WERRIBEE Devils have soared to the summit of the Victorian Basketball League Big V men’s division 1 ladder.
The youth-driven, and largely home grown, line-up has thrived under the tutelage of second-year coach Paul Jones.
The Devils made the bold move to promote their exciting youngsters and it’s paying off big time as they’ve become the cornerstone of the team.
It was a huge weekend in the Devils’ revolution, winning a double header and taking top of the table for the first time this season.
On Saturday night, the Devils beat up on rivals Sunbury Jets for a massive 98-61 road win at the Boardman Stadium.
Click on the image below for our gallery of the big game.
Then on Sunday they overcame a McKinnon Cougars line-up which featured former National Basketball League stars Marcus Timmons and Axel Dench to win an overtime thriller at the Werribee Sports and Fitness Centre, 89-88.
The Devils showed their tremendous depth in the 38-point win over the Jets. They bounced out to a 12-point quarter-time lead and never looked back.
The margin blew out even when the Devils starters were rested to prepare for another game less than 24 hours later.
Jordan Hughes clocked the most minutes to finish with 15 points and 12 rebounds, Kristian Rocci logged 15 and seven and Muka Silver had a similar stat line with 14 and six.
Mark Rizza was the pick of the ball handlers with five assists to go with nine points.
On Sunday, the last thing the Devils wanted was bonus basketball having played the night before, but
it took an overtime period to finally vanquish the visiting McKinnon.
The Devils showed maturity to grind out a win on a day they could have used fatigue as an excuse.
In what has been a positive season-long trait, the Devils spread the workload and didn’t rely on one or two individuals to get the job done.
Josh Oswald (17), Rizza (14), Tips Silver (13), Hughes (13) all lit up the scoreboard.
Muka Silver was outstanding across the board with 10 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals.
The Devils have another local derby to look forward to this Sunday when they make the short trip to face the Altona Gators at the Altona Sports Centre.
Tip off is at 1pm.
The Devils’ losing streak in the women’s division 2 extended to 12 with back-to-back losses on a double header weekend.
Men’s division 1:
Sunbury 61 lt Werribee 98,
Werribee 89 d McKinnon 88.
Women’s division 2:
Werribee 60 lt Mornington 72, Cranbourne 71 d Werribee 52.
