THE cool hand of Rohanee Cox was instrumental in helping the Cairns Dolphins to another pair of Queensland Australian Basketball League wins.
Cox knocked down a pair of free throws with 1.8sec remaining on the game clock to break a 71-71 deadlock and seal a two-point Dolphins win over the South West Metro Pirates in Brisbane on Sunday.
Cox finished the game with a match-high 25 points, 14 rebounds and four steals as the Dolphins swept their weekend games to push their season record to 3-1.
Cox’s effort came on the back of 20 points and 11 rebounds in the Dolphins’ 74-58 win against Northside Wizards on Saturday night.
And while the Dolphins are no one-woman band, they would love to have Cox available for their road double against Townsville and Mackay this weekend.
But with the Australian Opal likely to be in camp with the national side, she is unlikely to play against the Townsville Flames, her former QABL club.
While Cox has been the standout in the past couple of weeks, her presence has encouraged several younger Dolphins to lift, with Ashley North, Bibi Baker and Katrina Bloomfield doing well at the weekend.
North had 20 points – an equal match-high with Cox – against the Wizards on Saturday night, while on Sunday, Bloomfield had 16 points and five steals against South West.
Baker stood up down the stretch on Sunday, making a crucial lay-up and then a three-pointer when the Dolphins trailed by five points in the final quarter.
CAIRNS DOLPHINS 74 (Rohanee Cox, Ashley North 20, Kate Chitham 6) d NORTHSIDE WIZARDS 58 (Karah Keim 15, Shayna Poto 14, Amber Rabl 12).
CAIRNS DOLPHINS 73 (Rohanee Cox 25, Katrina Bloomfield 16, Brooke Couper 12) d SOUTH WEST METRO PIRATES 71 (Ezria Parsons 20, Karina Dawson 14, Erin Brady, Ashley Wallis 11).
