GREENSBOROUGH, Australia (Interstat) — The Diamond Valley Eagles will host the Bendigo Braves in a women’s NBL game Sunday at Greensborough, with the home side looking to extend its strong start to the season.

Diamond Valley (8-3) holds a significant advantage in the standings over Bendigo (4-7) across all competitions. The Eagles have won five of their past six games, while the Braves have dropped six of their past seven.

Forward Olivia Pollerd leads Bendigo. In her past seven games, Pollerd has averaged more than 24 points and nearly 8 rebounds while logging heavy minutes. She posted 26 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and three blocks in a 86-78 win over Frankston on Saturday, the Braves’ most recent result. Earlier in the week, she scored 26 points in a 69-95 loss to Mount Gambier and had 21 points and 14 rebounds in a 78-89 loss to Ballarat.

The Braves will need Pollerd at her best against a Diamond Valley squad that features power forward Erin Riley. Riley is coming off a 25-point, 12-rebound, four-assist, four-block performance in an 81-70 win at Hobart on May 16. She also recorded 15 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in a 99-85 win over Ringwood on May 9.

Diamond Valley defeated Hobart 81-70 in its most recent outing. Abbey Ellis added 11 points and five rebounds in that game, while Victoria Ikenasio contributed seven points and six rebounds.

Bendigo’s recent skid includes losses to top competition. The Braves fell 63-96 at Casey on May 17 and 70-78 at Northern Force on May 1. Their only win in the past three weeks came against Frankston.

Diamond Valley, meanwhile, has shown balance. The Eagles fell 91-92 at Northern Force on May 15 but bounced back with the win over Hobart. They have outscored opponents by an average of nearly 12 points per game in victories.

Tipoff is set for Sunday at Greensborough.