Phoenix’s MVP candidate downs Breakers; reigning champ’s title hopes alive: NBL Wrap

South East Melbourne Phoenix will return from a successful six-week road venture for three crucial hometown games before the finals with top spot on their minds after leaping back into the top-two with a runaway 114-83 win over New Zealand Breakers at Eventfinda Stadium in Auckland on Thursday night.

The Phoenix produced an incredible 34-15 third quarter onslaught to turn the game on its head after scores were level on 52-apiece at halftime.

The Josh King-coached Phoenix piled on 62-31 in a scintillating second half, which all but eliminated the seventh-placed Breakers from the playoff race.

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The enormity of the result brought out the frustrations of Breakers point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright, who received a double technical foul and got thrown out in the fourth.

The Breakers drowned under the weight of their injuries with Next Star Karim Lopex a late withdrawal with a lower leg injury, joining star forwards Sam Mennenga and Rob Baker on the sidelines.

The injury-free Phoenix were more dominant the longer the game wore on.

Five Phoenix players produced double digit points, including MVP candidate Nathan Sobey (21), star mid-season recruits Ian Clark (23) and Wes Iwundu (11), Next Star Malique Lewis (13) and DJ Mitchell (12).

Lewis was outstanding on both ends, adding 10 rebounds and five assists, two steals and two blocks in a double-double display.

The Phoenix completed the four-game season sweep over the hapless Breakers and six consecutive wins head to head.

Phoenix’s victory sets up a mouth-watering Super Sunday showdown with third-placed Sydney Kings at John Cain Arena, which will go some way to determining which team secures an all-important top two finish and a direct path to the semi-finals.

Locked in

The Breakers held the high-powered Phoenix offence scoreless for the first two-and-a-half minutes of the game to lead 9-1 with Izaiah Brockington scoring seven quick points.

Such was the difficulty in Phoenix’s paths to the basket, Sobey tried to get creative, inbounding from the baseline into Brockington’s back to retrieve the ball himself, but as was the case for most of the first period, his creativity backfired when he missed the layup.

The Phoenix was mired in a shooting slump in the first quarter, going 6/22 from the field to trail 20-17 at quarter time, a second-worst return for a first quarter this season.

DJ plays a tune

Back-to-back threes to Mitchell at the start of the second period had Phoenix in front for the first time.

Mitchell’s 10 points in the first half were crucial with Sobey missing his first eight field goal attempts.

Bucket-getter Brockington, thriving on the extra responsibility due to the Breakers injuries, produced 16 first half points and a team-high 19.

Third quarter barrage

The Phoenix came out with a sharper focus defensively in the third quarter and it led to transition baskets.

A game that was an arm wrestle in the first 20 minutes turned into one-way traffic as Phoenix put the foot down.

John Brown III, arguably the best defender in the league, was incensed when he was hit with an unsportsmanlike foul on Breakers centre Rob Loe.

With three fouls to his name, it was crucial that Brown didn’t receive a technical foul and was sent to let off some steam in a vacant section of the stadium.

That was the only mishap in an otherwise perfect second half for Phoenix.

Lopez leg worry

The North Shore crowd was robbed of the chance to see Mexican Next Star Lopez in action.

Lopez, seemingly NBA bound after two impressive years in the NBL, was a late withdrawal.

The Phoenix will be hoping Lopez is fit for the Ignite Cup final against Adelaide 36ers on February 22.

Brisbane-raised Sean Bairstow made his first career start in Lope’s absence.

HAWKS’ TITLE DEFENCE HOPES ALIVE

The Illawarra Hawks climbed off the canvas to keep their NBL title defence alive on Thursday night, stunning Adelaide 36ers 100-99 at WIN Entertainment Centre.

The Hawks trailed by 16 points with a minute left in the third quarter but dug deep down the stretch to end a seven-game losing streak to the 36ers, climb to seventh with an 11-18 win-loss record, and knock Adelaide (21-9) off top spot on the ladder.

A tip-in by Wani Swaka Lo Buluk with 5.7 seconds left on the clock gave the Hawks their one-point lead and they successfully defended Adelaide’s final possession, sending their home crowd into raptures in scenes reminiscent of their 2024-25 championship season.

Leap-frogging New Zealand (11-19) but trailing sixth-placed Tasmania (13-17), the Hawks still have a rough road ahead to reach the play-offs as they face New Zealand (away), Sydney (home), Melbourne (away) and Tasmania (away) in their final four games.

Tyler Harvey, who gained Australian permanent residency on Wednesday, and an inspirational Davo Hickey led the way for the Hawks with 22 points each.

Adelaide started slowly and trailed 22-12 late in the opening quarter, and 27-21 at the first break, as the Hawks did all they could to keep their season and title defence alive.

Illawarra’s poor finishing and turnovers allowed the 36ers to find their groove in the second period to lead by as many as nine before taking 51-45 lead into half-time.

After a quiet first half, MVP favourite Bryce Cotton knocked down a triple early in the third quarter to stretch Adelaide’s lead to 60-49, forcing a Hawks time out.

Trailing by 16 points with less than a minute to go, the Hawks closed the third quarter on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to 78-69 heading into the final term.

Cotton got hot in the fourth quarter to finish with a game-high 28 points, but it was not enough to keep the fast-finishing Hawks at bay.

TOUGH TIMES

Adelaide looked certain to have put a week of drama behind them, leading comfortably for most of the game, but have now slipped to second behind South East Melbourne (21-9), keeping pressure on coach Mike Wells.

The 36ers have now lost five of their past seven, which included a 4-4 record in January, but the club insists Wells remains secure in his position.

Responding to a tweet by Sydney Kings co-owner and assistant coach Andrew Bogut, who asserted on Monday that 36ers “leaders” had met to discuss firing Wells, Adelaide owner Grant Kelley described them as a “confident, united, happy club”

“Mike has our 100 per cent support, and why wouldn’t he? He has us at No.1 on the table, and has gotten us into the Ignite Cup Final,” Kelley told CODE Sports on Thursday.

Wells addressed the issue on Thursday night in a pre-game interview with Fox Sports, saying he had not pursued Bogut directly to respond.

“I’m just trying to focus on our group and the things that I can control.

“It’s a day and age when everybody’s got ability to be on social media, have remarks, and I don’t really have much to say about it, honestly.

“I think Andrew’s a hell of a player, I was an assistant coach in the NBA, I got to see him for a long time, they’ve done a fantastic job up there in Sydney.

“I’m focused on our group and what I can control, or attempt to control.”

AUSSIE TYLER

The game against the 36ers was Illawarra guard Tyler Harvey’s first as an Australian permanent resident, after he was granted that status about 24 hours before tip-off.

Harvey, whose first season with the Hawks was in 2020-21, was one of the stars of their 2024-25 championship-winning campaign and earned All-NBL selection in 2021 and 2025.

Pending NBL approval, Harvey’s permanent residency means he could conceivably continue his career with Illawarra next season without taking up an import position.

Harvey went into the Adelaide game averaging 16.5 points, 3.6 assists and three rebounds a game this season.

The sweet-shooting left-hander knocked down his first four three-pointers and had 14 points by half-time, on his way to a season-high six triples and an equal team-high 22 points.

NICK MAKES AMENDS

Adelaide big man Nick Rakocevic made an impact in his return from a one-game ban for his role in an on-court brawl against Brisbane on the Gold Coast on January 28.

Rakocevic was the first Adelaide player to reach double figures, posting 10 points and six rebounds by half-time including a rare three-pointer, and finished just short of a double-double with 14 and nine.

“Obviously I let the team down, missing the last game, so I just wanted to make sure I came out here and these guys felt my presence,” Rakocevic told Fox Sports at half-time.

“We’ve got a really good group of guys and every time I get on the floor, it’s just a blessing to be a part of the team.”

TODD’S TRIPLE TREAT

It has been a lean season for Hawks veteran Todd Blanchfield but he celebrated his 150th game in Illawarra colours by knocking down a three-pointer with his first touch.

The 34-year-old sharpshooter and former Australian representative played a key role in Illawarra’s 2024-25 championship but has struggled to have the same impact this season.