NMI women’s pool gets thru 1st learning curve

The NMI’s Azriel Fatialofa, left, and Fiona Bucalig, right, battle two Lady Bombers players for the rebound during their friendly game in the NMI Friendship Classic last Friday at the UOG Calvo Field House. (TRITON ATHLETICS)

The NMI National Team Program’s women’s pool completed its three friendly matches in Guam and had a lot of takeaways from these games that would help better prepare the group for the FIBA Micronesian Cup.

The pool closed out the NMI Friendship Classic hosted by the University of Guam Athletics with a 58-28 victory over the UOG Lady Tritons last Saturday. The win came after the group dropped its first two friendly matches, losing to Fuetsa last Thursday, 70-82, in double overtime and to the Andersen Air Force Base’s Lady Bombers last Friday, 24-75.

“This friendly tournament has been a great learning experience for all of us and it was so exciting to see our team play strong teams in a very organized environment. Each game had a higher level of physicality, however, throughout the games, our team displayed great attitude, character and good will, said NMI Women’s National Team coach Cathy Attao-Toves.

“There are many things we learned and will be working on, leading up to June (FIBA Micronesian Cup). We are able to assess our players a bit further and we will work on individual development plans, which includes a higher level of physical fitness,” she added.

The pool had its stamina tested right in the opening game of the series, as its duel against Fuetsa was extended into two overtime periods or the match lasted 50 minutes—instead of the regular 40-minute tiff. Destiny Pangelinan, one of the offensive threats on the team, played the whole game and finished with a team-high 20 points. Angel Roligat and Mikky Kautz were on the floor for more than 40 minutes and combined for 19 markers.

Less than 24 hours after the tough game against Fuetsa, the NMI players returned to the UOG Calvo Field House and were in for a much physical match against the Lady Bombers.

Coach Catherine Attao-Toves, standing right, gives instructions to their players during a break in their game against Fuetsa, while assistant coach David John Apatang looks on last Thursday at the UOG Calvo Field House. (TRITON ATHLETICS)

“This game was very much more physical and they (Lady Bombers) were way more experienced. The physicality of the game caught some players off guard but they kept at it. It was great for our post players to play against strong post opponents and we did a lot better on our rebounding. Our outside shots were not falling so we had to drive and get the ball inside,” Attao-Toves said.

For their last game and despite absorbing back-to-back losses, the NMI coach said their players stayed focused and remained positive.

“We had a game plan and they executed it. We wanted to run some offensive plays and improve our scoring ability. This game helped us with that,” Attao-Toves said.

Pangelinan delivered 13 points in the win, while Roligat added 11 and four other players scored at least 6 points apiece.

After completing the friendlies in Guam, the pool that was organized under the Northern Mariana Islands Basketball Federation’s national program returned to Saipan last Sunday morning and will resume practice this week to further work on their team and individual skills.

“Now that we have a glimpse into our competition and where we are at, and with this experience, we are back to the drawing board. We will review the games in Guam and get back to work,” the coach added. (PR)