Round 5 Home Preview v Brisbane Bullets

The Adelaide 36ers enjoyed their first taste of playing on the road on Saturday night and now look to replicate that terrific performance also against the Brisbane Bullets back at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre on Monday.

It had been a fascinating week for the Sixers and it didn’t start well going back to last Saturday night with the defeat at home at the hands of the Sydney Kings.

That was the last in the run of seven consecutive home games for the 36ers to open the 2021 NBL season and with a 4-3 record, things were delicately poised as they hit the road for the first time to take on the Bullets in Brisbane on Saturday night.

The week had also seen the Sixers and import guard Donald Sloan part ways while the short-term replacement Jeremy Kendle had joined the 36ers but wasn’t right to suit up to play on Saturday night.

That meant there was a lot of unknowns how the Sixers would perform on the back of the loss a week earlier, the events of the week and then being on the road for the first time in #NBL21.

The end result was a commanding performance from the 36ers to come away with the 85-70 victory to improve to a 5-3 record now coming into Monday night back at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre in the last game in the league before the NBL Cup begins in Melbourne on Saturday.

Big men deliver 36ers dominant win in Brisbane

The Coach Reflects – Round 4 

There was so much to like from the performance on Saturday night including the 36ers dominating the boards with 52 rebounds to 39 while the 14 offensive boards were capitalised on with the 17 second chance points.

The Sixers found a dominance inside too with Isaac Humphries and Daniel Johnson. The 36ers scored 50 points in the paint to 32 with Humphries ending the night with 24 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks, and Johnson 21 points, four boards and three assists.

Every Adelaide player that hit the floor contributed too, though, with with Tony Crocker finishing with 11 points and six rebounds, Josh Giddey nine points and eight assists, Sunday Dech eight points, nine boards, three assists and three steals, Brendan Teys six points and Jack McVeigh six points and six rebounds.

Former Sixer Nathan Sobey did what he could to lift the Bullets with 25 points but ultimately it was a night where Adelaide did well closing down Brisbane for the most part, but Monday night will be a whole new ball game so nothing can be taken for granted.

Adelaide coach Conner Henry couldn’t help but like everything about the performance in Brisbane on Saturday night as the team flew back on Sunday to prepare for the rematch at home on Monday night.

"It's a good feeling. After the Sydney where we all felt like collectively we didn’t play a full game it was good that we bounced back. We got contributions from everybody and I felt defensively it was one of our better games of the season," Henry said on latest episode of Sixers Fix with Scott Ninnis. 

"We were switched on, we knew the scout and we felt we had a good game plan going in, and then all the guys I just felt like were in a good spot. They were motivated, they were calm and we wanted to bounce back from Sydney and it was a good result."

While the dominant displays of Humphries and Johnson understandably got a lot of the attention following that win for the Sixers on Saturday night, Henry was pleased with the fact that everybody that hit the floor played their role to contribute strongly to the performance.

"Both bigs Isaac and DJ, of course, played exceptional but we got contributions right across the team. Sunday had a nice all-round game with points, rebounds, assists and defending his hard-nosed way," Henry added on Sixers Fix during his #AsktheCoach segment. 

"Then we got some positive contributions from Teysy off the bench, Keanu played some brief tough minutes for us. Croc played exceptionally on the defensive end and was aggressive on the offence looking for his shot, and then Jack came in and gave us some solid minutes like he always does. 

"Overall I was pleased and now we've had a day's rest and have to come back with the same focus and energy."

While Saturday night was such a good performance in Brisbane from the 36ers, they do now need to be mindful of the response on Monday from the Bullets.

The Bullets shot just 34.2 per cent from the field in the game marking their worst home shooting performance in 18 years while their 6/33 three-point shooting was the second worst in club history in games where they've taken at least 30 shots from beyond the arc.

The 36ers finished the game in dominant fashion with their 33 fourth quarter points the highest scoring quarter for the team this season.

The Bullets arrive in Adelaide on the back of the season low 70 points on Saturday and now having lost back-to-back games in double-figures, but that only makes them more dangerous and the 36ers need to be ready to withstand their assault to head into the NBL Cup at an impressive 6-3.

2020/21 Hungry Jack's NBL Season – Round 5

Adelaide 36ers v Brisbane Bullets
Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Monday 7.00pm ACDT

Broadcast – ESPN, SBS on Demand, NBL TV, Twitch