Live stream: Ruby Vlahov fired up for Basketball Australia Under-20 and Ivor Burge National Championships (U20's & Ivor Burge National Championships)

She has carried a weight of expectation through the junior grades, but now Ruby Vlahov is determined to carve her own path right to the top. Watch Western Australia’s best ballers in the National Championships.

She might share a surname, and a daily training session, with a NBL Hall of Famer, but Ruby Vlahov is playing by her own rules.

The dynamic two-way forward from Western Australia has shaken off the weight of expectation that comes with being the daughter of a three-time NBL champion, Andrew Vlahov, and is determined to replace it with the weight of a state.

A development player with the Perth Lynx in the WNBL, Vlahov is determined to break the stigma that Western Australia is only there to make up the numbers at next week’s Basketball Australia Under-20s and Ivor Burge National Championships.

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Perth Lynx young gun Ruby Vlahov.

The week-long championships will be exclusively LIVE STREAMED from Geelong Arena on KommunityTV, with every match broadcast live on News Corp Australia’s mastheads.

Vlahov will be one of the headline acts at the championships after impressing in the Australian junior teams last year and picking up her first WNBL contract in the 2022/23 season.

While she played in last year’s Under-20 championships, predominantly coming off the bench for the Western Australia side, Vlahov was adamant she was a different player heading into her last junior age event.

“I feel like I am (a different player),” Vlahov said.

“When you have this much knowledge poured into you (at the Lynx), you develop a different mentality and way of thinking.

“By watching (our senior players) play, it comes into your game naturally. Having that experience, being able to play in an environment that is semi-pro, having that responsibility and accountability has made me better.

“This is my last nationals, I am very excited for it. I am hoping to finish it on a bang.”

That won’t be the only motivation driving Vlahov, who has committed to joining St Mary’s College in the NCAA later this year.

Vlahov is ready to make her mark in Geelong..

The 18-year-old is going to play in the US.

The 185cm star said the Western Australian side, coached by former Lynx mentor Andy Stewart, were determined to break the misconception they are also-rans.

“Everyone puts us at the bottom of their lists,” she said.

“Western Australia doesn’t always travel to play in tournaments, and because of that I think a lot of the eastern states don’t expect anything from us.

“I think it has bothered me a bit, there is not a lot of respect there. I have no problem stepping onto the court to cause an upset. It would be nice for WA to get more recognition at national level. I will be fighting for it.”

Western Australia will have a stern test first up in the championships, starting their tournament against Queensland’s women at 2pm on Tuesday.

Originally published as Live stream: Ruby Vlahov fired up for Basketball Australia Under-20 and Ivor Burge National Championships (U20's & Ivor Burge National Championships)