Richards said she struggled in the opening game of the season against Townsville after not playing a lot of minutes in the off-season. 

"I hadn't been playing a lot, I was in the Opals team that went to Turkey and trained a lot with them and that was a great opportunity but I didn't play a lot of game time," she said.

"I was also injured during the SEABL season, so I was in this unusual position.

"I was the go to player, but now I am stoked that I have been able to play better this quickly." 

The Spirit star was announced as the Wattle Valley WNBL Player of the Week for round two. 

Richards scored 20 points at 83 per cent shooting efficiency, had eight rebounds and three assists in the Spirit's win against the Canberra Captials on Saturday afternoon. 

She then backed it up in Sunday's win against the Melbourne Boomers, finishing the game with 21 points, 13 rebounds and dishing out another three assists. 

Richards believes the reigning champions are heading in the right direction after losing their first game this season. 

Bendigo will next face Dandenong on Thursday. 

The Rangers dropped both its past two games and will be aiming to bounce back. 

"We are looking forward to it, everytime we play them we seem to play out these epic clashes, so I am sure it will be more of the same on Thursday," Richards said. 

One of the players to watch will be American import Cappie Pondexter, who scored a massive 30 points against Sydney on the weekend. 

"She is a superstar of the WNBA, so it is not surprising to see her post those type of points," Richards said. 

"Whoever has to guard her, it will be a difficult task, but it will be a team approach in how we handle her. 

"We have to limit the amount of opportunities she has." 

The Australian Pork Bendigo Spirit will play Dandenong on Thursday night at the Bendigo Stadium. 

Tip-off is at 7.30pm.