Werribee Devils Round 14 Recap - June 27-28, 2015

Round 14 was a busy one for the Werribee Devils, with six matches played, including double-headers for the State Champ Men and Youth League Women. We came away with three wins and a heartbreaking 2-point overtime loss, and both Youth League teams remain in contention for finals action.

State Championship Men (12^th): Lost to Bulleen (6^th) 63-83
In State Championship men’s basketball, the Werribee Devils have failed to build on some recent good form, falling 83-63 to sixth place Bulleen Boomers on Saturday night.

Coming into the showdown, Werribee could almost have been considered the ‘form team,’ having won two of their last three compared to Bulleen, despite being a couple of games inside the top six, losing four of their last five. The previous meeting between the two combatants earlier in the season resulted in a two-point win to the Boomers.

The game started evenly and the Devils matched the Boomers early on, however a four minute scoreless period late in the quarter resulted in a 14-0 run to the Boomers and a comfortable lead. A three-pointer to Corey Wright in the final minute of the term brought the margin back to 11 at quarter-time, 23-12. There were no clear standouts for the Devils, but they were having trouble containing Boomers captain Scott Cuffe (seven points) and Kinard Gadsden (nine points).

The Devils lifted and narrowly won the second quarter, but the Boomers still maintained a double-digit lead for most of the term. The margin was 14 with two minutes to play but the Devils managed to get within eight thanks to big men David Cobb (11 first half points, seven rebounds) and Darcy Harding (eight points). A successful jump shot from Cuffe gave the Boomers a 42-32 halftime lead.

Bulleen got back on top in the third quarter, gradually increasing their lead, and they went to three-quarter time with a 64-49 advantage. Anthony Luxford (eight points, two rebounds) led Devils scorers in the quarter with five points.

The Devils were unable to make any inroads on the scoreboard in the final term and the home side ran out with an 83-63 victory. Ultimately a four minute scoring lapse in the first quarter proved to be the difference in the end. Once again David Cobb (19 points, 13 rebounds, three blocks) and Darcy Harding (18 points) were influential, with six points each in the final term. Jordan Hughes had an ordinary night scoring-wise (four points from 2-17 shooting) but contributed five assists and four rebounds.

Lost to Melbourne (13^th) 66-85
The Devils had a chance to bounce back against bottom-placed Melbourne Tigers on Sunday at Eagle Stadium. Melbourne controlled the game early, skipping to an eight point lead, but Werribee clawed their way back, to trail 23-19 at the first break. Jordan Hughes and David Cobb had six points each for the Devils, while they struggled to contain Tiger Dexter Kernich-Drew, who looked set for a big game with 13 first-quarter points.

The second quarter was not particularly pretty to watch. It started evenly, but shooting percentage went down and turnovers went up. Melbourne soon opened up a double-digit lead that they would not relinquish for the rest of the game, thanks to the work of Kernich-Drew and Dillon Stith, who had seven points and five rebounds for the quarter. The Devils struggled to get a stop and make any real inroads on the scoreboard, going into half-time with a 31-41 deficit. Darcy Harding led the Devils with four points for the quarter, while David Cobb grabbed five rebounds.

Although the Devils were by no means out of the game trailing by 10, the mood was flat as the third quarter began. The game trend continued, with the Devils staying with their opponents for the early part of the quarter but being worn down the longer the game went. Dillon Stith continued to make the Devils pay with 13 points for the quarter, while Harding managed five for the Devils, who trailed by 17 at the final change, 45-62.

The final term was of little consequence and Melbourne continued to increase their lead. The Devils showed glimpses of good form with a 7-0 run in the middle of the quarter and out-rebounded the Tigers 13-6. However the Devils also shot twice as much as their opponents and still lost the quarter, finishing with an 85-66 loss, which puts them back on the bottom of the ladder.

The “Big Three” were once again the main contributors for the Devils. David Cobb had 17 points and 13 rebounds, Darcy Harding had 18 points, six rebounds and three assists and Jordan Hughes continued to work hard, finishing with 14 points, eight rebounds and two steals. Nick Morda (six rebounds) and Andrew Johnston (four rebounds, two steals) played good supporting roles.

The Devils have five games to go in a forgettable season and unfortunately the run home doesn’t get any easier, with matches against the top three sides Corio Bay, Ringwood and Waverley.

Division One Women (10^th): defeated Hawthorn (11^th) 84-74
The Werribee Devils have scored a much-needed 84-74 victory over the Hawthorn Magic in Division One women’s basketball on Saturday night. The win broke a five-game losing streak and was their first since Brant Lowry took over as head coach at the end of May.

The game began in a high scoring and free flowing manner, with only two fouls called for the quarter. The Devils snuck out to a seven point lead but Hawthorn wouldn’t go away, trailing by 3 at the first break, 23-20. The Magic’s Tash Ross-Harris proved a headache for the Devils with 10 points and eight rebounds, while Alex Moss (23 points, six rebounds) led the Devils with five points and Lydia Brooks (15 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks) had seven rebounds for the quarter.

The game turned defensive in the second quarter and the lead changed several times. The Devils were unable to find any easy shots and only managed nine points for the quarter, with Moss again top scoring with five points. Ross-Harris had a quieter quarter, but Jessica McKenzie stepped up for the Magic with eight points and eight rebounds. There were no obvious standouts for the Devils, who would have been disappointed to go into halftime trailing 36-32.

The Magic maintained the lead for the first half of the third term. Ross-Harris stepped up again and was joined by Nicole Swan with eight points. The intensity and quality of basketball lifted in a quarter which saw 57 points scored by both teams. The Devils narrowly came out on top, but still trailed by a point at three-quarter time, 63-62. Alex Moss took charge and had a huge quarter with 13 points, Georgia Tauschke (11 points, six rebounds, five assists, four blocks) was contributing at both ends of the floor while Suzie Ashford (seven points, two rebounds) chipped in with five points for the quarter.

The game was set for a thrilling final quarter, with the Devils desperate to gain a confidence boosting win. When Suzie Ashford hit a jump shot one minute in, the Devils gained the lead and wouldn’t give it up for the rest of the game. It was still close for the first five minutes and the Magic were never out of the contest, but the Devils gradually increased their lead thanks to some ordinary shooting from the Magic (5 of 23 from the field) as well as seven points apiece from Lydia Brooks and Kelly Richardson (nine points, nine rebounds and two steals), who also pulled in five rebounds for the quarter.

Werribee’s 84 points was their second-highest score for the season, and while it wasn’t quite a four-quarter effort, the Devils had several important contributors throughout the match. As well as the players already mentioned, Brittany Klaman had eight points, five rebounds and three assists. The Devils host Sunbury next Saturday night as part of the annual “Devils Get Your Pink On” fundraiser for the McGrath Foundation.

Youth League One Men (7^th): defeated Geelong (10^th) 60-57
The Youth League Men are still in finals contention and would have been reasonably confident facing the 10^th-placed Geelong Supercats at home on Sunday afternoon. While they have struggled to maintain any sort of momentum during the season, the Devils had won three of their past four matches and their previous game against Geelong was a 23-point win to the Devils.   

It quickly became apparent that this game would not be one for the highlight reel. While the first quarter was close, the shooting from both teams was woeful (Werribee 4-22, Geelong 4-18). Geelong were turning the ball over but Werribee could not make them pay on the scoreboard, and only managed 2 of 7 freethrows. Tyrone Remy grabbed five rebounds for the home side, who trailed 10-13 at quarter-time.

Things turned around for the Devils in the second quarter, resulting in a handy 27-19 half-time lead. While their field-goal shooting didn’t get much better (5-21), Geelong’s was even worse (3-14) and consistent Supercat turnovers and nine fouls for the quarter gifted Werribee with regular possession and scoring opportunities. Captain Mark Luxford (eight points, 4/7 freethrows) single-handedly got Werribee back into the lead with some aggressive drives to the basket and improved conversion at the line. After being out-rebounded 13-22 in the first quarter, it was pleasing to see seven Devils players on the boards, particularly Curtis Brooks (six) and Dylan Harberger (four).

The Devils maintained their lead for most of the third quarter but the Supercats would not go away, lifting their shooting percentage and winning the quarter 22-16, making it a two-point game at three-quarter time. Luxford led the Devils with six points for the quarter, while Josh Toniato and Brooks each chipped in with five points and Toniato added three rebounds. 

Heading into the final quarter, the Supercats quickly gained a three point lead thanks to Haydn Galea and Lukas Bentley, and then neither team scored for three minutes. The Devils had shot 0-14 from the three-point line and with six minutes to go, Josh Zamperoni finally nailed one. This seemed to ‘flick the switch’ and his long bomb was quickly replicated by Tyrone Remy and Cam Hutton. The Devils found themselves eight points up inside the last three minutes but still the Supercats weren’t done. When Riley Herbert hit a 3-pointer with 25 seconds remaining the score was back to 59-57, and then Bubby Luxford made a free-throw to take the margin to 3. Dylan Harberger had four chances to put the game beyond doubt from the foul line but missed them all, and the Devils rode out the last few nervous seconds to escape with a 60-57 victory.

Luxford led the winners with 17 points, five assists and four steals. He was joined by Josh Zamperoni (eight points, eight rebounds), Tyrone Remy (seven points, 11 rebounds, three steals), Dylan Harberger (seven points, 10 rebounds) and Curtis Brooks (five points, nine rebounds, two steals).

The lads have three games remaining in the regular season, with match-ups against second-placed Whittlesea, then finishing with home games against Camberwell and Ballarat.  

Youth League One Women (5^th): defeated Corio Bay (4^th) 61-51;
After losing six in a row midway through the season, the Werribee Devils Youth League women’s team came into Saturday’s game against Corio Bay having won three out of their previous four games and in finals contention.

In the first three quarters, neither team led by more than five points and the margin was one point at each of the breaks, setting up a big finish worthy of a “fourth vs fifth” contest. Remarkably, Werribee hit only one of nineteen shot attempts in the third quarter, but were saved by some excellent free throw shooting, scoring 11 out of 12 and staying in the game.

Werribee controlled much of the final quarter and Britney Epperson stood up with six points, enabling the Devils to gradually extend their lead to double-digits and finish with an important 61-51 win, making it three victories in a row and avenging the 20-point defeat they suffered last time the two teams met.

Epperson finished with 12 points and 15 rebounds. Other contributors were Teaghan Doyle (13 points, six rebounds, three assists), Tegan Hindle (three steals, nine rebounds), Charlotte Vincent-Lord (nine points, nine rebounds) and Olivia Klaman (four assists).

Lost to Warrandyte (2^nd) 53-55 (OT)
After their victory the previous night, the Devils girls headed over to Warrandyte to take on the second-placed Venom, looking to make it four wins on the trot. The season series was level at 1-1, with the Devils inflicting a 24-point defeat at home in Round 3, and the Venom winning by 13 in Round 9.

The Devils got off to a fast start, scoring the first nine points of the match to open up a handy lead. The second half of the quarter only produced five points from both teams combined, resulting in an 11-5 lead to the Devils, with Charlotte Vincent-Lord scoring six.

After play resumed, there was no score from either side for the first two minutes, before Olivia Klaman knocked down a 3-pointer to extend the Devils lead. The Devils maintained a single-digit lead for the whole quarter, taking a 23-16 lead into half time.

The story was much the same in the third quarter, with the Venom matching the Devils but unable to make any progress on the scoreboard. Teaghan Doyle top scored in the quarter with six points, ensuring a 37-29 lead at the last change.

The Devils were only ten minutes away from two road wins in successive days, but things did not pan out how they had hoped. Although they held onto their lead until the final minute, the girls shot just eight points for the quarter and made just one successful field goal from eleven shots. Scores were level with 57 seconds remaining after Venom’s Maddison Taylor made a free throw. No points were scored in the frantic final minute, despite both teams having opportunities to win it, sending the game into five minutes of overtime.

Both teams finished the game in foul trouble, and that proved to be the difference in the end. Seven Werribee fouls in overtime gave Warrandyte plenty of opportunities at the line, and although they didn’t score a field goal in the overtime period, they held the lead by making 10 of 14 free throws. Olivia Klaman scored with eight seconds remaining to bring the margin back to 2, and Hayley Jones had the final shot of the game but was unsuccessful, giving a 55-53 victory to the Venom.

The Devils were out-rebounded 38-57 but made the most of Warrandyte mistakes, scoring 16 points from turnovers, compared to the home side who only scored two points from Werribee blunders.

Teaghan Doyle was the standout for the Devils with 17 points, five rebounds and three steals. Charlotte Vincent-Lord scored 11 points, two blocks and three assists, Tegan Hindle contributed nine points, five rebounds and two assists, Britney Epperson had three assists, three steals and two blocks and Kennedy Taylor pulled down 10 rebounds. 

The girls have four regular-season games left, and a finals spot is theirs for the taking. The road home begins on Saturday night against ladder-leaders Hume City and finishes with Craigieburn, Coburg and Corio Bay.