Brondello: Cambage ready to lead Games charge for hotshot Opals

AUSTRALIAN coach Sandy Brondello says Opals star Liz Cambage is back in love with basketball and ready to lead the charge for Commonwealth Games gold.

AUSTRALIAN coach Sandy Brondello says Opals star Liz Cambage is back in love with basketball and ready to lead the charge for Commonwealth Games gold.

The Opals went into camp in Mackay on Saturday ahead of their pool matches in Townsville which get underway on Friday against Mozambique.

Brondello — who won three Olympic medals and two World Cup medals as an Opals player — is in her first campaign as Australian coach and is happy to call on the experience of Cambage, Jenna O’Hea and Opals stalwart Belinda Snell.

Cambage burst onto the international scene with a slam dunk at the London 2012 Olympics and spent time playing in the US and China but took time away from the game after the Rio Olympics when the Opals crashed out of medal contention.

The athletic and skilful centre led the Melbourne Boomers into the WNBL grand final in her return over summer and is poised to play for Dallas in the WNBA later this year.

“Liz has had a really good WNBL season coming off not playing for a year because she didn’t love the game as much,’’ Brondello said.

“The disappointment of Rio really impacted on her but she is back, happy to be playing and enjoying the game again.

“You can see that when she is out on court. I’m excited for her and I’m excited she is back with the Opals because we need her out there.’’

Sandy Brondello took over the reins as Opals boss last year.

Brondello coached the Penny Taylor-led Phoenix Mercury to the WNBA title in 2014 and is still plying her trade in the US.

She said Cambage will only get better by playing in the world’s top league.

“It will be great for Liz to continue to improve her game by competing against the very best. I’m excited to see how she goes. It’s going to help the Opals as well because she is such a key player going forward,’’ Brondello said.

Brondello said the priority for the training camp in Mackay — her hometown — was quickly establishing team chemistry and understanding the system she wants to play.

Champion basketballer Liz Cambage is apparently raring to go for the Commonwealth Games. Picture: Evan Morgan

The Opals cruised to victory in the 2006 Commonwealth Games and won three silvers and two bronze medals at the five Olympics before Rio.

“We have to focus on ourselves right now. The ultimate goal is to win the gold medal but first we have to make sure we are doing the little things well and that the process is done well so the final result is what we want it to be,’’ she said.

Australian coach Sandy Brondello has taken the Opals to her old town Mackay for their training camp. Picture: Getty Images

“We are gold medal favourites but we can certainly never underestimate any of our opponents. Our mentality is that we prepare as best we can for every single game because anyone can beat anyone.’’

Brondello is keen to get her first game as Opals boss under her belt after taking the reins last year.

“It is a great honour. I enjoyed my time as an Opals player so much and now being in a position to lead the team is very humbling,’’ she said.

“Just like a player, I’ll be working hard to ensure that we have great success.

“My job is to make sure we are ready to go. I love coaching and I get the same satisfaction out of it that I got when I played.’’

Basketball legend Sandy Brondello says the Opals will not be underestimating any of their opponents.

Originally published as Brondello: Cambage ready to lead Games charge for hotshot Opals