Big V State Championship Men Round 16 – Werribee Devils 72 d Knox Raiders 67, Saturday July 16th, 2016

State Champ Men 72 d Knox Raiders 67

Werribee	21	20	14	17	72
Knox	22	13	18	14	67

Jeremy Smith 25 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists
Fred Hunter 13 points, 10 rebounds, 3 steals
Jordan Hughes 10 points, 5 rebounds
Jack Macdonald 9 points, 2 assists
Jonathan Sonda 8 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 assists, 3 steals
Nick Morda 7 points



It was another special weekend at Eagle Stadium, as we celebrated 20 years since the State Championship Men's team won back-to-back titles in 1995-1996.

A week after collecting two wins in a successful double header against Whittlesea and Diamond Valley, the Werribee Devils State Championship Men came up against 3^rd-placed Knox Raiders. Knox had an 88-72 victory when the two teams last met in Round 10.

Knox scored first through Rose, then Jack Macdonald and Fred Hunter got the Devils on the board three minutes into the match. Only one basket separated the two teams for the first six minutes, before Raiders Rose and Nyok combined for six consecutive points, giving the visitors a slight edge. With three minutes to play Jeremy Smith heated up, scoring 10 of the Devils 12 points, but he was answered up the other end by Rose, Unwin and Polk. Smith (12 pts, 4 rebs, 2 ass) got the Devils the lead with twenty seconds remaining, but a three-pointer from Hare put the Raiders in front by one at quarter time. Aside from Smith, other contributors for the Devils included Hunter (three rebounds), Macdonald (two assists) and Sonda (two steals).

Knox's Polk was proving hard to stop, scoring the Raiders first six points of the second term. Morda (five points) and Hunter were keeping the Devils in touch, and with 4.50 to play Hunter (seven points, three rebounds) gave the Devils the lead which they wouldn’t give up for the rest of the quarter. He, Smith (two assists, two rebounds) and Macdonald contributed to a 6-0 Devils run, giving them some breathing space. Hare and Tomada fought back late for the Raiders, before a Macdonald (five points) jump shot in the last thirty seconds gave the Devils a 41-35 advantage at half time.

The Devils lead was erased in the first two minutes of the third term, thanks to ten unanswered Raiders points. Smith (four points, four rebounds) finally got the Devils on the board four minutes into the quarter. The Devils shooters finally came to life, with Smith, Hunter (four points, two rebounds), Macdonald and Hughes all firing well to get the Devils back in the game. The last four minutes were goal-for-goal and a Hunter basket in the final thirty seconds put the Devils in front by two points at three-quarter time. Sonda chipped in with two rebounds and two blocks.
It was clear that whoever won this game was going to earn it. Hughes (five points, two rebounds) scored the first five points for the Devils, giving them some breathing space. Sonda (four points, two rebounds) and Smith (six points, five rebounds) both added baskets, and a Smith free throw with 4.37 remaining gave the Devils an eight-point lead. The Raiders then crept within two points with thirty seconds to play, as the Devils didn’t score for about three minutes, but free throws from Morda and Sonda put the game out of Knox’s reach, giving the Devils their third win in a row, and eighth of the season.

There are now just two games remaining in the Devils 2016 season and they are at home on Saturday night for both matches. Round 17 sees them up against the Eltham Wildcats (6th, 11-8), and they finish off against the Ringwood Hawks (3rd, 14-5)

Werriee v Knox - Box Score and Stats

Werribee v Knox - LiveStats and Play-by-Play

Werribee v Knox - Full Game on YouTube

Big V Division One Women Round 16 – Werribee Devils 70 v Geelong Supercats 79, Saturday July 16th, 2016

Division One Women 70 lost to Geelong Supercats 79

Werribee	19	21	11	19	70
Geelong	24	19	17	19	79

Bex Van Kuyk 17 points, 17 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals
Jessica Slade 16 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists
Doni Lewis 12 points, 6 assists
Nicole Greene 10 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
Jackie Silcock 10 points, 2 rebounds
Jasmine Silcock 5 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists

In Round 16, the Werribee Devils Division One Women (10th, 3-14) travelled down the highway to take on the Geelong Supercats (2nd, 13-4). They were looking to improve on their previous result from Round 11, which was a 91-52 win to Geelong.

Jackie Silcock got the Devils off to a good start, scoring five points in the first two minutes of the match. Bex Van Kuyk and Jasmine Silcock joined in and the Devils held a narrow lead in the early stages. With three minutes remaining, former Devils Louise Johnston and Georgia Tauschke combined with Varley to get the Supercats in front by six. Jessica Slade and Nicole Greene scored in the last minute and the Devils went into quarter time trailing by five, 24-19. Van Kuyk (five points, three rebounds) and Jackie Silcock (five points) led the Devils, supported by Slade (four points, two rebounds) and Greene (three points, two rebounds).

Jasmine Silcock and Greene scored early on for the Devils, but the Supercats went on a 9-0 run through the middle stages, resulting in a 13-point lead. The Devils fought back late in the quarter, with Van Kuyk, Slade and Jackie Silcock all contributing to a 12-3 run, which got the Devils within three points at half time. Van Kuyk (six points, five rebounds, two assists) and Slade (six points, six rebounds) both had big quarters. Greene chipped in with five points and Doni Lewis had three assists.

The scoring dried up for both teams early in the third quarter, with the first field goal coming from Louise Johnston with 5.42 remaining. The Devils didn’t hit the scoreboard until four minutes into the quarter, courtesy of Slade and Lewis free throws. The Supercats put in ten consecutive points through the middle stages of the quarter and all of a sudden the lead was out to 16. Lewis (seven points) led a late Devils fightback scoring six of the Devils nine points over the last two minutes to get the margin back to single digits. A Dorning basket gave the Supercats a nine–point lead at the last break, and the Devils were still in the contest. Van Kuyk grabbed six rebounds.

Early baskets from Van Kuyk and Slade got the Devils within seven points, but that was as close as they got. The Supercats were able to keep the Devils at arm’s length, with a 6-0 run getting the margin out to 14 inside the last two minutes. Jackie Silcock, Greene and Lewis combined for seven of the last nine points and they managed to level the quarter, giving the Supercats a 79-70 win. Slade (five points, five rebounds, two assists) and Lewis (five points) stepped up for the Devils and Van Kuyk contributed four points and three rebounds.

There are now just two games remaining in the Devils season. In Round 17 they host the Sunbury Jets (1st, 17-0), and finish off with a road trip to Mildura (7th, 7-11).

Werribee v Geelong - Box Score and Stats

Werribee v Geelong - LiveStats and Play-by-Play

Werribee v Geelong - Full Game on YouTube

Big V Youth League Men Round 16 – Werribee Devils 83 v Hume City Broncos 74, Sunday July 17th, 2016

Youth League One Men 83 defeated Hume City Broncos 74

Werribee	31	19	14	19	83
Hume City	22	21	17	14	74

Mitch Alush 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 6 steals
Josh Zamperoni 16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 assists
Mangar Manyang 13 points, 10 rebounds
TJ Remy 12 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals
Travis Dale 8 points, 2 rebounds
Bubby Luxford 6 rebounds, 4 assists
Zac Latham 3 rebounds, 2 blocks
Jesse Harberger 4 rebounds, 3 assists

In Round 16, the Werribee Devils Youth League Men (5th, 12-7) travelled to take on the Hume City Broncos (11th, 3-16). The Devils won their previous encounter 76-67 back in Round 7.

TJ Remy kicked things off for the Devils with a three-pointer, then he and Mitch Alush extended the Devils early lead. Broncos Matautia and Yarnton hit back, but when Bubby Luxford hit his first basket with 5.49 remaining it started an 8-0 Devils run and they took the lead which they wouldn’t give up for the rest of the quarter. The Broncos got within two points in the final two minutes, but points from Alush, Manyang and Luxford ensured the Devils went to quarter time with a nine-point lead. Alush had a huge first term with 12 points, two rebounds and two steals. He was well supported by Manyang (six points, two rebounds), Luxford (five points, three rebounds, two assists) and Remy (five points).

The Devils soon extended their lead to double figures as Kodi Opetaia opened the scoring in the first 20 seconds. Zac Latham and Travis Dale then made the most of their opportunities, with Latham scoring four and Dale scoring eight, allowing the Devils to maintain their double digit lead through the middle stages of the quarter. A 7-0 Bronco run saw them get back within six points late in the quarter with a bit of momentum, but Dale, Alush and Zamperoni got on the board in the last couple of minutes, helping the Devils maintain a seven-point half time lead. Dale had one of his better quarters for the season with eight points and two rebounds, and in addition to his four points, Latham had two blocks and two rebounds.

The Broncos crept within three points early on, thanks to a 5-1 start in the first couple of minutes, but two Zamperoni three-pointers plus baskets from Alush and Opetaia gave the Devils some breathing space, with the lead out to nine points at the halfway mark of the quarter. The Broncos outscored the Devils 8-3 in the last three minutes, reducing the Devils lead to just four points at the last break. Zamperoni was the Devils main scorer for the quarter with six points and four rebounds. Remy put in the Devils last score for the quarter, as well as two assists and four rebounds. Alush had two steals and Manyang also grabbed four rebounds.

As expected, the final term was tight and closely contested. The Broncos got within three points a couple of times, but the Devils managed to maintain their single-digit lead through the whole quarter. Neither side was able to get any real momentum, with the Devils biggest streak being five points halfway through the quarter. In the end, a dunk and a free throw from Manyang in the final minute gave the Devils a nine-point victory. He led the Devils with seven points and four rebounds for the quarter, while Zamperoni, Remy and Alush all added four points each. Remy had a big quarter, also contributing six rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Alush also had three rebounds and two assists.

And so we reach the last round of the Youth League Men regular season, which finishes a week earlier than many of the other divisions. The win over the Broncos pushed the Devils (13-7) back up to 3rd position on the ladder, although only one game separates positions 3rd through 6th. The Devils have two games remaining in the regular season. A home game against the Coburg Giants (6th, 12-8) on Saturday is followed by a road trip to face the Bendigo Braves (8th, 10-11) on Sunday.

Werribee v Hume City - Box Score and Stats
Werribee v Hume City - LiveStats and Play-by-Play
Werribee v Hume City - Full Game on YouTube