FIRE GET HUNGRY FOR SEMI- FINALS CLASH
BATKOVIC FAR FROM CONTENT WITH TITLE HA UL
TOWNSVILLE Fire skipper Suzy Batkovic already owns four championships and as many WNBL MVP awards but that has done nothing to quell her hunger for more success.
The 36- year- old star has experienced everything that finals basketball has to offer, but her desire for championship glory remains as strong as ever heading into Townsville’s three- game semi- final series against minor premiers Sydney.
THERE is no place like home for Suzy Batkovic, and that home is the edge- of- your- seat cauldron of finals’ basketball.
The Townsville Fire skipper is chasing her fifth WNBL title, and her third for the Fire, starting with tomorrow night’s semi- final opener against the Sydney Uni Flames in Sydney.
Batkovic has experienced everything that finals’ basketball has to offer, but the hunger for championship glory remains strong as ever.
“I think I’m just a greedy guts when it comes to championships,” Batkovic said. “It’s what you play for.
“You love to win and you go through a whole season with ups and downs, and the reward at the end is a championship.
“To go all the way and not come away with it, which has happened in my career a few times, is painful.
“We’ve done the hard yards, so now it’s about making sure we turn up for every game ready to play so we have a chance to get that championship.”
Batkovic was again the star for Townsville in its 90- 83 loss to Canberra last weekend, scoring 26 points and 14 rebounds, and a fit and firing Batkovic is crucial to the Fire’s chances of a championship three- peat.
The two- time Olympic silver medallist, who also won bronze with the Australian Opals in 2012, is even in the hunt for a fifth WNBL MVP crown with her season average of 21.3 points a game, but for Batkovic there is no comparison between individual awards and team glory.
“I’m not playing for that. I’m playing for a championship and getting it done with this team is what’s on my radar,” said Batkovic, who believes Perth’s Sami Whitcomb will be a deserved MVP winner.
“I’m not even entertaining it ( MVP), I just want to help get these girls over the line.
“Getting a three- peat is a hell of a lot more valuable to me than the individual accolades.”
Batkovic won her second WNBL championship with Sydney in 2001, where she played for two consecutive seasons starting in 1999, and again in season 2009/ 10.
She will even play against former Sydney championship- winning team- mate Belinda Snell. Batkovic said defence will be the key to success against a Flames’ team that has beaten Townsville three out of four clashes this season.
“For us it comes down to defence,” she said.
“When we play well on defence the offence flows automatically for us, everyone comes out lighting it up.
“When we’ve played them we’ve been up 20- 25 points at times, but then lost to them twice by one and another by about five.
“We start really well and then go backwards in the second half, so for us it’s about putting the pedal to the mettle and making sure we stay consistent.
“I can’t imagine this game being a big margin and it’s two good teams going out there, and whoever turns up is going to come away with that win.”
We’ve done the hard yards, so now it’s about making sure we turn up for every game ready to play so we have a chance to get that championship.” FIRE CAPTAIN SUZY BATKOVIC