Bolton Park Sports Stadium is a far cry from the United States but Wagga Blaze imports Shakera Barnes and Khiani Clark are enjoying life in Wagga.
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It’s been almost six months since the Texan duo touched down and while there’s no denying an early case of culture shock, Barnes and Clark are well and truly settled.
“There’s a little bit of a culture shift and Wagga’s a small town,” Clark said.
“But two days ago we went up to Coolamon and ended up meeting guy from Los Angeles there, so I guess there’s people from all over the place.”
Still, it’s not all sightseeing and the pair have enjoyed some serious on-court form for their adopted town.
Barnes and Clark topped the Blaze’s point scoring list with 198 and 163 respectively this year, making up more than 48 per cent of their team’s regular season total.
It’s an attacking combination that has blossomed since their playing days at St Edwards in Austin but Clark has been equally impressed with the opposition she’s faced in Australia.
“There’s good players all throughout the state,” Clark said.
“Each team is a little different, of course, and some smaller towns probably have less players but there’s still quality in every team.”
The Blaze will face another quality team in Maitland during their must-win semi final on Saturday.
Peter O’Leary’s side have the wood over the Mustangs after winning both their encounters earlier in the year, including a 29-point win on Maitland’s home court.
A victory would see the Blaze through to Sunday’s grand final and a likely date with competition favourites Coffs Harbout.
However, Clark isn’t rushing to conclusions.
“We won’t take any team for granted,” she said.
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