Randall II fires as 36ers notch first win of NBL23

Craig Randall II took over the Adelaide Entertainment Centre in the final quarter as the 36ers swooped home to defeat Illawarra Hawks 90-80 on Saturday night.

The 193cm shooting guard scored 17 of his game-high 28 points in the last 10 minutes as Adelaide got their NBL23 account underway.

Adelaide looked like a completely different side to the one which succumbed 97-72 to Tasmania JackJumpers just 48 hours earlier at the same venue and when captain Mitch McCarron gave the perfect start from behind the arc.

Then Antonius Cleveland stole the next pass to throw down a slam dunk, and the crowd were on their feet.

Daniel Johnson started aggressively, attacking the basket, while Cleveland (16 points) was everywhere against his former side in the opening quarter as the 36ers took a 25-17 lead into the first break.

The 36ers threatened to blow the Hawks away in the second quarter, the margin grew to 13 points, but Illawarra clawed their way back into the contest, back-to-back three-pointers from Lachlan Dent had Adelaide’s lead reduced to 46-40 at the main interval.

Illawarra cut the margin to one point within the first 90 seconds of the second half, but Johnson (10 points, eight assists) found the basket, Randall II connect from deep and Adelaide had their cushion again.

But the Hawks responded through Tyler Harvey and when Deng Deng threw down a big dunk Illawarra took the lead for the first time 54-53 on the back of a 9-0 tear.

The game then turned into an arm wrestle, both sides exchanging baskets, and the lead, but the Hawks went into the final 10 minutes with a 60-58 advantage.

Adelaide exploded to start the final quarter, back-to-back three-pointers from Randall II capped an 11-0 run as the 36ers lead grew to 69-60.

Illawarra clawed their way back to 69-64, but again it was Randall II who had the answers. A triple, a technical free throw and another deep three-pointer gave Adelaide a double digit lead with four minutes left.

Robert Franks, who battled hard for 16 points and nine rebounds, then added a three-pointer of his own and the 36ers never looked back.

ADELAIDE 36ERS 90 (Randall II 28, Franks 16, Cleveland 16) def ILLAWARRA HAWKS 80 (Deng 18, Harvey 16, Froling 12) at Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

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