It was a perfect weekend down south for the Supercats and that was in large part thanks to the efforts of Tasmanian Gabe Hadley.
And the Geelong United Supercats women carried on the winning ways, making it a perfect 4-0 trip south for the Supercats.
On Friday night in a 15-point victory over the Hobart Chargers, Hadley scored 22 points and dished five assists, with George Blagojevic finishing with 20 points and 18 rebounds.
Gabe Hadley. Picture: Ian Knight Photography
A day later, against the North West Tasmania Thunder in Devonport, Hadley’s hot hand once again led the scoring with 32 points for the game, including five three-pointers.
After rolling an ankle in the game against Hobart, Blagojevic sat out the second game of the weekend.
Coach Grant Wallace was left to rely on the rest of the team to step up in his absence, with Nick Velasquez firing from range, sinking 7-14 three pointers.
“Everything we’ve been trying to work on across the board is coming to fruition,” said
Wallace.
“Everyone had to lift their game (in George’s absence), and they did – everyone
contributed and played their role.”
Eve Braslis Picture: Mark Wilson
After starting the season 0-4, the male Supercats are now on a 5-game winning streak as they
return to the Geelong Arena this Saturday night to host the Nunawading Spectres.
Women’s coach Matthew Paton hailed the even nature of his side in their two wins on the weekend, with Eve Braslis (22 points on Friday, 30 points on Saturday) and Chantel Horvat (17 points and 13 rebounds on Friday and 20 points, 15 rebounds on Saturday) leading the way.
The team was without Monica Okoye, who has returned to Japan for national team duties
as the countdown to the FIBA Asia Cup to be held in Sydney next month continues.
Coach Paton was pleased with his team’s effort and focus across the weekend.
“We’ve had some really key contributions from people at different times,” said Paton.
“The beauty of this group at the moment is that we don’t rely on any one person, we’re able to share the scoring load around.”