WERRIBEE Devils have cowered at the physicality of the Southern Peninsula Sharks in a Big V basketball women’s division 2 top-of-the-ladder clash that failed to live up to the blockbuster billing.
The Devils were a shell of the all-conquering team that had won its previous eight games on the bounce.
Seven points was all an out-of-sorts Devils had to show for a cringeworthy first half before losing 67-42 on the road at the Hillview Stadium.
Devils coach Lloyd Klaman told the Weekly his young team was monstered by a more mature outfit.
“They’re very physical, they’re a little bit taller and their average age is a lot more,” he said.
“We’ve got two girls who are 30 and 31, but the rest are kids and almost all of the girls they play are between 25 and 28. They are mature and real physical.”
The Devils were not without their chances in their first half of the horror show.
They had 33 field goal attempts, but could only land three.
The more they tried, the uglier it got.
“We just had one of those games where we could not hit a shot,” Klaman said.
“We missed a lot of easy shots.
“We probably missed eight or 10 two-foot shots in the first quarter.
“After a while, the ring started looking pretty small for the girls.”
Trailing 35-7 at half-time, you have to give the Devils credit for not simply rolling over.
They came out in the third and won the quarter and finished off with a solid fourth to add some respectability to the scoreboard.
Klaman is concerned about the Devils’ poor starts, which are becoming a worrying trend for a team that wants to be in title contention.
“We just haven’t been getting off to good starts and it’s hard to play from behind all the time,” he said.
“That’s one thing that really concerns me.”
The Devils can expect another physical test when Keilor Thunder pays a visit on Saturday night.
In the men’s championship, Werribee Devils fell to sixth after a 110-78 road loss to the Corio Bay Stingrays.
Josh Oswald (15 points, seven rebounds and six assists) and Jordan Hughes (14 points and six rebounds) were the shining lights for the Devils.
