Big V Division One Women Round 10 – Werribee Devils 46 v Western Port Steelers 75, Saturday May 28th, 2016

Division One Women 46 lost to Western Port Steelers 75

Werribee	19	10	11	6	46
Western Port	12	17	24	22	75

Jessica Slade 14 points, 8 rebounds

Jackie Silcock 9 points

Doni Lewis 7 points

Bex Van Kuyk 12 rebounds, 2 steals

In Round 10, the Werribee Devils Division One Women travelled to take on the Western Port Steelers. Their previous meeting was at Eagle Stadium in Round 2, and resulted in a 63-52 win to the Steelers.

The Steelers scored twice in a minute, but were immediately answered by a Jackie Silcock three-pointer and then Jessica Slade scored the Devils next seven points to help build up an early lead for the visitors. Slade (eight points, four rebounds) and Silcock (seven points) were the Devils main contributors in the opening quarter which the Devils won 19-12.   

Slade scored first in the second quarter, then the Steelers slowly edged their way back, scoring 10 of the next 11 points and drawing level, before a basket from Slade and a three-pointer from Lauren Conroy gave the Devils some breathing space late in the quarter. However, the Steelers kept coming; Jenna McCormick and Lauren Cooper both scored in the last minute and at half time the scores were tied at 29-29. Slade (four points) and Conroy (three) led the scoring for the Devils and Bex Van Kuyk grabbed three rebounds.

Doni Lewis got the Devils off to a great start in the second half with a three-pointer and the Devils went blow-for-blow with their higher-ranked opponents, giving no indication as to what lay ahead. When Nicole Greene scored with 5.20 remaining, the Devils led 38-37. However, from there the Steelers went on a 16-2 run to finish the quarter with a 13-point lead. Lewis led the Devils with five points. Slade did not score but grabbed three rebounds and gave away two assists.

Things did not get any better for the Devils in the final term. They could only manage a season-low six points for the quarter and the Steelers added 22, to finish with a comfortable 29-point win. Bex Van Kuyk grabbed six rebounds and had two steals for the quarter.

Looking at the box score, it seems fouls were a major deciding factor in the result. The Devils committed 22 fouls compared to 13, and the Steelers converted 21 of 29 free throws compared to 5 of 13 for the Devils, a 16-point differential.

In Round 11 the Devils (10^th, 2-9) will host the Geelong Supercats (3^rd, 7-3) at 1.00pm on Sunday 5^th of June, in what will be their first meeting of season 2016.

Werribee v Western Port - Box Score and Stats

Werribee v Western Port - LiveStats and Play-by-Play

Big V Youth League Men Round 10 – Werribee Devils 87 v Bendigo Braves 79, Saturday May 28th, 2016

Youth League Men 87 defeated Bendigo Braves 79

Werribee	17	14	25	31	87
Bendigo	16	28	16	19	79

TJ Remy 21 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists

Mitch Alush 15 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals

Jesse Harberger 15 points, 9 rebounds

Josh Tang 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals

Bubby Luxford 10 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals

Kodi Opetaia 5 rebounds, 3 steals

Josh Zamperoni 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals

In Round 10, the Werribee Devils Youth League Men hosted the Bendigo Braves.

After a couple of losses, the lads would have been keen not to let this game slip, and the match started tentatively, with both sides trading baskets early on. TJ Remy, Jesse Harberger and Mitch Alush got on the board for the Devils, but then they didn’t score for three minutes through the middle stages of the quarter. Bendigo were pretty quiet as well, and they held a narrow lead for most of the quarter. With 3.39 remaining, Remy sparked an 11-2 Devils run and was joined by Josh Tang and Alush, as the home side went from four down to five points up with a couple of minutes to play. Jacob Seears hit four unanswered points in the last 90 seconds to get the Braves within one point at quarter time. Remy led the Devils with seven points and three rebounds, while Alush had five points, four rebounds and two steals. Other contributors included Mangar Manyang (two blocks, three rebounds), J Harberger (three rebounds) and Josh Zamperoni had two steals.

In contrast to the opening term, both teams made a quick start to the second quarter. When play resumed Bendigo started better, with Lloyd Needs and Seears adding seven points in the first couple of minutes. J Harberger countered for the Devils and when Bubby Luxford scored as he was fouled and converted the bonus free throw, there was one point in it. This was the start of another three-minute Devils scoring drought, while the Braves scored nine unanswered points, stretching their lead out to double digits at the halfway mark of the quarter. J Harberger and Kodi Opetaia did their best to stem the flow, but Aidan Brohm got on a streak, scoring eight points in 90 seconds for the Braves and consolidating a double digit lead, which they held for the majority of the last four minutes. The 31 point total was the Devils second-lowest first half of the season. J Harberger and Opetaia both added four points, and Opetaia was lively with three rebounds and three steals.  

It’s safe to assume that coach Darren Hindle would have had some stern words for his charges at the main break after an ordinary first half. Remy, Tang and Dylan Harberger combined for the first five points as they set out to erase the deficit. Braves Kyle McMullan and Tanner Rayner fired back with seven points and were answered by Zamperoni and J Harberger. When Jake Willcocks scored, the margin was back out to 12 after four minutes of play. The Devils proceeded on an 11-3 run over the next four minutes, including 7 from Tang, and all of a sudden it was just four points the difference inside the last two minutes. Willcocks and Brohm scored for the Braves, but four points to Remy in the last minute brought the margin back to four points at three-quarter time and it was ‘Game On’! Tang stood up with nine points and three steals, supported by Remy (six points, four rebounds) and J Harberger (four points). Zamperoni (four) and D Harberger (three) grabbed seven rebounds between them.

The stage was set for an exciting final quarter, and there would be many twists and turns in the next ten minutes of basketball. Rayner nailed a long bomb which extended the Braves lead but then Bubby Luxford and Mitch Alush spearheaded an 11-3 run over the opening four minutes of the quarter which saw the Devils snatch back the lead for the first time since the start of the second quarter. Another three-pointer from Rayner with 5.26 to play gave the Braves the lead back, but it was shortlived. 12 seconds later Remy replied and the Devils wouldn’t concede the lead for the rest of the game. The next three minutes saw the Devils go on a 12-1 run, and with a nine point lead with two minutes to play, the game looked safe.

However, the Braves still weren’t done. McMullan, Willcocks and Brohm all scored in the space of 30 seconds, and when Rayner hit another three-pointer with 40 seconds remaining, the margin was just two points in favour of the Devils. As brave as they were, foul trouble ended up costing the Braves dearly. They committed four fouls in the last 38 seconds and Luxford, J Harberger and Alush converted six out of eight free throws to put the game beyond reach and escape with an 87-79 victory. The Devils had a massive last quarter and several players made big contributions. Alush (10 points, two steals) led the scoring, supported by Remy (eight points, four assists), Luxford (seven points, four rebounds, three steals) and J Harberger (five points, six rebounds).

In Round 11 the Devils (3^rd, 9-4) face a road-trip double header. On Saturday afternoon they are up against the Keysborough Cougars (12^th, 0-14), then on Sunday they head to the Mars Minerdome to play Ballarat (11^th, 3-9).

Last time against Keysborough: Round 4, Eagle Stadium, Win 100-79
Last time against Ballarat: Round 3, Eagle Stadium, Win 108-62

Werribee v Bendigo - Box Score and Stats

Werribee v Bendigo - LiveStats and Play-by-Play

Big V Youth League Women Round 10 – Werribee Devils 60 v Altona Gators 74, Sunday May 29th, 2016

Youth League Women 60 lost to Altona Gators 74

Werribee	19	10	20	11	60
Altona	19	20	13	22	74

Charlotte Vincent-Lord 13 points, 13 rebounds
Teaghan Doyle 11 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals
Eliza Herne 9 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks
Taylah Lea 8 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 4 steals
Natasha Currao 6 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists
Rachel Miller 6 points, 4 rebounds

In Round 10 the Werribee Devils Youth League Women took on the Altona Gators. Their last meeting was Round 6 at Eagle Stadium, and the Gators left with a 61-71 victory.

The game got off to a fast start. Rachel Miller and Hayley Jones scored for the Devils in the first minute, then Teaghan Doyle added four points, to give the visitors an early 8-1 lead. However, Altona responded with six points in thirty seconds from Chanelle Vaotangi and when Cassidy Gould nailed a jump shot, scores were level again, all in under four minutes. Eliza Herne and Charlotte Lord got on the board as the Devils maintained a slender lead. Three points from Taylah Lea and four points from Lord stretched the lead to seven, but three unanswered baskets from the Gators in the final two minutes saw scores level 19-19 at quarter time. The Devils had several contributors, but Lord led the way with six points and seven rebounds, while Doyle had four points.

Neither team scored in the first two minutes of the second quarter, then the drought was broken twice by the Gators – a three-pointer from Kobe King-Hawea and a pair of free throws from Jessica Rarity giving the Gators an early lead. Lea hit a couple of free throws and Jones scored the Devils first field goal for the quarter after four minutes of play. The Devils stayed in touch, but six unanswered points in 40 seconds from Gould stretched the Gators lead out to 9. When Doyle scored with 3.10 remaining, it would be another two minutes before either team got on the board again, with Miller bringing the margin back to five points. Just like the first quarter, the Gators did some last-minute scoreboard damage, with five points in the final minute stretching the home side’s lead out to 10 points at the main break. There were no standouts for the Devils, with Lea, Miller, Doyle, Jones and Natasha Currao all contributing to the Devils 10 points for the quarter. Jones was lively was two rebounds, a steal and a block, while Herne also had two rebounds and Lea snatched two steals.

The Devils fought back in the early stages of the third quarter with three-pointers from Herne and Lea, as well as a couple of free throws from Lord, getting the Devils back within four points. There was another two minute scoring drought through the middle stages of the quarter. Herne and Doyle scored again in quick time but were answered by the Gators, who seemed to have the Devils covered. With two minutes to go, a couple of Gators turnovers allowed Miller, Lord and Herne to score in the space of 40 seconds, bringing the margin back to one. A couple of free throws to Dana Lindemann in the last minute gave the Gators a three point lead at three-quarter time. Herne led the Devils scoring with seven points, supported by Lord with four points and two assists. Doyle grabbed four rebounds, Currao had three assists and Lea chipped in with three rebounds, a steal and a block.

Currao struck first for the Devils, but the Gators scored the next nine points, pushing the lead out to double figures after four minutes of play. The Gators went missing for the next two minutes, but the Devils failed to take advantage. Tegan Hindle scored a basket and she and Doyle added free throws to bring the visitors within six points with four minutes to play. The two teams traded baskets for a while and Doyle hit what would be the Devils last field goal with 2.25 remaining. Foul trouble proved costly and the Gators made six free throws in the last 38 seconds, giving them a 74-60 victory. The Devils only managed 3-of-22 from the field in the last quarter, and the Gators converted 21-of-27 free throws for the match, compared to 12-of-21 for the Devils. Doyle, Lord and Hindle all added three points for the quarter, and Hindle (3) and Lord (4) grabbed seven rebounds between them.

In Round 11, the Devils (2^nd, 8-3) will pay a visit to the Corio Bay Stingrays (8^th, 3-9) on Saturday night June 4^th. Their previous encounter was in Round 1 and the Devils came away with a 59-44 win. 

Werribee v Altona - Box Score and Stats

Werribee v Altona - LiveStats and Play-by-Play