WNBL: Canberra Capitals fall to Melbourne Boomers as Cayla George proves unstoppable

The only problem for the Canberra Capitals was, George had already scored a game-high 37 points and pulled down 17 rebounds for a rampant Melbourne Boomers outfit before she was fouled out of the game on Saturday.

As George took a seat on the bench with her baby in hand, her Boomers teammates closed to show and stretched the gap at the top of the WNBL standings with a 78-57 win over the Capitals in Traralgon.

To say the Capitals came crashing down to earth after snapping the second-longest losing streak in club history would be harsh.

They arrived in Traralgon without Alex Bunton, Britt Smart and Alison Schwagmeyer-Belger, fully aware of the magnitude of the task they faced in the league-leading Boomers.

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The Capitals' felt Bunton's absence perhaps most of all, dominated by the Boomers in the paint without one of the league's leading offensive rebounders.

And when it came to stopping George, there was more chance of Capitals coach Kristen Veal lacing up a pair of basketball shoes to make a playing comeback.

George was in a rich vein of form as the Boomers offered a reminder of why they loom as the team to beat in the championship race this year.

A pre-game declaration from import Rae Burrell, warning teams to avoid underestimating the Capitals, still rings true. There is talent in their ranks, however raw it may be. The inclusion of youngsters Jade Melbourne and Shaneice Swain in an Opals squad with an eye on the Paris Olympic Games is a testament to that.

Melbourne and Swain were still focal points of Canberra's offence but struggled to have the same kind of impact they enjoyed in a drought-breaking win over Bendigo earlier in the week, though the former still had an equal game-high four assists to go with 10 rebounds.

It was again Burrell leading the Capitals with 22 points, while Nicole Munger and Rebecca Pizzey had 10 apiece. Munger secured a double-double with 11 rebounds, while Pizzey fell just short of her own after claiming nine rebounds.

Nineteen-year-old Swain is among a raft of rising stars called upon by Opals coach Sandy Brondello, who will use an AIS camp to bring 18-year-old duo Isobel Borlase and Nyadiaw Puoch, and 16-year-old Sarah Portlock - a six foot seven prospect, no less - into the fold.

"All our attention is now firmly on the future, and we have some really exciting talent that I look forward to working with," Brondello said.

"The camp will give us the opportunity to bring back our seasoned athletes and mix them with emerging talent in what will be a very competitive environment.

"We have to keep investing in the future and immersing them in the Opals culture so they know physically and mentally what it takes to play at the highest level.

"I'm excited to go back to the centre of excellence, it's been a while I have to say, I'm sure it will bring back a lot of memories and I feel really honoured to be coming back here as a former graduate and now having the privilege to be coaching the national team."

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