The Demons Basketball Club will be shooting for the A grade men’s and women’s double next Thursday night at the Toyota Hothouse when the Mildura Basketball Association winds up it 2012 summer competition.
In the A grade women’s grand final Demon’s will go in as red hot favourites against Irymple which is a reply of the 2011 grand final and Demons coach Carl Robertson is confident his side can repeat last year’s performance
“We go into this game in good shape and are looking to finish off a fine season where we have only lost one game and if the girls perform at their best then we will be very tough to beat” he said.
Demons are lead by a strong guard contingent with Tracey Sherlock who has had a fantastic season, defensive specialist Megan Grey and the Robertson sisters Tessa and Cayla who can light the court up from outside the three point arch while it appears Denelle Fawcett will also travel from Adelaide for the game which is an added bonus for Demons given her scoring ability as they push for a fifth straight premiership.
Irymple are lead by coach and point guard Leanne Wright who is under no illusions as to the challenge which her side is faced with
“ Demons have been the best side all season and deservedly go in as favourites but we will be fighting hard at both ends of the court and if we play our best basketball then we are up for the challenge so we will see what happens” she said.
Irymple will need to handle the full court pressure of Demons and this is where Wright and other guards Laura Pisconeri and Erin King will need to be able to look after the ball while big’s Kate Hammerton, Lisa Cogger and Ashley Langanke will need to produce big game’s to give the Tigers a chance of victory.
In the men’s final Demons will play Wildcats in a replay of the second semi final two weeks ago in which Demons dominated their opponents and Demons coach Shannon Erskine is hoping for a repeat performance from his team
“We played really well two weeks ago and it was a fantastic team effort from all the boys so we know if we can play together for forty minutes then we will be a great chance to win our first premiership since 2004” Erskine said.
Demons have strength at every position, guard Mitch Bateman has had a great season who can slide in for offensive rebounds if not kept an eye on, forward Ethan Zoch is the most athletic player in the competition, Ward Dickeson has the ability to break a game open from outside the ark.
Young guard Tyler Schultz has started to find his form as the season has gone one while big man Glen Barlow had his best game of the season in the semi final and his ability to direct play through the post will be a key factor in the game.
Wildcats won through to the Grand Final with a tough win over Hawks in the preliminary final which coach Dave Curran thinks will be an added bonus for his young side
“Wildcats have the ability to put plenty of points on the board and quickly but will be hoping Darren Cogger and Joe Hurst will be available after Cogger missed the preliminary final through injury while Hurst hurt his knee early in last week’s game.
The key to Wildcats will be Brent Symons who was sensational in the victory over Hawks with 24 points and if he can have another big game his side will have every opportunity to win.
Youngsters Alex Newstead, Dallas Brown and James Cook are all highly talented and can perform on any given night while the wild card just maybe Craig Baker and his ability to shot the long ball which he did so well last week and he came up with some huge baskets when needed.
The A grade women’s game will tip off at 6pm at the Toyota Hothouse while the mens game is set for 8pm and the Mildura Basketball Association will present all division one MVP winners in between games in what should be a wonderful night of basketball action.