Coupeville Sports

Coupeville grad Makana Stone takes a break from her professional basketball career to talk with British students. (Photo property Leicester Riders)

She set the nets on fire.

Coupeville grad Makana Stone knocked down a game-high 21 points Saturday, spurring the Leicester Riders to a key victory.

Romping past the Cardiff Met Archers 88-58, Leicester claimed its third victory in its last four games and clinched fourth place in the 13-team Women’s British Basketball League.

With two regular season games left on the schedule, the Riders are 14-8 in league action, 18-10 overall.

Saturday’s victory was a nice bounce-back for Leicester, which less than 24 hours earlier had racked up a season-low in points in a loss to the high-flying Sevenoaks Suns.

Picking Cardiff Met apart, Stone and Co. jumped out to a 24-18 lead after one quarter of play, and never relinquished the advantage.

Up 45-28 at the half, the Riders pushed the lead out to 63-42 heading into the fourth quarter, then tossed in another 25 points over the final 10 minutes just to put an exclamation point on things.

Stone, one of the few Leicester players to consistently score against Sevenoaks, snatched seven rebounds Saturday to go with her 21-point explosion.

Brooklyn Mcalear-Fanus added 15 points, while Oceana Hamilton and Alison Lewis each went for 14, as the Riders shared the ball all day.

As she nears the end of her first season of pro hoops, Stone has tallied 253 points, 170 rebounds, 36 assists, 24 steals, and three blocks.

Leicester caps the regular season with a rematch against Sevenoaks Apr. 22, before a bout with Manchester Met two days later.

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Makana Stone rumbles in the paint. (Photo property Leicester Riders)

The offense never got out of neutral.

Held to a season-low scoring output Friday, the Leicester Riders fell 62-41 to a highly ranked Sevenoaks Suns squad seeking a bounce-back win.

A game after surrendering 102 points in a shocking upset to a lower-rung Nottingham franchise, the Suns were in lock-down mode in the lone Women’s British Basketball League game of the day.

The loss drops Leicester to 13-8 in league play, 17-10 overall.

Coupeville grad Makana Stone was one of the few Riders to find holes in the Sevenoaks defense, banging down low for 12 points and 10 rebounds.

She and Hannah Robb tied for team-high scoring stats, while Suns star Janice Monakana topped all players with 16 points.

Sevenoaks, which sits in second place in the 13-team WBBL, held off fourth place Leicester at every step of the way.

The Suns grabbed an early 20-14 lead, before stretching the advantage to 32-21 by the half.

Leicester trailed by as many as 20 points in the second half and could never get the lead down to single-digits, hitting on just 14 of 62 field goal attempts in the game.

Stone, in her first season of professional basketball, continues to build her stats game, however.

With the double-double, she has 232 points, 163 rebounds, 36 assists, 24 steals, and three blocked shots on the season.

Leicester returns to action Saturday with a game against the Cardiff Met Archers, who are 5-16 in WBBL regular season play.

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Makana Stone, Hype Queen. (Photo property Leicester Riders)

Now it’s a winning streak.

Surviving a rough fourth quarter Monday, the Leicester Riders held on to knock off the Newcastle Eagles 75-65 in Women’s British Basketball League action.

Sparked by the play of Coupeville grad Makana Stone, who banked in 12 points — including a pair of three-balls — the Riders improve to 13-7 in league play, 17-9 overall.

Leicester’s second win in a three-day span, it keeps the squad firmly in fourth place in the 13-team WBBL with the playoffs on the horizon.

Up next for the Riders is a back-to-back set of games April 15-16, with the first one against the high-flying Sevenoaks Suns, who sit at 18-1 in league play.

Monday’s game belonged to Leicester from opening tip through the end of the third quarter, before things got a little frantic at the end.

The Riders jumped out to a 20-9 lead after one quarter of play on their home court, then stretched the lead out to 46-21 by the half.

While the third quarter was much-more evenly played, Leicester was still up 67-43 heading into the game’s final 10 minutes.

Then things got a bit dicey, as Newcastle closed on a 22-8 tear, cutting its deficit all the way back to 10 points with a tick under two minutes to play.

From that point on, however, the two teams combined to go scoreless over the game’s final one minute and 59 seconds.

Stone added four rebounds, an assist, and a steal to go with her 12 points, while teammate Oceana Hamilton popped for 21 points as four Riders scored in double-digits.

Newcastle got most of its offensive punch from the duo of Marina Fernandez Pardo and Layne Murphy, who knocked down 21 and 20 points, respectively.

As she plays her first season of pro ball, Stone continues to acquit herself nicely.

The former Wolf has 220 points, 153 rebounds, 36 assists, 23 steals, and three blocked shots on the year.

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Makana Stone scored her 200th point as a professional basketball player Saturday in England. (Photo property Leicester Riders)

It’s the taste of victory once again.

Sparked by their American assassin, the Leicester Riders snapped a three-game losing streak Saturday, shredding the Nottingham Wildcats 91-78.

With Coupeville grad Makana Stone knocking down 11 points and snagging six rebounds, the Riders solidified their hold on fourth place in the 13-team Women’s British Basketball League.

Leicester is 12-7 in league play, 16-9 overall, with another game coming up fast, as the Riders play Tuesday against the Newcastle Eagles.

The Riders entered play Saturday needing a bounce-back after a string of close losses, and they got it.

Stone and Co. zipped out to a 19-16 lead after one quarter of play, then stretched their advantage to 45-35 heading into the halftime break.

Nottingham proved pesky, however, slicing the lead back down to 64-61 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Riders responded in style, never relinquishing the lead and stretching it back out to double-digits by game’s end.

Stone added two assists and a blocked shot to the stat sheet, while teammates Oceana Hamilton and Hannah Robb led the scoring attack with 22 and 21 points, respectively.

Nottingham gunner Brooklyn Pannell topped all players with a game-high 33, but it wasn’t enough to save the Wildcats.

Stone, who is in her first season of pro ball after stellar collegiate runs at Whitman College and Loughborough University, passed a personal milestone Saturday.

Her third point of the game was her 200th as a professional, as she now sits with 208 points, 149 rebounds, 35 assists, 22 steals, and three blocks for her rookie campaign.

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Coupeville’s Makana Stone had 15 points and eight rebounds in a pro hoops game Sunday in England. (Photo property Leicester Riders)

She gave them hope until the end.

Coupeville’s Makana Stone poured in 15 points Sunday, including hitting a three-ball with just six ticks to play, but it wasn’t quite enough to save the Leicester Riders.

Unable to hold on to an early lead, the Riders eventually fell 84-80 to the visiting Essex Rebels in Women’s British Basketball League action.

The loss drops Leicester to 11-7 in league play, 15-9 overall.

Stone and Co. put together their best offensive stretch of the game in the opening period, jumping out to a 30-25 lead by the first break.

Essex proved to be scrappy, however, retaking the lead at 49-46 heading to the halftime break, before clinging to a 63-62 advantage entering the fourth quarter.

The Rebels stretched the margin back out to as many as eight points in the final frame, before Leicester made a late run to keep things interesting.

Stone drilled the bottom out of the net to cut the deficit to 83-80, but Essex hit one final free throw and time ran out on the Riders.

Leicester spread its offense around, with Oceana Hamilton leading the way with a team-high 18 points.

Brooklyn Mcalear rattled the rims for 16, Stone added eight rebounds, three assists, and a steal to her 15 points, and Hannah Robb popped the nets for 13.

Essex was led by the one-two combo of Claire Paxton and Ashleigh Munns, who each finished with 20.

Stone, who is in her first season of pro hoops after stellar high school and college careers, has racked up 197 points, 143 rebounds, 33 assists, 22 steals, and two blocked shots on the season.

Leicester returns to action next Saturday, Apr. 9, when it faces off with the Nottingham Wildcats.

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