Basketball: Star import in race to get back on court

Collie Crane Hire South West Slammers’ import Rachele Kloke has sought medical advice from a specialist in Perth in a bid to hasten her return from a wrist injury suffered at the weekend.

Picture by Jon Gellweiler: Slammers’ coach Greg Worthington says his young side were overawed in their round 1 loss at the Eaton Recreation Centre.

Kloke, who this week told the South Western Times her whole right arm went numb after falling on the joint during the dying stages of Saturday’s win over East Perth, has been ruled out of matches for at least a month.

Scans taken on Monday revealed a stress fracture in her distal ulna.

It was her first appearance for the Slammers after arriving from the United States last month.

Kloke, who scored 16 points before leaving the court at the Morley Sport and Recreation Centre, was philosophical about the setback, saying she would have an off-court role with the team until her return.

‘‘It’s pretty frustrating having injuries happen, but you know when you’re an athlete that at any moment you could get injured,’’ she said.

‘‘It’s a contact sport. You have to prepare for that.’’

Kloke said she was still discussing with the specialist a timeframe to return to the court.

The Slammers will be back in the familiar surrounds of the Eaton Recreation Centre this Saturday night for a crucial clash against Stirling.

The Senators’ trip to Bunbury is the second leg of a tough round 3 doubleheader weekend in which they will also play East Perth on Friday evening.

After his side suffered a moralsapping home loss to Geraldton in round 1, men’s coach Greg Worthington said the young Slammers’ would not be so disappointing this weekend.

‘‘A few of the guys got overawed with the big crowd and we just emphasised at training all week long if we stick to what we can do, good things will happen,’’ he said.

‘‘Our win (on Saturday) was a great turnaround and just shows some of the really good character of some of the guys.’’

Slammers fans will this weekend get their first glimpse of American recruit Carlos White, who did not play in the Slammers’ round 1 loss but scored 30 points and grabbed 13 rebounds during South West’s breakthrough win on Saturday.