Rillie Happy to Hang Hat on Defence

The Perth Wildcats have started the NBL23 season 3-0 after an impressive road win over the Cairn Taipans on Monday night.

Coach John Rillie wants to ensure the team makes the most of playing games at home.

“We’ve started off well with two good home wins, we need to continue that,” he said.

“Mostly, my message is to never take an opportunity for granted, so this is just another great opportunity for us.”

Rillie is pleased with how players are using their opportunities.  

“The beauty of our roster to date is that everyone has maximised their opportunities,” he said.

“It was a disruptive pre-season with injuries but as I always say, that’s an opportunity for someone else.”

Defence has been a big focus for the team this season.

“If you look at the three games we’ve played so far, Illawarra wasn’t an oil painting, but we held them to 71 points, so our defence is in a great position,” Rillie said.

“I think we can still get better and improve on that because then on our off nights offensively, we can really hang our hat on our defence and feel confident that we can get it done.”

Perth Wildcats face Melbourne united in The Jungle on Friday night. Get tickets!