The Southern Design Sydney Uni Flames have put the finishing touches on their preparations for the beginning of the 2012/13 WNBL season after a weekend spent in Melbourne competing in the inaugural WNBL Pre Season Tournament.
The tournament, which began on Friday September 21 and reached its conclusion on Sunday September 23 when Bendigo edged Bulleen in the final by two points at the Dandenong Stadium, saw the Flames finish with one victory and two losses.
The Flames began the tournament strongly, knocking off the Logan Thunder 77-69, before going down to tournament winners Bendigo Spirit 75-61 and Townsville Fire 70-60.
More important than the results was the cohesion and experienced gained from the team, who found it beneficial being able to play three competitive matches so close to the start of the WNBL season, which tips off on Friday October 5.
The Flames play their first game against Canberra at 7pm on Saturday October 6 at the Sydney Uni Sports & Aquatic Centre.
“It was an excellent weekend of competitive basketball for the team to build on and learn from,” said Flames Head Coach Karen Dalton.
“We had three very tough games in three days, which was great preparation for the first game of our season next Saturday night against Canberra. It also allowed the team and the coaching staff to gain a greater understanding of where we are at and what we still need to work on.”
The Flames guard trio of Alicia Poto, Katie-Rae Ebzery and Sarah Graham carried the bulk of the scoring load, but there were also other solid contributors around the court like our new recruit Michelle Joy, who was excellent in all three games both in her scoring and her rebounding.
Captain Alicia Poto led the team very well and set the tone defensively. Jaimee Kennedy was also very effective defensively, putting in some solid shifts on the court.
Youngsters Vanessa Panousis and Chloe Dalton benefited with some valuable minutes, while new Flames representative Tayla Roberts was unable to make the tournament due to illness. She is expected to be healthy in time for the first game of the season.
The Southern Design Sydney Uni Flames first WNBL fixture of the 2012/13 season sees them take on Canberra at the Sydney Uni Sports & Aquatic Centre (SUSAC) on Friday October 6.
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