Big V Youth League Men Semi Final, Werribee v Whittlesea, Three Game series – August 6, 13, 14, 2016

Youth League One Men Semi Final, Game 1
Werribee Devils 88 lost to Whittlesea Pacers 100

Werribee	20	25	19	24	88
Whittlesea	33	26	13	28	100

Josh Zamperoni - 19 points, 12 rebounds
Mangar Manyang - 15 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks
Bubby Luxford - 14 points, 4 rebounds
Jesse Harberger - 12 points, 7 rebounds
Mitch Alush - 9 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists
TJ Remy - 8 points, 6 rebounds
Dylan Harberger - 6 rebounds

Having cleared the first post-season hurdle with a 91-74 victory over theSunbury Jets in the Elimination Final, the Werribee Devils Youth League Men prepared to take on the Whittlesea Pacers in the first contest of their best-of-three Semi Final series.

The season series was split at 1-1, with the Pacers collecting an 88-82 win at Eagle Stadium back in Round 5 and the Devils returned the favour when they visited the Pacers in Round 15, walking away with an 83-73 victory.

Both teams entered the finals with contrasting form lines. The Devils had won three out of four before their clash with Sunbury, while the Pacers lost four in a row before collecting a 90-74 win against Geelong in their very last game of the regular season. Finishing second gave the Pacers a rest in the first week of the finals.

Aidan Zeverona got the Pacers off to a good start and was immediately answered for the Devils by Jesse Harberger. The Pacers two highest scorers Jack Petrucelle (44 points) and Daniel Butera (29 points) then combined for seven points to give the visitors an early 9-2 lead. Bubby Luxford got on the board and was joined by Mitch Alush with a couple of free throws and a basket from Josh Zamperoni.

What transpired over the next three-and-a-half minutes basically decided the game. The Pacers employed a relentless full court defensive press which the Devils had no answers for, and the result was six Devils fouls and six turnovers. The Pacers went on a brutal 22-2 streak, including 15 points from Petrucelle.   

With 2.18 left on the clock the Pacers lead was 33-10 and the Devils started the long road back into contest. Zamperoni (10 points, six rebounds) spearheaded the recovery, hitting back-to-back threes and a couple of free throws. Mangar (four points, three rebounds) joined in and the Devils finished the quarter with ten unanswered points, to trail by 13 at quarter time. Dylan Harberger and TJ Remy both grabbed two rebounds.

The Pacers scored three of the first four baskets in the second term, interrupted by Liam Paul for the Devils. The home side then hit a 10-2 run thanks to contributions from Mangar, Jesse Harberger (10 points, two rebounds, two steals), Alush (five points, two rebounds) and Luxford, which reduced the margin to 10. The momentum changed again, with an Alush three-pointer in between nine Pacers points, which extended the margin for the visitors and undid all the Devils hard work. The two teams traded blows for the last four minutes of the quarter with Harberger, Dale (two rebounds) and Zamperoni (two rebounds) doing their best to gain ground on the scoreboard. In the end, the Pacers extended their lead by one at the half. Remy and Dylan Harberger both grabbed two rebounds.

Pacers sharpshooter Petrucelle came out firing in the third term, with seven points in the first two minutes. Mangar (six points, four rebounds) and Dylan Harberger (two rebounds) replied for the Devils, and then neither team scored for a couple of minutes in the middle stages. Cuthbert and Petrucelle combined to put the Pacers 19 points up with three minutes to play, and the Devils needed a spark. Alush (three rebounds) scored a basket and was joined by Zamperoni (three points, two rebounds), Luxford (four points, two assists, two rebounds) and Mangar, as the Devils finished the quarter with an 11-0 run and slashed the deficit to just eight points, setting up a huge final quarter. Jesse Harberger also grabbed three rebounds.

Luxford (six points) got the Devils off to the perfect start and brought the crowd to life with a basket in the first ten seconds, and was immediately answered by Petrucelle. Zamperoni (four points, two rebounds) replied for the Devils and the Pacers scored twice, restoring their double-digit lead. When Luxford and Zamperoni scored again, the margin was seven points with six minutes to play. Unfortunately that was as close as the Devils would get for the rest of the game. Butera then scored 10 points on his own in the space of two minutes, effectively putting the game out of the Devils reach. Remy (six points) chipped in with a couple of three pointers and Cam Hutton (four points) made a brief appearance in his comeback game, sinking some clutch free throws in the final minute. But Petrucelle continued to light the Devils up and the game did not get the ending it deserved, as it petered out in a procession of barely-disguised fouls and free throws. Alush contributed two assists and three rebounds, while Mangar had three points and two rebounds.

In the end, thanks to three minutes of relentless basketball, the Pacers took a 12-point win, 100-88. Game 2 will take place in Mill Park at 8.00pm on Saturday August 13^th and Game 3 (if required) will be played on the Sunday.

Werribee v Whittlesea - Box Score and Stats

Werribee v Whittlesea - LiveStats and Play-by-Play

Werribee v Whittlesea - Full Game on YouTube

2016 Youth League One Men Semi Final, Game 2
Werribee Devils 85 defeated Whittlesea Pacers 74

Werribee	16	15	22	32	85
Whittlesea	24	18	12	20	74

Mitch Alush - 26 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists

Jesse Harberger - 24 points, 17 rebounds

Josh Zamperoni - 14 points, 6 rebounds

Mangar Manyang - 14 points, 6 rebounds

Bubby Luxford - 7 rebounds, 10 assists, 3 steals

The Werribee Devils Youth League Men were certainly ‘behind the eight-ball’ as they headed into Game 2 of their semi-final series against the Whittlesea Pacers.

Game 1 had been played at home the previous week and the Devils were blown away by three minutes of relentless Pacer basketball which resulted in an early 33-10 deficit. As they always do, the Devils fought back and got within six points late in the game but ended up with a 100-88 loss.

So the Devils made the trek to Mill Park on the weekend accompanied by a large group of supporters ready to see their boys level the series. One key to victory was going to be stopping Pacers #9 Jack Petruccelle, who poured in 44 points in Game 1.

In his 100^th game, Jesse Harberger (six points, three rebounds) got the Devils off to a good start, but a couple of early Devils turnovers resulted in four points to…guess who?....Petruccelle. Harberger scored again and this was answered by a three-pointer to Pacer Zeverona. Petruccelle scored again, giving the Pacers an early five point lead, but then Josh Zamperoni (five points) hit a long bomb and Mitch Alush (three points, four rebounds) got on the board, giving the lead back to the Devils. Zeverona replied with a three and Harberger scored again, and with 4.40 to play it was all tied up at 12-12. Free throws to Bubby Luxford (three assists, two rebounds) and Zamperoni gave the Devils a slight edge, but the Pacers finished with the last ten points of the quarter, giving them a 24-16 lead at quarter time.

When play resumed, Kearing scored the first four points for the Pacers, extending their lead to double-digits. Zamperoni, Zeverona and Dylan Harberger then traded three-pointers, before Mangar Manyang (six points, three rebounds) scored four points of his own, getting the Devils back within five. Petruccelle and Zeverona combined for six unanswered Pacer points. The Devils couldn’t manage a field goal in the last three minutes, but free throws from Mangar, Harberger and Alush kept the Devils in the contest. A late jump shot from Rory Smith gave the Pacers an 11-point lead at half time, 42-31. Luxford chipped in with five rebounds and two assists.

Harberger (seven points, five rebounds) was determined to make his mark on the contest, and came out and hit a three-pointer in the first ten seconds of the second half. Petruccelle replied for the Pacers, but then Harberger shot four more points and Alush (11 points, four rebounds) added a three, bringing the Devils within three points. Luxford (five assists) traded baskets with Petruccelle and Zeverona, before Mangar and Alush combined to get the margin back to one point. Zeverona and Petruccelle gave the Pacers some breathing space, before back-to-back three pointers from Alush gave the Devils the lead inside the last minute. Pacer Rory Smith hit a late basket and when the buzzer sounded, the Pacers went into the last break with a 54-53 lead, setting up a HUGE last quarter. Josh Zamperoni also grabbed five rebounds for the quarter.

Daniel Butera extended the Pacers lead with a three-pointer. This was followed by free throws to Blake Cuthbert and Harberger (nine points, eight rebounds), who was making his presence felt with a big game under the basket and was getting fouled regularly.

The Pacers held on to their narrow lead for the first couple of minutes but the turning point came when Harberger went up for a rebound and was hit hard by a couple of Pacers, but no foul was called. Things turned ugly. The Werribee crowd was ropable (including this reporter) and the Pacers players seemed to lose their nerve. Two tech fouls on Pacer players gave the Devils plenty of scoring opportunities. In the space of three minutes the Devils outscored the home side 16-2, going from five points down to a lead of nine approaching the halfway point of the quarter. Harberger, Alush (11 points, two assists, two rebounds), Mangar (six points, two rebounds) and Zamperoni (six points) all featured prominently.

In a blow for Whittlesea, Petruccelle looked to have hurt himself rather badly and was subbed off with 5.30 on the clock. Once they grabbed the lead, the Devils spent the last five minutes keeping the Pacers at arm’s length and they held on for the win. The Pacers could only manage to get within six points during this time and with a final 7-2 run at the end, the final margin was 11 in favour of the visitors, 85-74.

Coach Darren Hindle made the unusual decision to go with the same five players for the majority of the second half, making two substitutions with a couple of minutes left. It got them the win, but the test would be whether those five could back it up the next day in Game 3. 

Game 2 - Box Score and Stats

Game 2 - Full Game on YouTube




Photo credit: Teagan Duff

2016 Youth League One Men Semi Final, Game 3
Werribee Devils 65 lost to Whittlesea Pacers 70

Werribee	21	23	15	6	65
Whittlesea	16	19	17	18	70

Mitch Alush - 19 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals

Josh Zamperoni - 14 points, 15 rebounds

Jesse Harberger - 9 points, 8 rebounds, 5 blocks, 3 steals

TJ Remy - 7 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists

After their hard-fought win in Game 2 the previous night, the Werribee Devils Youth League Men were back at Mill Park to do it all again the next day. The Pacers were without Petruccelle, who had injured himself in the fourth quarter of Game 2.

Nothing separated the teams early in the first quarter, with the margin not getting beyond three points either way in the first five minutes. Cam Hutton (two rebounds) struck first for the Devils, which would have done his confidence the world of good in his third game back from a long-term foot injury. The same names popped up early on; Butera and Zeverona scored for the Pacers, replied by Remy (three assists) and Alush (four points, two rebounds) up the other end. Harberger and Zamperoni (five rebounds) hit three-pointers, but were answered by four points each from Cuthbert and Zeverona. Holding a two-point lead, the Pacers failed to score in the final three minutes of the quarter. Mangar nailed a couple of free throws and then Liam Paul stood up for the Devils, hitting two free throws and a three-pointer to give the Devils a five-point lead at quarter-time.

Cairns and Butera levelled the game up inside the first minute, before the Devils went on an 8-0 run with contributions from Remy (two rebounds, two steals), Harberger (six points, two rebounds, two blocks), Mangar and Alush (seven points, five rebounds). Kearing put one in for the Pacers, but Alush, Harberger and Zamperoni (four points, four rebounds) scored again, extending the Devils lead to double-digits. Neither team could gain the ascendancy in the final few minutes, with the Devils maintaining their lead and having an answer to everything the Pacers tried. The Devils lead was nine points at half time, 44-35. Kodi Opetaia added two assists and two rebounds for the Devils.

Muscat and Alush traded three-pointers at the start of the third quarter, and Zamperoni (seven points, four rebounds) added four points of his own to extend the Devils lead. A couple of Zeverona free throws were answered by a three from Remy and a basket from Alush (five points, two steals), and all of a sudden the margin was a game-high 16 points in favour of the Devils. From here the Pacers began their fightback. They finished the quarter with a 12-3 run and went into three-quarter time just seven points down. Harberger added two blocks and two rebounds for the Devils.

Cairns and Butera continued the Pacers momentum, scoring the first five points of the quarter inside the opening minute and getting within two points. Opetaia (two rebounds) scored the Devils first basket nearly four minutes into the term, then Zeverona and Butera levelled the game up with 4.36 remaining. A minute later Zeverona gave the Pacers the lead. Alush snatched it back briefly after he scored while he was fouled and converted the bonus free throw. Muscat replied for the Pacers soon after, and the Devils scoring had completely dried up. A Luxford free throw with 2.30 to play was the Devils final score of the game, as the Pacers added five points in the last thirty seconds, giving them a 70-65 victory and a place in the Grand Final against Altona.

In the end, the Devils were outscored 30-9 in a quarter-and-a-half.

Despite the disappointing final result, congratulations to all the Youth League Men players and coaches on a great season and for representing the Werribee Devils well in 2016. You were always fun to watch and you consistently produced a fast-paced, entertaining and enjoyable brand of basketball.

Game 3 - Box Score and Stats

Game 3 - Full Game on YouTube