Hawks to arrive with point to prove

Illawarra Hawks will arrive on Brett Maher Court at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre on Saturday night looking to bounce back from a nightmare in Hobart.

The Hawks went down to Tasmania JackJumpers at MyState Bank Arena 103-73 after a disappointing first half performance and will no doubt want to right their wrongs in Adelaide.

Adelaide will be searching for its first win of the NBL24 season after losing the first four games of the campaign.

The 36ers have had chances to win arguably all these four matches and head coach CJ Bruton is expecting his side to play for the full 40 minutes against the Hawks.

Illawarra were missing off-season recruits Mason Peatling (cheekbone) and Hyunjung Lee (illness) against Tasmania and could make their return against Adelaide, but the Hawks still have several weapons in multiple positions.

THE KEY
Tyler Harvey has been one of the main players for the Hawks for several years and will again play a big role in Illawarra’s backcourt.

Into his fourth season at Illawarra, Harvey can take over a game by himself in the blink of the eye, his sharpshooting can turn the momentum of any match in an instant.

The NBL21 MVP runner-up averages 18.5 points per game and shoots nearly 37 per cent from beyond the arc and Adelaide will need to curb Harvey’s influence.

Helping Harvey succeed this season is the return of import point guard Justin Robinson.

Robinson missed the entire NBL23 campaign with a knee injury sustained in the opening match last season, but has returned to the Hawks to partner Harvey in the guard spot.

The former NBA guard runs the Hawks’ offense and expect captain Mitch McCarron to get the first chance to quell Robinson’s impact on the match.

THE SECRET
As great as Illawarra’s backcourt is, the Hawks’ front is arguably just as good and potent.

Big man Sam Froling looms large as a huge factor in this match and his battle against Isaac Humphries will go a long way into the result.

Froling had a breakout season in NBL23, averaging 14.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per night and the 211cm centre can cause concerns at both ends of the court.

Humphries has had a great start to NBL24 and is the ideal match-up for his fellow Boomers teammate Froling. Controlling the rebounds has been a concern for the 36ers this season and keeping the Hawks’ second chance opportunities to a minimum will be key.

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DEPTH CHART
PG: Robinson / Johnson / Hickey / Bayles
SG: Harvey / Swaka Lo Buluk / Lee (inj)
SF: Grida / Blanchfield / Morris
PF: Clark / Olbrich / Peatling (inj)
C: Froling / Yates

THE FINAL WORD
This is a must win game for Adelaide, plain and simple.

Adelaide is back at home on Brett Maher Court at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre for the inaugural PINK SLAM and need to end the four-game losing streak.

The 36ers have shown some great signs in patches so far in the NBL24 season and the side understands it must play for the full 40 minutes.

After Trey Kell’s game-high 28 points against the Kings, expect the 193cm swingman to continue his improvement and the front court of Humphries and Jacob Wiley have been impressive.

Adelaide must be prepared for a fired up Hawks outfit, who are on the back of a road double-header and the 36ers need to strike early.