WERRIBEE Devils coach Lloyd Klaman shakes his head with disbelief at some of the statistics that have come his way during the team’s sizzling four-game win streak to start the Big V basketball women’s division 2 season.
While coaching juniors on Sunday, a member told him the previous week’s win over Blackburn was their first on their home court since the 2009 grand final series.
Klaman was also told that if the Devils can stretch their streak to five against Chelsea this Sunday, they will have achieved in five weeks of basketball the same amount of wins they celebrated during a three-year period since the premiership.
“You think, gee the girls must love the game of basketball to stick around through all that,” he told the Weekly.
The loyalty is starting to pay off.
The Devils have been one of the hottest teams in the opening month.
Their success has come mainly on the road with three of their four victories on opposition courts.
Klaman points to a strong pre-season regime and match fitness as the key to games down the stretch.
The players have found winning to be infectious, borne out of their unusually stacked preseason fixture list.
“We’ve been going hard since November and the girls have been putting in so much,” he said.
“They’re getting the benefit of it.
“We had 13 practice matches in the pre-season because we needed the girls to learn how to win.
“I wanted them to be expecting to win when they go out on to the court.”
It helped the Devils no end to be able to bring in the experience of Emma Coyne and Lisa Troyahn.
Again they were the cornerstones of the Devils’ 64-54 road victory over the Western Port Steelers at the Somerville Recreation and Community Centre on Saturday night.
Coyne unleashed her offensive arsenal, hitting 7-of-15 from the field, three of five from beyond the three-point arc and seven-of-nine from the free-throw line to finish with 24 points.
She did not neglect the defensive responsibilities that have been a staple of hers for over 250 games, finishing with five steals.
Troyahn ran into foul trouble early and logged just 22 minutes, but still finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds.
Jacqueline Silcock “held down the fort” in the paint when Troyahn was forced to the bench.
Meanwhile, the Devils have pulled off a stunning result in the Big V men’s division 1, eclipsing defending champions Ringwood Hawks 91-84 at the Maroondah Indoor Sports Centre.
The young Devils improved to 3-1 ahead of Sunday’s home clash with the up and down Eltham Wildcats.
BIG V SCORES
Men: Werribee Devils 91 Ringwood Hawks 84
Women: Werribee Devils 64 Western Port Steelers 54
