“This isn’t anything we haven’t seen before”: Cotton confident “battle tested” Sixers will bounce back

Star point guard Bryce Cotton is far from worried about the Sixers up and down start to this NBL season.

Cotton’s side is coming off a loss to South East Melbourne at John Cain Arena on Saturday night where the six-time NBL MVP scored 37 points and added eight assists, playing every minute of the game.

The Phoenix began the game on fire from the three-point line, shooting an incredible 10/12 from beyond the arc in the first quarter, before the Sixers fought back to cut the game to just an eight-point margin in the final quarter after being down by 29 points at half time.

Though they sit ninth on the NBL ladder with a 4-5 record, Cotton insists there is no panic for the Sixers who have played six of their first nine games away from home and are dealing with injuries to key players Flynn Cameron and Bul Kuol.

“Seasons have a lot of ups and downs, and I've been a part of seasons before where we seem kind of sluggish to start, and then once you get rolling, it turns into like a snowball effect,” Cotton said after training on Tuesday.

“Luckily, we’ve got the FIBA break coming up as well. So, if we can get some wind under our belt, and then we get, hopefully, Flynn back, and then Bul hopefully soon, we’re banking on that to basically giving us a boost.”

The Sixers head to Auckland next to face the 4-5 New Zealand Breakers on Friday night.

The sides have played already this season, with Adelaide losing 88-72 at home as New Zealand’s star guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright exploded for 27 points, nine rebound and nine assists.

The Sixers started this four-game road trip with two huge wins against the Sydney Kings and Tasmania JackJumpers before losing to the Phoenix.

With his side going through some adversity so far, Cotton says it’s just a matter of time before things click.

“We had gotten two good wins in a row,” he said.

“We lost one versus Phoenix. I think it's just because of where we sit on the ladder, the wins and losses hold a little bit more gravity at the moment.

“We all feel it is just a matter of time though before things kick into gear.

“This isn't anything we haven't seen before. We're very battle tested.

“Regardless of the wins and losses at this point, I do like how we stay together as a team.”

Five other teams in the NBL currently also have four wins but sit ahead of the Sixers on the ladder, and the Cairns Taipans currently sit fourth on the ladder with a record of 5-4.

But the record so far doesn’t bother the composed champion.

“The table is just a reflection of where you're at in the moment. It has no dictation on where you're going to be in a month or two from now,” Cotton said.

“All that matters is at the end of the season where the seedings line up.

“I think it's three or four teams that are 4-5, and aside from probably Perth and Tassie, the records all seem pretty junked up, so we've all got to start playing each other eventually.

“The dust always settles regardless.”

The Sixers enjoyed a special celebration on Tuesday with young development player RJ Brown turning 16.

Cotton has high hopes for the talented teen after seeing him in training since his signing last month.

“The biggest thing for him is just making sure he stays humble, which he already is,” Cotton said of Woodville High School student Brown.

“The intangibles that he possesses on top of his athleticism is crazy. By the time he starts to grow into his man body, it could be scary.”

Friday’s game at Spark Arena tips off at 5pm ACDT and is available to watch on ESPN via Kayo or Disney +.