South East Melbourne star Nathan Sobey has fired his side to an electric 11-point overtime win over Illawarra in a stunning fashion on Thursday.
With both sides desperate for a third-straight win, it was the Phoenix who were able to rise to the feat in an overtime thriller that ended in fiery fashion.
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Sobey was everywhere including a huge overtime period where the 35-year-old registered 13 of his 37 points for the encounter.
The NBL veteran had the chant MVP going for him in an epic overtime where he landed two enormous dunks to send the State Basketball Centre crowd wild in Melbourne.
Tensions also rose late to the point to the point where coaches Justin Tatum (Hawks) and Josh King (Nixs) had to get down to the action and break up the push and shove. It came about after Sobey was floored from a unsportsmanlike foul.
Coming off a big seven-point win over the Sydney Kings on Monday, the championship-fancy Nixs have now won six of their last seven to climb to a 16-7 record for the season. They also strengthen their position in second on the table ahead of two big encounters against Perth and Adelaide.
The Hawks meanwhile fall to a 8-14 record and make their goals of finishing in the top six even more difficult now.
It was Sobey’s fourth time scoring more than 30 points this season. He had just 19 points heading into the final quarter before exploding for 18 points to finish the game in style.
The 37 was also Sobey’s most points scored in a game this season, beating his previous best of 33.
Sobey also had six rebounds, four assists and three steals in his best outing of the campaign.
Nixs guard Owen Foxwell was crucial with 15 points including an overtime three. He also had seven rebounds and six assists.
DJ Mitchell (16 points, four rebounds and two assists) had plenty of exciting moments for the home side including a big dunk early in the fourth term.
For the Hawks, who drop from seventh to eighth following the loss, Sam Froling (22 points and nine boards) was immense alongside Quentin Peterson (22 points and six boards).
Hawks captain Tyler Harvey put up his 500th NBL career three at a crucial stage to lift his side to a 96-95 lead with four minutes to remaining in regulation time.
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GLOVER THREE SPOILED
Former Illawarra guard Angus Glover nailed a clutch three to put the Phoenix ahead by two points with 4.8 seconds to play.
It looked as though Glover’s triple would be the winning moment of the match until Hawks guard William Hickey found Quentin Peterson charging to the rim for a lay up to level the scoreline.
The slick play ultimately led to the encounter going to overtime as Sobey wasn’t able to land a long-range three on the buzzer.
Glover finished the game with 22 points including five threes in a brilliant display.
CLOSE START
No team was able to grow their lead to double figures in a tight first half in front of a loud State Basketball Centre crowd.
After the Hawks led 8-4 early and then 31-30 early in the second quarter, the Nixs pushed out to a nine-point advantage late in the second quarter.
But two threes from Hawks guard Quentin Peterson to finish the second period cut the Nixs’ lead to five points (55-50) at the half time.
MCGEE FIRES BUT MISSES DUNKS
The Hawks big was crucial with seven points in the third term and also eight in the opening, but two crucial missed dunks hurt.
The 37-year-old attempted a huge slam in the third quarter after a nice spin move but missed to lose the chance of levelling the scoreline.
Then the NBA Golden State Warriors champion missed a much tougher slam with his side trailing by three points early in the final term.
UNSTOPPABLE FROLING
Hawks big Froling continued his brilliant form since returning from an Achilles injury on Christmas Day.
The NBL champion had 22 points and notably went 8/8 from the field for his first 18 points of the game inside the two and a half quarters, before finishing 10/13 for the game.
It comes after back-to-back double-doubles on return and then 16 points and four boards last outing.
South East Melbourne 124 (Sobey 37, Glover 22, Mitchell 16)
Illawarra 113 (Froling 22, Peterson 22, Harvey 19)
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