Wollongong Hawks coach Gordie McLeod dismissed suggestions the Perth Wildcats could be hampered by fatigue in tonight's top of the table showdown at WIN Entertainment Centre.
Last week's confidence-restoring road win over the New Zealand Breakers has the Hawks (8-5) in a buoyant mood heading into the highly anticipated stoush with the Wildcats.
But the Cats (9-5) are also brimming with confidence after Thursday night's come-from-behind victory over the Breakers, and the Hawks know better than to assume the visitors will be running on tired legs.
Full coverage of the Wollongong Hawks "It's irrelevant," McLeod said when asked if the Cats would be travel-weary.
"With the depth they've got and with the depth most teams have got, it's often that the second game on the road is better. Perth have a deep roster and they play a very up-tempo physical game. They've got the depth and they look to use it and try to wear people down."
The Hawks accounted for Perth 94-92 in round one at home before the Cats responded with an 87-80 win at Perth in round six.
Despite a surprise home loss to Gold Coast last week, the Cats wasted no time getting back on track and McLeod believes they boast one of the league's best playing rosters.
"They've basically got seven Australian players on their roster, plus a couple of imports. Depth for them is no issue," he said.
One of the main obstacles for the Hawks is 216cm centre Luke Schenscher, while the Cats are also beating teams with three-point shooting.
They have a solid rotation of defensive-minded guards, not to mention the luxury of bringing two-time Olympian Martin Cattalini off the bench.
Cattalini showed he was anything but past his use-by date with an 18-point haul against the Breakers, most of which he scored in the final quarter as the Cats overturned a double-figure deficit.
"They have two styles of game," McLeod said.
"They've got some real size in Schenscher and a style where they use the big, and the other one where they use their quickness and mobility and shooting ability.
"Cattalini got off for them (on Thursday night) and that just shows you the depth they have. They present their challenges, but we've got some challenges they have to contend with as well. We have to make sure we work hard at disrupting them as much as they're going to be doing to us."
While Schenscher, Cattalini and frontcourt comrades Shawn Redhage, Stephen Weigh and Jesse Wagstaff have been in good form for most of the season, Perth's guard triumvirate of Australians Damien Martin and Brad Robbins and American Kevin Lisch have all had their moments.
"Against a team like Perth, our guards are going to be tested big-time, because Perth's guard rotation is probably the best defensive rotation in the league," McLeod said.
"It's going to be very challenging for (Hawks playmakers) Ty (McKee) and Rhys (Martin) and also for our (shooting guards) and (small forwards).
"The challenge for us is to come up with a way to handle that pressure and still find a way to control the tempo and execute at the offensive end of the floor. They're putting up big numbers, so the other challenge for us is to disrupt them.
"It's about making sure we come prepared as best we can to play the best we can. We have to make sure we set a good tempo with our defence because they're a team that can pile some points on."
The Hawks will regain outright first place with a win over the Cats.
Lining up for his 450th career game will be Wollongong captain Mat Campbell.
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