KEILOR Thunder lost control during the third quarter of a 70-64 loss to Werribee Devils in Big V basketball women’s division 2 at Werribee Sports and Fitness Centre on Saturday night.
The Thunder did what every road team wants to do and silenced the home fans early in the game.
It burst to a seven-point lead at quarter-time and was in front at the half. But the Devils turned up the heat in the third quarter, taking the lead and powering to a six-point victory.
Thunder bigs Jessica Francke and Jodi Impey were always going to be the main threats to the Devils.
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Francke (19 points and four rebounds) and Impey (18 points, six assists and four rebounds) played their part inside the paint in the absorbing tussle. Ashleigh Gunn also performed strongly with 11 points and four rebounds.
But this Devils line-up is proving to be a force and have won nine of their 10 games. They have beaten the Thunder twice, but narrowly on each occasion.
When the Thunder (6-6) squares off with the Devils (9-1), it is a closely fought encounter.
The Thunder would fancy itself to inflict an upset in the finals, but the toughest part for Carey Paps’ team could be reaching the playoffs.
Its next test will come against Chelsea Gulls away on Sunday, a match the middle-of-the-road Thunder has to win to keep in touch with the leading sides.
In men’s division 2, Keilor Thunder came up trumps with a convincing 104-79 win over Maccabi Warriors at the Keilor Basketball Stadium on Saturday night.
The Thunder set up victory with a white hot opening period, where it piled on 40 points, shooting 80 per cent from the field and 66 per cent from beyond the arc.
It maintained a consistent level of performance until junk time in the fourth to run out easy 25-point winners. Captain Matthew Jukes led the way for Thunder with 24 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Matt Spencer and Bradley Courts reeled in 10 and eight rebounds respectively. It was the Thunder’s fourth win in a row.
The Thunder will travel to out-of-form Keysborough on Saturday night.
