By JARROD POTTER
BIG V – ROUND 3
SWEEPING aside Warrandyte and Sherbrooke, the Casey Cavaliers senior sides cantered to victory in their Big V clashes.
The Venom men struggled to mount any reasonable offence against the Cavaliers which picked off 22 and 23 to bookend a 75-44 triumph.
Coach Stewart Baird gave his starters a good rest as he rotated the side throughout the night.
The roster-wide rampage put the visitors in the driver’s seat as nothing Warrandyte mustered could stop the Casey offensive spree.
Dean Johnson (14 points, 14 rebounds) led the charge to victory alongside Matt Witherden (eight points, 11 rebounds) and Ash Szalek (seven points, five rebounds, four assists, one block).
The best news to come from the night was the return of Lester Strong (eight points), who made it back on court after sustaining a broken finger in the pre-season clash against Pakenham.
The side still has might left to come in as Brent Hobba looks to return from an ankle injury in upcoming rounds.
Casey sits second on the Big V Division 1 ladder – with a three-and-one record only bested by long-time rivals Shepparton (3-0) – as the side looks set to maintain the fine form of its 2015 ladder-topping season.
The Cavaliers women had another bruise-less encounter, backing up its comfortable win over Pakenham last weekend with a 110-48 demolition of Sherbrooke.
The former State Championship side has been gutted by departures and what’s left of the Suns proved no match for the Cavaliers.
Casey had all 12 players feature in double-digit minutes as Sherbrooke had no response to anything the hosts threw at them – from starters all the way down the bench.
A 71-22 rebound count in Casey’s favour probably summed up the skill difference between the sides more than anything as Tarryn Wilkin (20 points, 18 rebounds), Lauren Tuplin (11 points, nine rebounds) and Ruchelle Mccracken (nine points, seven rebounds) all excelled from limited minutes.
Casey’s women are also second on the ladder, with a perfect record just edged out on percentage by Melbourne Uni.
Casey’s youth men had the toughest time of all, copping the side’s only loss of the weekend with a 69-76 result against Corio Bay.
In a triple-header on Saturday night, Casey youth men hosts Craigieburn, the women face Blackburn at 6pm while the men end the night in a showdown against Camberwell at 8pm.
