Wheelcats Too Strong for Adelaide Thunder
The Perth Wheelcats continued their 2010 campaign in Adelaide last weekend against the Adelaide Thunder picking up two convincing wins.
The Wheelcats ventured out of the cage without captain Justin Eveson (WAIS) and fellow Roller Michael Hartnett (WAIS), but Shaun Norris (WAIS) led a very strong group across the border to take on the Thunder at Pasadena and Wayville.
Game one saw the Wheelcats victorious with a winning margin of 92 points (127-35), more impressive than the continuous offensive scoring efforts was the Wheelcats ability to nail it down in defence. This is an aspect that the Cats need to focus on over the next month as they take on some really strong teams that pose great offensive threat. The Wheelcats picked up 12 steals from the game and forced 31 turnovers from the Thunder where the Cats were quick to punish with quick transition.
The Perth Wheelcats played an up tempo selfless style of offence that saw them record an impressive 40 assists, Shaun Norris was the stand out in game one picking up 35 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. Nick Radovich also picked up his first triple double in his NWBL career with 12 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists, other great efforts saw Brant Garvey with 21 points and 12 rebounds and Adam Deans and Robert Pike with 26 and 16 points respectively. Kim Robins was instrumental with his defensive intensity and Chris Barty provided the Cats with the presence of being a 3rd big man on the floor.
Nang Nguyen and WAIS scholarship holder Clare Burzynski must be credited with their efforts at both ends of the floor not only helping get our tall timber in the paint but also playing above their class and helping to defend the Thunder’s high point players.
The Wheelcats backed up their impressive performance from Saturday night by delivering a 107 point win at Wayville on Sunday morning, the 129-22 score line proves to many teams out there that the Wheelcats can travel well and be successful in multiple games away from home. The defensive display shown by the Wheelcats was even more impressive than the previous night keeping the opposition to just five points in the first half, the third quarter saw the Thunder put on 12 points before the Cats sunk their claws in and kept them to two points in the fourth.
Head Coach Lee Nott knows that in the future the Wheelcats have to be ready to play 48 minutes of intense defence to keep the opposition under control. Offensively the Wheelcats managed to keep an even flow of scoring throughout the game which saw everyone get a decent amount of minutes.
No one picked up a triple double this game, the rebounding and assist effort was evenly spread amongst the Wheelcats. Shaun Norris picked up a healthy 40 points and one rebound and one assist shy of another triple double, Adam Deans, Robert Pike and Nick Radovich picked up 20, 18 and 15 respectively.
WAIS athlete Kim Robins pushed the ball well in transition and setting up some great offence with 14 points and seven assists, however down the other end of the floor Robins was impressive once again with his defensive intensity and talk when coupled with Adam Deans or Clare Burzynski.
The Perth Wheelcats successfully completed their defensive target keeping Adelaide to 57 points for the entire weekend, as well as achieving what they wanted to get done in offence. Big man Adam Deans shot at 77% for the weekend proving he is a force to be reckoned with inside the paint, Shaun Norris picked up 75 points over the weekend shooting the ball at an impressive 72%.
The Wheelcats are now looking forward to the Dandenong Rangers making the trip over to the West this weekend and continuing their dominant start to the season. The games against Dandenong are Saturday July 31st at 7:00pm and Sunday August 1st at 12pm, come on down to “The Cage” and get behind the Cats as they hunt down
their fifth consecutive NWBL title.
– Wheelchair Sports WA