A strong defensive effort from Sunbury Jets set the scene for their win in the opening round of Big V women’s division 1.
Facing last year’s grand finalists, the Jets broke the Geelong Supercats’ game open in the third quarter to run away with a 63-48 win.
For the first quarter and a half, it looked a tight contest with both teams testing each other.
Candice Rogers dominated for the Cats and scored most of her 26 points during this period.
The Jets then stepped up defensively, with captain Chelsea Burns leading the way to have her team in front by a point at half-time.
Defensively, the Jets stepped up in the third quarter, restricting the Supercats to just seven points, including only two field goals.
The Supercats couldn’t close the gap until the last few minutes of the game when it was already well and truly over.
Jets coach Kennedy Kereama said it was pleasing to get a first-up win.
“We were really cautious of the opposition and knew it would be tough.
“The scoreline didn’t really reflect the game and I felt we had to battle really hard for each point. That’s a testament to Geelong. We made some tough shots.”
Kereama said the side made some changes to the defensive end to try to restrict the influence of Rogers … and it paid off.
He paid credit to Burns, who finished the night with seven steals and nine defensive rebounds.
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“She showed some great leadership in the game and was obviously voted as captain by the girls for a reason,” he said.
“She probably sparked our defensive effort and the other girls obviously followed and everyone chipped in.
“We made some adjustments defensively. Obviously, Candice hurt us badly in the first half. Not only was she dominant and smart with her play, she had two of our players on three fouls in the first quarter.
“To hold them, or any team, to seven points in a quarter is a really good effort. We had to make some adjustments and play a bit of zone … teams probably don’t practise a lot against zone early in the season.”
As Kereama expected, there was no stand-out scorer, with three players, Burns, Emma Mahady and Monique Stevens, in double figures.
“That’s probably going to be our strength, having everyone make contributions,” the coach said. “Having that depth, we know we’ll have players who can score.”
The Jets also unveiled another signing: veteran Sharon Plichta, a championship winner with Altona and Werribee. “For me, she brings experience and leadership to the group,” Kereama said. “And she knows how to put the ball in the hoop.”
