By JARROD POTTER
BIG V – ROUND 10
RIDING the Big V rollercoaster, Casey Cavaliers went down to Shepparton on Saturday before rising against Warrandyte the following day.
The road-trip to Gator-infested territory has always been difficult and sadly for the Cavaliers Saturday night proved no different with a 69-86 loss.
They were stunned early by Reginald Fuller (27 points, 12 rebounds) and Matt Bartlett (22 points), leaving Casey with a hard chase all night.
It didn’t help that the Cavaliers racked up fouls and forced the rotations. Brent Hobba (20 points, nine rebounds) proved Herculean from only 24 minutes while Ben Louis (12 points) also toiled from limited court-time.
In the end, there wasn’t enough left in the tank to catch up with the Gators as the Cavaliers lost to their perennial Big V rivals by 17.
The tricky Saturday/Sunday double-header can throw a side off but Casey managed to jump out to a 25-15 start on Sunday against Warrandyte – led by Bevan Camilleri (18 points). The Cavaliers didn’t show any fatigue from the night before as they ran out 73-66 winners in the end.
Matt Witherden (11 points, 12 rebounds) continued his impressive 2016 campaign while Brent Hobba (11 points) and Dean Johnson (nine points, 10 rebounds) did their jobs off limited minutes.
The third placed Cavaliers battle last place Camberwell away on Sunday.
Casey did it easily over regional rivals Keysborough on Sunday; defeating the Cougars 64-45 on the back of their mighty tall trinity.
Halting the Keysy offence, Casey clamped down and restricted the opponents to 15 points – through the first half.
While they got off the chain in the second phase of the clash, Casey had more than enough left in the tank to run out 19-point victors.
The tall timber terrified the hosts as Casey’s Jess Szalek (16 points, six rebounds), Tarryn Wilkin (14 points, 11 points) and Ruchelle McCracken (12 points, seven rebounds) dictated terms throughout the afternoon.
Casey sits in a three-way tie for first with Blackburn and Mornington and head up the hill to battle Sherbrooke on Saturday.
Casey’s Youth Men lost 50-67 against Maccabi and will head to Pakenham for the regional grudge match on Sunday afternoon.
