridge converted an and one, the Fire’s lead was just six, which quickly became three when Brazel hit another shot from downtown.
A late free throw by Townsville’s Lucy Olsen made it 47-43 at half-time.
After play resumed, the hosts opened the period on a 13-2 run, thanks to Fowler, Alicia Froling and Courtney Woods.
A Talbot triple steadied the ship for Adelaide, with Robati and Loughridge also converting baskets for Kerryn Mitchell’s side.
Despite these, the Fire’s lead had grown to double digits midway through the third quarter.
Rising star Loughridge did all she could for Adelaide, scoring eight straight points to end the term.
Despite this, Townsville’s lead had ballooned to 20 points with one quarter to play.
The Lightning’s hopes of a fast start in the fourth were dashed when Woods, Ellis and Olsen powered the hosts to a 10-0 run to open the period.
A Loughridge triple ended Adelaide’s scoring drought, before efforts from Talbot, Ruby Porter and Ashlee Strawbridge kept the scoreboard ticking over.
In the end, despite never giving up, the Lightning lost to the competition front-runners by 34 points.
Loughridge was a standout in the defeat, scoring a career-high 26 points, including three triples, while also adding six assists and three rebounds.
The point guard was well supported by Talbot and Feagin, who both added 14 points on the night.
Mitchell’s side now returns home to host the Bendigo Spirit on Tuesday.
The Round 5 fixture at the South Australian State Basketball Centre tips off at 7pm ACDT, with tickets still available here.
