WERRIBEE Devils survived a topsy-turvy last quarter to beat a never-give-in Melbourne Tigers 81-77 in the Big V basketball men’s championship at Werribee Sports and Fitness Centre on Saturday night.
The Devils were in control for most of the match before the Tigers mounted a spirited late change to take an unlikely lead deep into the final period.
Steady heads prevailed down the stretch for the Devils and they managed to avoid a third consecutive loss.
“We made hard work of it We were out to 15 points [lead] pretty early and then we lost our way a bit and got a bit in front of ourselves,” Devils coach Paul Jones said.
“To Melbourne’s credit, they’ve got some quality players and they fought back.
“They might’ve got five points up with a couple of minutes to go, but we just happened to get our heads back in front and hang on in the end.”
The Devils were able to halt the Tigers’ momentum on the back of late shows from prolific guard Jordan Hughes and forward Muka Silver.
Silver was a menace on the glass, finishing with 10 points and eight rebounds in limited court time after running into foul trouble in the first half.
Hughes was undoubtedly the game’s most valuable player, racking up 21 points, 12 rebounds and three assists.
Josh Oswald was a handy inclusion after national representative duties. The power forward hit 13 points, including 5-from-5 from the free throw line, and six rebounds. Oswald offers tremendous versatility to the Devils’ line-up.
The Devils (4-3) face the out-of-form Hume City Broncos (2-5) at home on Saturday night.
BIG V SCOREBOARD
Men: Werribee Devils 81 Melbourne Tigers 77
Women: Werribee Devils 56 Mornington Breakers 50
