Clarke: We got ahead of ourselves

Southlands Boulevarde Willetton Tigers coach Glenn Clarke admits his side lost focus after wrapping up the women's State Basketball League minor premiership.

The Tigers guaranteed top spot with several games to go in the regular season but slumped in the final games, losing to Perry Lakes and East Perth in the last two rounds.

That carried over into the playoffs, as Willetton lost game one of their quarter-finals match-up before coming back to make it into the final four.

"We went through a real bad trot there for those three losses and it was all about the defence and intensity," Clarke told SBL Radio on SportFM 91.3.

"We probably got ahead of ourselves. We were looking pretty good earlier, but that three-week break in the middle of the season which didn't help us.

"We had good momentum, but then we had that three-week break in the middle of the season, and trying to get that momentum back was pretty difficult."

Willetton now faces Wanneroo in the best-of-three semi-finals series, which commence with game one at Joondalup Basketball Stadium on Saturday. Clarke said the Tigers were below their best against the Lightning and must improve to get past the Wolves, who lost by four points in both of their games against Willetton in the regular season.

The coach said player management would be vital as Willetton attempts to win its third-straight championship.

"Sharing and caring is the big thing," Clarke said.

"One of the main issues is they (the Willetton team) can all play, they call all get to the rack and they've all got their strengths and weaknesses. The plays you run are for a lot of the girls' strengths, so they all get to shine on the offense.

"You have to combine the plays to their strengths and that way they will all feel a bit loved.

"If we could have three or four balls on the court at the same time, it would keep everyone happy. But unfortunately we can't do that."

The winner of the series between the Wolves and Tigers will face either Perry Lakes or East Perth in the Grand Final on August 26 at the WA Basketball Centre.

Article by Jacob Kagi
Photo by Mick Cronin

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