WOMEN COME CLOSE TO UKRAINIAN WIN

An impressive 28 points by Kim Butler was not enough to lead GB to their first home victory, with only Megan Moody for company in the double figure club as she posted 11 and six rebounds, while Harriett Yea took eight points from her Cardiff debut.


By contrast three of Ukraine's players made double figures, led by Olexandra Gorbunova with 26, Iryna Biryuk with 19 and Olena Ogorodnikova with 16.


Ukraine were quick to establish a nine point lead, which started with a Gorbunova jump shot. Olena Zherzherunova then stole the ball from Georgia Jones before Ogorodnikova found the three-point line and Gorbunova's jumper made it 15-6 in favour of the visitors.


Straight after the GB timeout Butler added her third basket of the quarter before Ros Mason's second personal shooting foul saw Ukraine restore their nine-point lead. But Britain rallied back with seven unanswered points as Jones and Chantelle Handy found the hoop before Moody added her first three.


Johannah Leedham missed a lay-up but Butler was there for the rebound and her jump shot brought GB back within touching distance of 19-21, but no sooner had they done so than Gorbunova sunk a three. Butler responded with yet another jump shot, which took her into double figures, and then Lisa Hutchinson's three-pointer had Britain and Ukraine level pegged for the first time. However Gorbunova made it two out of two from the three point line to give her team a slender lead at the end of the first quarter.


Meagan Hoffman suited up for the second quarter and she had an immediate impact, grabbing the rebound and turning in the jump shot. Yea's three pointer gave GB their first lead at 29-27, but it was short-lived as Ukraine went on the rampage and took a 11 point haul, owed mainly to five team fouls.


Over five minutes passed since GB last registered a basket, and still they waited as Jones missed a lay-up and Moody a three-pointer. Eventually the deadlock was broken thanks to Handy's work at the foul line, where she made one of two. Svitlana Kozachenko was on hand to pick up the second rebound and assisted Ogorodnikova for a lay-up.


If there was one player who was on fire for GB it was Butler, so there was no doubt that she would sink a pair from the charity stripe. Moody followed that with a tip-in, but could only add a further point to her name seconds later when she missed a free throw.


Britain made a decent start to the second half as Butler and Mason both made lay-ups, only to see Ukraine extend their lead to 16 following baskets by Ogorodnikova, Biryuk and Gorbunova. And the trend continued, every time GB appeared ready to close the gap Ukraine would increase it.


With four minutes played of the third quarter Butler reached the twenty mark thanks to a Moody assist and the favour was swiftly returned, only this time Moody shot a three. Yet once again Ukraine responded through Gorbunova and Ogorodnikova to put them up 68-50.


Hoffman did however ensure that the Ukrainian lead remained in the teens when she made a jump shot 19 seconds from the end of the third.


As they had done in Kiev Britain refused to lay down in the final quarter and Hoffman started a 12-point scoring run with a jump shot, prior to Yea's second from the three point line and yet another basket by Butler.


Hoffman added one from the foul line and then Yea made a lay-up to reduce the gap to seven. Moody brought it even closer seconds later as she made a three, which showed 69-74 on the scoreboard. Mark Clark called timeout with 2:28 remaining. The return to court saw Butler maintain her 100% free throw record but yet again, like when the sides first met, Britain could not break the five-point margin, that is until Butler made a jump shot.


The final thirty seconds of the game ticked by, with GB within touching distance of victory but once again time was not on their side and Ukraine added to their woes by sinking a late three point shot to win 80-73.