Midseason check-in: Hot December fuel Caps surge to fourth spot

At the start of the month, the UC Capitals season felt on the brink.

With 90 seconds left in Geelong, the Caps were down 7, on the verge of a third straight defeat and a 2-7 record. An offseason that was filled with so much promise was facing the daunting reality of a steep uphill climb from the bottom of the ladder.

What transpired in the next 90 seconds was magical. We remember the culmination – the Munger three with 2 seconds to go to cap off the comeback, and rightfully so. But what it took to get there – the team’s fight, resilience, and no quit attitude were in full display in what was a season-changing moment.

That comeback sparked a shift, sparking a four-game winning streak – the franchise’s first since the 2021/22 – that culminated with a home win against Geelong last Saturday. And despite losing last night against the Perth Lynx, the Caps have seized control of the fourth spot on the WNBL ladder just over halfway through the season.

Nicole Munger, in her fourth season with the team, credits the group’s collective work ethic and togetherness on and off the court.

“Winning games feels really good and builds confidence, but I think it’s just really cool to be part of a team that works really hard on the court and works together, and are just really close off the court as well,” she said.

“I’m really excited and we’re really excited for what the rest of the season holds, but we can’t rest on our laurels and we have to keep pushing.”

For the remaining 10 games of the season, Munger’s excited about the team’s potential but also notes that the team has to keep stacking days and continue to build consistency.

“We have moments of brilliance and we’ve seen a lot of highlights from this team and some lowlights as well.”

“So I think we just have to keep building on those highlights and making it consistent day in and day out and make those our habits and expect that from each other.”

“I think sky’s the limit.”

What’s ahead for the Caps

Current standings

The Caps are currently sitting 4th on the ladder with a 6-7 record. The team is 2 wins (and 1 in the loss column) ahead of 5th place Southside Melbourne Flyers and already own the head-to-head tiebreaker after clinching the season series with their home win on December 12. Perth’s win over the Caps last night pushes them to a 10-3 record at 3rd spot, and also clinch the season series against the Caps. While we’ve seen crazier things happen, the Caps would have to go almost flawless in the last 10 games while the Lynx, or the Spirit and Fire, suddenly go cold for the Caps to move up further.

Even split with the home and road schedule

Remaining home games:

27 December vs Sydney
4 January vs Perth
25 January vs Bendigo
3 February vs Southside
7 February vs Geelong

Remaining away games:

10 January vs Sydney
18 January vs Townsville (Hoopsfest)
20 January vs Adelaide
23 January vs Bendigo
31 January vs Townsville

Even split of home and road and an even split between games against the top 3 and bottom 4. The Caps already own the tiebreakers over the Flyers and Venom. The two upcoming games against Sydney loom big, with another game against the Lynx wedged in-between.

But perhaps there isn’t a more difficult stretch than the upcoming 4 games in 7 days stretch that will have the team travel to Perth to take on the Fire as part of Hoopsfest (18/1), followed quickly trip to Adelaide 2 days later for a crucial matchup against the Lightning (20/1). It only gets tougher from there as the road trip ends in Bendigo 3 days later before a return home to Canberra to face the Spirit again. This 4-game stretch could very well end up defining the season.

Outlook

The Caps are in control of their own destiny in its quest to break the finals drought. While the road ahead is tough, and there are some health concerns that needs to be navigated, the outlook looks bright. The team has depth, players are settling into their roles, and the chemistry keeps on building. Coach Paul Goriss is optimistic, but doesn’t want to look too far ahead.  

“We can’t get too carried away at looking at playoffs. We have to look at it one game at a time because there’s still a logjam of teams where if someone wins two straight, we’re suddenly tied,” he said.

“We need to look at the process and the things that we need to get better at both offensively and defensively.”

Catch the UC Capitals back at the AIS this Saturday in a crucial game against the Sydney Flames. Tip off is at 7pm and tickets are available here.

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