Big V Finals Week One Preview

Candice Rogers

Championship Women (1st 16-5): vs. Melbourne Tigers (4th 12-9) @ North Melbourne Rec. Centre, Saturday 6.00pm

For the first time in 10 years, the Geelong Lady Cats will feature in the Big V State Championship playoffs. Geelong warmed up for the clash with Melbourne by beating Hume City 72-61, with Candice Rogers again putting her hand up for the SCW MVP award and All-Star honours with 22 points and 16 rebounds. Melbourne Tigers, who hold a 2-1 advantage over Geelong in the regular season, and finished fourth after being done on head-to-head by the Lady Broncos, will be the Lady Cats’ opponents at the unlikely venue of the North Melbourne Rec. Centre. “The Tigers are going to be tough in the semis. They are young, enthusiastic and good, so we need to use our experience, smarts and talent to get on top and give ourselves a chance of winning,” coach Grantley Bernard said. Kylie Morrissy missed the win over Hume City with a re-occurrence of a knee injury, but is expected to be right for the Tigers. Veteran back-up guard Vicki King is also likely to play after recovering from an ankle injury. However, playing assistant coach Lauren Green is still waiting for medical clearance for her knee problem.

Division 1 Men (1st 16-4): vs. Altona (4th) @ Altona Sports Stadium, Sunday 2.00pm

Geelong will take a loss 92-77 to fellow championship contender Melbourne University into game one of the semi-final clash with Altona, who finished fourth after losing head-to-head to Warrnambool. The Cats were undermanned, missing class veteran Paul Hutchison and solid role player Craig Jarvis for the clash with the Black Angels. Jason Reardon all but engraved his name on the Division One MVP award with 22 points, 10 rebounds and two assists. The former Supercats has shone through from the moment he stepped into the side in round two with a 26 points, 18 rebound and six assist performance against La Trobe University. In the end he averaged 21.8ppg, 14.2rpg and 4.6apg. The Gators will be no pushover and Cats’ coach Shayne Bow will be keen to return to The Arena next week with game one in the bag. James Guljas is Altona’s go-to man, averaging 16.9ppg and 11.6rpg. However, against Geelong he’s had hauls of just 13 and 8.

Youth League Women (7th 9-11): Season Over

The Young Lady Cats have capped off their inaugural season with a disappointing 80-48 loss to playoff bound Melbourne. It left Geelong with a 9-11 record to end the campaign, which at one stage had them sitting 7-4 and third on the ladder. However, a tough run home against more experienced line-ups conspired against Kat Clancy’s squad and an unlikely finals berth. With an average age of the core eight members of the squad just 19 (in a 23 and under competition), there are plenty of positives that can be taken away from the season. “(I’m) very proud of the team,” coach Clancy said. “Especially considering the calibre of some of the opposition teams’ development programs and the players in the competition.” Jess Watson will contend for the MVP award, having come back from a knee reconstruction to average 15.2ppg and 10.2rpg. At worst she’ll be in the Youth League Women All-Star team when it’s announced next month.

Youth League Men (5th 9-9): Season Over

The Young Cats have split their double-header to end their first season in the top flight of Big V Youth League basketball. After handing Bulleen a 118-70 thumping on the road on Saturday night, with Supercats’ rookie Michael Rebula scoring 34 points, grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing five assists, Geelong pushed finals-bound Melbourne all the way at The Arena Annexe on Sunday, before finally succumbing 89-82. In his third year in charge, coach Dave Brown can be proud of how his side turned around a disastrous opening month, to almost pinch a playoff berth. Losses to Hawthorn have come back to bite. While if the Young Cats hadn’t blown a 20 point half time lead against Diamond Valley in round 17, the clash with Tigers on the last day of the season would have been a ‘live’ one.




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