WERRIBEE Devils will take a pick-a-part approach to this weekend’s Big V basketball women’s division 2 preseason tournament.
The Devils will not be driven as much by results as they are about carrying out all facets of coach Brant Lowry’s game plan.
“We’ll work on one or two things a game so they really get an understanding of the tactics before the start of the season,” he said. “We’ve played five practice matches and we’ve seen that even when they don’t get something straight away, they have improved on it the next game.”
The Devils have endured another unsettling player reshuffle this season.
They are into the third season of Lowry’s second stint as coach and team continuity has not been a feature.
It has not deterred Lowry from his initial aim of reaching the finals in his third year at the helm.
“The idea is to make finals and hopefully win it,” he said. “We’re proud that we’ve got a home-grown team, now we need success to come with it.”
The Devils have given playing time to 15 players over the practice match circuit.
The team has largely been driven by youth but has valuable leaders in Sarah Truman, Dionne Fenton and Sarah McKay.
Truman, the shooting guard, is likely to call the shots as on-court leader.
“When the coaches are getting through to the girls, she has a great understanding of what to do on the court and our assistants treat her like she’s another assistant coach,” Lowry said.
McKay is likely to have an even bigger impact on the Devils this season.
The Devils will play back-to-back round robin games against Cranbourne (10am) and Melbourne University (2.10pm) on Saturday, followed by a clash with Blackburn (10am) on Sunday, with the top two teams to meet in the grand final on Labour Day.
The Devils’ men’s division 1 team has an even heavier schedule with games against Warrandyte (5pm) and Hawthorn (9pm) on Saturday, followed by McKinnon (10am) and Blackburn (6.10pm) on Sunday.
All matches will be played at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre in Albert Park.
