Josh brings the heat
IT was the winter sun that first brought Josh Wilcher to Townsville, but the star point guard says being part of the Heat’s winning culture keeps him coming back every QBL season.
Wilcher is in career-best touch heading into tonight’s semi-final against the Rollers on the Gold Coast as the Heat seek to become the first men’s team to win three straight championships.
The Melburnian has been a cornerstone of the Heat’s success since joining the club in 2016 and was named grand final MVP as they broke a 17year title drought in just his second season in Townsville.
Wilcher was a late arrival from the British Basketball League this season but he hasn’t missed a beat with an average of 21.33 points, 4.81 rebounds, and six assists per game.
The former Melbourne Tigers development player admitted he never expected to spend so long in Townsville, but he felt the Heat had helped bring out the best in him on the court.
“I had a couple of offers down south, but I’m from Melbourne so the sun sort of attracted me here and then you get here and the culture of the club and the guys around it – it makes you want to stay,” Wilcher said.
“It’s easy when your teammates have faith in you to do whatever I want, I guess. I wouldn’t play as well if they were worried about what I was going to do.
“They know how I play and I know how they play so it just goes hand-in-hand.
“I feel like over the last couple of years I’ve been getting better so this year I’ve just put it on the court. They need me to play at a higher level so I feel like I’ve done that so far.”
Heat coach Rodney Anderson has formed a dynamic combination with Wilcher over the past four seasons as he pushed for the 28-year-old to be recognised with his first QBL MVP award.
“To me he’s the MVP of the league because he’s carried us the whole season and even when they (the opposition) do a really good job he can still get 20 points,” Anderson said.
“He and I together have like an 85 per cent win record … I get goose bumps just thinking about it.
“I have so much respect for that guy and I don’t want anyone else beside me in a battle other than that guy.”
The Heat beat the Rollers 111-96 when they travelled to Townsville earlier this season as Wilcher scored a seasonhigh 33 points and he was confident they could take them down again to book their spot in the grand final series.
“We’ve just got to replicate what we did,” he said. “I think they’re a real veteran team so they’re not going to make too many mistakes so we’ve got to look after the ball.”