Werribee Devils Big V Round 2 Preview - April 2 & 3, 2016

After a week off for Easter it's time for Round 2 of the 2016 Big V season. Saturday April 2nd is a HUGE day for Werribee basketball, with a triple-header at Eagle stadium:

* 4.30pm Youth League Men v Altona
* 6.30pm Division One Women v Western Port
* 8.30pm State Champ Men v Waverley

Sunday April 3rd: 
* 1.00pm Youth League Women v Craigieburn 

State Championship Men
Game 1: Werribee Devils (1st, 1-0) v Waverley Falcons (4th, 1-0) 
Saturday April 2nd, 8.30pm @ Eagle Stadium
Game 2: Werribee Devils (1st, 1-0) v Ringwood Hawks (8th, 0-1) 
Sunday April 3rd, 2.00pm @ The Rings 

The Devils got off to the perfect start in Round 1 with a dominant 85-55 performance over the Hawthorn Magic, set up by a 22-6 second quarter. In front of a packed home crowd, imports Jeremy Smith (28 points, nine rebounds, three assists) and Evan Matthews (14 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks) made an immediate impact and were joined by 2015 MVP Jordan Hughes (18 points, eight rebounds).

Both the Devils Round 2 opponents faced off in Round 1. Waverley also started their season with a win, defeating Ringwood Hawks 93-78, bursting out of the blocks with a 30-point opening quarter. Ivan Platenik (28 points, 11 rebounds) and Dexter Kernich-Drew (16 points, six rebounds) led the Falcons, while for Ringwood Matthew Fennell had 22 points and 10 rebounds and Nathan Champion chipped in with 16 points.




Division One Women
Werribee Devils (10th, 0-1) v Western Port Steelers (7th, 0-1)
Saturday April 2nd, 6.30pm @ Eagle Stadium

Both the Devils and the Steelers will be looking to make amends after contrasting Round 1 losses.

It was a milestone game for sisters Jasmine (50 Big V games) and Jackie Silcock (100 Big V games) but the Devils were slow to start against Camberwell, finding themselves down 12-24 at the first break. They managed to square things up in the second and fourth quarters, but were further hurt by a 13-30 third term as well as 39 turnovers for the match, resulting in a 56-88 loss. The Devils new New Zealand crew served them well, led by Bex Van Kuyk (12 points, 13 rebounds, three steals, four assists), Jessica Slade (12 points, 12 rebounds, two steals) and Adoniah Lewis (11 points, two assists).

It was a tale of two halves in the Steelers home match-up against the Craigieburn Eagles. Starting with a 6-point opening quarter, they found themselves down by 13 at haltime then rallied with a 17-8 third quarter. They then held the Eagles to 6 points in the last, only to fall short by one, going down 46-47. The Steelers were led by Malika Jackson (16 points, 11 rebounds), while Lauren Cooper (7 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks) was handy at both ends of the floor.

Youth League One Men
Game 1: Werribee Devils (1st, 1-0) v Altona Gators (5th, 1-0)
Saturday April 2nd, 4.30pm @ Eagle Stadium
Game 2: Werribee Devils (1st, 1-0) v Camberwell Dragons (7th, 1-1)
Sunday April 3rd, 12.00pm @ Boorondara Sports Complex

The Devils kicked their season off in style, with an entertaining 83-61 win over the Geelong Supercats. They now host another of their "west-side" rivals, the Altona Gators, followed by an eastern suburbs road trip to visit the Camberwell Dragons on Sunday.

Spurred on by the energy of a huge home crowd, the Devils opened with a 20-13 quarter and never looked back from there. Their third quarter was possibly one of the best they'll have all season, with their relentless defensive pressure forcing 15 Supercat turnovers and breaking the game wide open with a 30-15 period. Cam Hutton (18 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 6 steals) led the way for the Devils and Mitch Alush (18 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals) proved a valuable addition to the side after missing 2015 with injury. Josh Zamperoni chipped in with 11 points and three steals.

The Gators were forced to come from behind in their Round 1 match against Sunbury. It had been an evenly contested and high scoring match-up, which the Jets were winning by six at the final break. The Gators stormed home with a 32-11 final quarter to take a 99-84 win. Montel Ween (27 points, six rebounds, three assists) and Thomas Georgiadis (22 points, six rebounds, two steals, four assists) were the standouts, assisted by Paul Tang (17 points, five rebounds, two steals).

The Devils other Round 2 opponent, the Camberwell Dragons started their season with a double header opening round, with mixed results. First up they hosted the Warrandyte Venom and led at every change to record a 90-79 victory. In a genuine team effort, six players scored double figures, led by Reagan Ibbotson (18 points, eight rebounds, three assists) and Mitchell Pollard (13 points, 10 rebounds).

On Sunday they travelled to Broadmeadows to face the Hume City Broncos. The Dragons matched the home side for three quarters, trailing by five at the final break, but the Broncos proved too strong, pouring in 27 points to run away with an 82-69 win. Pollard and Ibbotson both featured strongly again (12 points and seven rebounds each) but lacked the team support of the previous game, with only Thomas Clifford (13 points, 14 rebounds, four assists) helping out.



Youth League One Women
Werribee Devils (1st, 1-0) v Craigieburn Eagles (5th, 1-1)
Sunday April 3rd, 1.00pm @ Eagle Stadium

The Devils took a while to get going, but eventually clicked into gear to record a 59-44 opening round victory over the Corio Bay Stingrays. The Stingrays led at quarter time but could only manage single-digit totals in the final three quarters. Despite this, the Devils failed to make the most of their opportunities and held a narrow six-point lead at the final break. Rachel Miller stood up in the last and scored eight consecutive points to help the devils to an 18-9 term and an eventual 15-point win. Other contributors were Charlotte Vincent-Lord (13 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals), Eliza Herne (9 points, 8 rebounds) and Tegan Hindle (9 points).

The Devils Round 2 opponents, the Craigieburn Eagles, started the season with a double header. They began at home with a 63-53 win over McKinnon. The Eagles led at every break and set up the win with a 21-11 second term. Nicola Stewart was the standout for the Eagles with 18 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, and she was assisted by Carley Cranston (11 points, 7 rebounds, 4 steals).

On Sunday the Eagles travelled to Warrandyte and in an enthralling contest eventually came off second best, losing in overtime 85-75. The Eagles started better, jumping out to a 23-14 lead, but the home side squared things up at half time. On the final buzzer the teams could not be separated and in overtime the Venom were simply too good, taking the honors 13-3 and giving them a hard-fought 10-point win. Stewart (12 points, eight rebounds) and Cranston (10 points, 2 steals) again featured heavily, and were joined by Jessica van der Velden (13 points, 4 steals, 5 assists) and Jessica Wain (13 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists).

Heathdale Hornets Grand Finals, March 2016

Under 10A Girls v St Andrews Aces
Grand Final Score: Hornets 8, St Andrews 23 (Half time 4–10)
Scorers: Chinwe 6, Caitlyn 2

Hornets:      2^nd; 7 wins 1 loss; 168 pts for, 45 against, 373.33%
St Andrews: 1^st; 8 wins 0 loss; 264 pts for, 45 against, 586.67%
Previous matches: Hornets 12, St Andrews 14 (Round 13)

Coach – Paul Maisey
Players: Caitlyn #33, Charlotte #11, Chinwe #12, Keisha #51, Leah #9, Lilly #53, Mina #4, Rachel #8

Under 12B Boys v Cambridge Colts
Grand Final Score: Hornets 19, Colts 23 (Half time 10-11)
Scorers: Ben 6, Daniel T 4, Charlie 4, Daniel R 3, Thomas 2

Hornets: 4^th; 4 wins, 4 losses; 145 pts for; 126 against; 115.08%  
Colts:      3^rd; 5 wins, 3 losses; 175 pts for, 132 against; 132.58%
Previous matches: Hornets 14, Colts 17 (Round 12)

Coaches: Greg & Abbey Doyle
Players: Aadi #42, Ben #54, Brodie #21, Charlie #23, Daniel R #41, Daniel T #34, Kalabe #5, Thomas #31

                                        

Under 14B Boys v Hoppers Crossing Tigers (1)
Grand Final Score: Hornets 13, Hoppers 22 (Half time 7-12)
Scorers: Jason 5, Paul 4, Kade 2, Zorowar 2

Hornets: 3^rd; 6 wins, 2 losses; 261 pts for; 194 against; 134.54%
Hoppers: 1^st; 8 wins, 0 losses; 329 pts for; 184 against; 178.80%
Previous matches: Hornets 25, Hoppers 39 (Round 10)

Coach: Brock Robinson
Players: Jason #42, Josiah #3, Kade #31, Kagan #50, Noah #51, Paul #9, Steven #41, Zorowar #55

Under 16A Girls v Good News Power Lightning
Grand Final Score: Hornets 37, Power 33 (Half time 16-17)
Scorers: Ebony 9, Ariyel 8, Eliza 6, Zara 6, Alana 5, Zoe 3

Hornets: 1^st; 8 wins 0 loss; 496 pts for, 138 against; 359.42%
Power: 2^nd; 7 wins, 1 loss; 409 pts for, 165 against; 247.88%
Previous matches:
Hornets 31, Power 16 (Round 3)
Hornets 44, Power 31 (Round 13)

Coach: Adrian Edwards
Players: Alana #50, Ariyel #42, Ebony #52, Eliza #25, Maya #4, Zara #14, Zoe #10 (Caelin #30 and Wezi #8 DNP)

                                     

Under 18A Girls v Flames Wildfires
Grand Final Score: Hornets 54, Flames 16

Hornets: 1^st; 11 wins, 0 losses; 719 pts for, 163 against; 441.10%
Flames: 2^nd;   8 wins, 3 losses; 319 pts for, 268 against; 119.03%
Previous Matches:
Hornets 54, Flames 14 (Round 5)
Hornets 59, Flames 15 (Round 8)
Hornets 58, Flames 22 (Round 13)

Coach:
Players: Cassidy, Hayley, Jeri, Kaylah, Lyndal, Maeghan, Shayla, Taneya

Big V Youth League Women Round 1 – Werribee Devils 59 d Corio Bay Stingrays 44, Sunday March 20th, 2016

Youth League Women – Werribee Devils v Corio Bay Stingrays, Sunday March 20^th, 2016

Werribee Devils	18	12	11	18	59
Corio Bay Stingrays	19	7	9	9	44

Charlotte Vincent-Lord - 13 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals

Eliza Herne - 9 points, 8 rebounds

Rachel Miller - 9 points, 4 rebounds

Tegan Hindle - 9 points

Teaghan Doyle - 7 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals

Alex Moss - 4 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals

Hayley Jones - 4 points, 3 rebounds

Taylah Lea - 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 assists, 5 steals

The Werribee Devils Youth League Women have overcome a sluggish start to run out victorious over the Corio Bay Stingrays in their season opener at Eagle Stadium on Sunday. The 59-44 win was the biggest margin of the round and puts the girls at the top of the ladder.

The Stingrays were on top early, but the Devils fought back with a 7-0 run thanks to baskets from Tegan Hindle, Alex Moss and a couple of free throws from Eliza Herne. Hindle got her shooting form going early, coming off the bench to fire in eight first-quarter points, including two good-looking three-pointers. The last four minutes of the quarter was a see-sawing affair, with the margin not going higher than one point either way. A basket to Stingray Kelsey Jordan put her team ahead by the narrowest of margins at quarter-time. Jenna Thomas grabbed three rebounds and Taylah Lea snatched two steals for the Devils.

The second quarter was a case of missed opportunities for the Devils. The Stingrays put up just eight shots compared to the Devils 20, and committed eleven turnovers in the ten minutes, yet found themselves only four points down at half time. The Devils retained the lead briefly at the start of the quarter thanks to a jump shot from Hayley Jones but soon lost it again and were trailing for most of the term. Suddenly they flicked the switch and went on an 8-0 run with scores from Teaghan Doyle, Moss, Herne and two free throws from Natasha Currao. The Devils had no clear standouts, with six players scoring a basket each. Doyle was playing a lone hand on the boards with four rebounds, and she and fellow tall Charlotte Vincent-Lord were defending well, effecting two steals each.

The 30-26 scoreline would not have been satisfactory to new coach Elisha Hogan, and it was clear someone had to stand up. Vincent-Lord did her best, with seven points, four rebounds and two steals for the quarter but received precious little support, as the Devils shot 3-17 from the field. Fortunately the Stingrays were no better (3/14) and when Vincent-Lord hit a free throw in the final thirty seconds the Devils seven point buffer was the biggest of the game. The Devils improved in the air with Herne (4), Jones (3) and Moss (2) all contributing in the rebounding department. 


There is a saying in sport that “the tall players don’t get any smaller” as the game goes on and that proved true in this game, as Rachel Miller stood up and played a vital role in the Devils eventual victory. Along with three rebounds, she equalled the Stingrays entire fourth quarter total with nine points, including eight consecutive points in the space of two minutes to break the game wide open. By the time the “Miller-streak” was broken by an Eliza Herne basket, the lead was out to double figures and the Devils were comfortably home. Their impressive second half rebounding continued, with Vincent-Lord, Miller, Herne and Lea all grabbing three. Taylah Lea was also solid down the defensive end, with two steals and two blocks for the quarter.


Coach Elisha Hogan was happy with the win: “It took the girls until the second quarter to start to get things going for us. Our defence in the first quarter wasn't the greatest and the girls knew they had to make some adjustments. To their credit their intensity lifted and the game started to swing our way. Tegan Hindle and Charlotte Vincent-Lord made some shots when needed and the defensive efforts from Teaghan Doyle and Eliza Herne were impressive. We did some good things and had a range of contributors. As always there is still plenty of room for improvement and we know defensively we must get better as we head into a tough round 2 match against Craigieburn.”

In a touch of absurdity, Round 2 sees the Devils welcoming the Craigieburn Eagles to their home court Eagle Stadium (!) on Sunday April 3^rd. The Eagles (5^th) had a mixed opening round, defeating McKinnon 63-53 at home before travelling to Warrandyte and falling short 85-75.

Youth League One Women Round 1 results:
Craigieburn 63 d McKinnon 53 
Coburg 51 d Camberwell 47 
Camberwell 60 d Altona 49 
Warrandyte 85 d Craigieburn 75 
Werribee 59 d Corio Bay 44 

Youth League One Women Round 2 Draw
McKinnon vs Camberwell, Saturday April 2nd, 16:00, Bentleigh Secondary College
Craigieburn vs Corio Bay, Saturday April 2nd, 18:15, Craigieburn Leisure Centre
Warrandyte vs Coburg, Saturday April 2nd, 18:30, Warrandyte Sports Complex
Altona vs McKinnon, Sunday April 3rd, 11:00, Altona Sports Centre
Corio Bay vs Warrandyte, Sunday April 3rd, 12:00, Geelong Basketball Netball Centre
Werribee vs Craigieburn, Sunday April 3rd, 13:00, Eagle Stadium

YLW Round 1 Ladder:
YLW Werribee v Corio Bay Box Score & Match Stats:
YLW Werribee v Corio Bay Livestats:

Big V Youth League Men Round 1 – Werribee Devils 83 d Geelong Supercats 61, Saturday March 19th, 2016

Youth League Men – Werribee Devils v Geelong Supercats, Saturday March 19^th, 2016

Werribee Devils	20	14	30	19	83
Geelong Supercats	13	12	15	21	61

Cam Hutton - 18 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 6 steals

Mitch Alush - 18 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals

Josh Zamperoni - 11 points, 3 steals

Bubby Luxford - 9 points, 2 assists, 5 steals

Jesse Harberger - 8 points, 4 rebounds, 5 blocks, 3 assists

Travis Dale - 7 points, 2 rebounds

TJ Remy - 4 points, 3 rebounds, 4 steals

Josh Tang - 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals

The Werribee Devils Youth League Men have got their season off to a pleasing start with an 83-61 victory over the Geelong Supercats at Eagle Stadium on Saturday night.

In front of a packed house, the night started in heartwarming fashion, with both teams joining together to honour the memory of a friend of the Supercats team who had recently passed away. It was a classy and genuine gesture which reminded us that, as crazy and competitive as sport can sometimes be, ultimately we are all part of the human family and it doesn’t cost anything to show kindness to others.

image from Geelong Supercats Facebook page

Once the action got underway, it was the Devils who raced away to a 7-0 lead inside the first two minutes thanks to a long bomb from Josh Zamperoni followed by baskets to Cam Hutton and TJ Remy. The home side controlled the quarter, extending the lead to double figures before the Supercats struck back to get within seven points at the first break. Mitch Alush was playing his first Big V game back since being injured last year and made an immediate impact with five points and three rebounds for the quarter. Cam Hutton and Jesse Harberger started with four points each and Josh Tang was handy in the air, grabbing three rebounds.   

The second quarter was an arm wrestle as the Supercats worked their way back into the match. They outrebounded the Devils 16-10 and found themselves within three points halfway through the quarter. However, baskets to Cam and Mitch, followed by a couple of freethrows to Bubby Luxford gave the Devils some breathing space, and they went to the locker room with a nine point lead, winning the quarter 14-12. Cam Hutton got five points for the quarter and Bubby had four. Jesse Harberger was solid down the defensive end, with three blocks.

There’s a saying in sport that the third quarter is the “premiership quarter” and the Devils certainly proved this to be true, scoring 30 points, forcing 15 Supercat turnovers and grabbing 10 steals. The same names kept on popping up on the stats computer: Cam Hutton again led the way with 8 points and 4 steals. Mitch Alush scored six and Josh Zamperoni had five. Bubby Luxford took advantage of several Supercat mistakes and snatched three steals.

With a 24-point lead in the bank it was time for some other contributors to step up in the final term. Travis Dale jumped on the court and top scored for the quarter with five points and Dylan Harberger added four. Constant offensive pressure from the Devils pushed the margin out to 28, but two Supercat three-pointers in the final minute resulted in a 22 point victory to the Devils in front of an appreciative home crowd.

New coach Darren Hindle was rightfully satisfied with the Devils performance: “We are very pleased with our first round effort. To be able to force a side to 39 turnovers was a great effort within itself. What made the win even more rewarding was the fact we didn't have to rely on any player for big minutes. It felt like a well-balanced team effort. Even though we are very pleased with the effort, we are not getting carried away, it's only round one and we still have plenty of room for improvement.” 

The top-placed Devils now face a Round 2 clash against western suburbs rivals Altona Gators (5^th), who got their season off to a great start with a 99-84 win over Sunbury. Their clash will be the first of a triple header at Eagle Stadium on Saturday April 2^nd. They then have a road trip to the leafy Eastern suburbs to take on the Camberwell Dragons (7^th) on Sunday.

Youth League One Men Round 1 Results:
Camberwell 90 d Warrandyte 79 
Coburg 81 @ Keysborough 62  
Werribee 83 d Geelong 61 
Whittlesea 73 d Hume City 61 
Bendigo 88 d Ballarat 65 
Altona 99 d Sunbury 84 
Geelong 83 d Keysborough 71 
Hume City 82 d Camberwell 69

Youth League One Men, Round 2 Draw:
Keysborough vs Camberwell, Saturday April 2nd, 16:00, Springers Leisure Centre
Werribee vs Altona, Saturday April 2nd, 16:30, Eagle Stadium
Geelong vs Whittlesea, Saturday April 2nd, 17:30, The Geelong Arena
Sunbury vs Coburg, Saturday April 2nd, 19:00, Boardman Stadium
Camberwell vs Werribee, Sunday April 3rd, 12:00, Boroondara Sports Complex
Warrandyte vs Sunbury, Sunday April 3rd, 12:30, Warrandyte Sports Complex
Hume City vs Geelong, Sunday April 3rd, 13:00, Broadmeadows Basketball Stadium
Ballarat vs Keysborough, Sunday April 3rd, 13:45, MARS Minerdome
Whittlesea vs Bendigo, Sunday April 3rd, 14:00, Mill Park Basketball Stadium

YLM Round 1 Ladder
YLM Werribee v Geelong Box Score & Match Stats
YLM Werribee v Geelong Livestats

Check out these awesome photos of the match against Geelong by Claire Tang Photography