Pride will be a powerful source of motivation for the Wollongong Hawks over their final 11 games.
Last-placed Wollongong (4-13) are all but out of finals contention but remain committed to finishing the season on a high note.
Unlike past years when they have been almost unbeatable at home, the Hawks have lost eight of nine games at WIN Entertainment Centre in 2011-12.
On the plus side, captain Mat Campbell believes his side’s form has improved over the past few weeks and optimism is high for tonight’s home clash with the Melbourne Tigers.
Full coverage of the Hawks ‘‘For me, winning the rest of our home games is the most important thing about the rest of the season,’’ Campbell said.
‘‘We’ve always prided ourselves on being a good home team. We’ve been rock solid the last two years and our record this season has been awful. It’s so frustrating because you expect to win those home games, especially the close ones.
‘‘It’s important for our fans that we show them something at home and keep them interested for not only this season, but also rolling into next year.
‘‘Our efforts over the last three weeks can’t be faulted and we’re starting to free up a bit offensively.
‘‘Our defence has been rock solid lately and we’re starting to win the effort areas a bit more, so those are good, positive signs.
‘‘Once our offensive end starts to flow we should be able not only to hopefully beat teams by a little bit, but also get a comfortable win here and there.’’
New Hawks signing Ayinde Ubaka will make his Hawks debut, coincidentally against the team which sacked him less than two weeks ago.
Despite having just two full training sessions under his belt since joining the Hawks on Sunday, Ubaka has quickly found his feet.
‘‘The thing I was impressed with, in one training session he’s already picked up on the majority of our offences,’’ Campbell said.
‘‘That’s a sign of a good, seasoned point guard. Sometimes when you get those guys coming straight out of college, they’re not used to having to pick up and call things for themselves, whereas Chewy [Ubaka] was instantly into it. He was barking a few orders around and being assertive, and that’s what you want from your point guard.
‘‘I’m excited to have him there. Playing against him a few times, he’s a super talented player and he’s hard to guard.
‘‘The level of training went up a notch from where it’s been for a while. ‘‘His ability to get into the paint and create for people is great.
‘‘I thought it might be tough for him against his old team in his first game. There might be a bit of emotion there, but after talking to him and seeing him train with us, he’ll be fine. He seems very confident in his own ability and won’t get flustered by that kind of stuff.
‘‘He’ll walk in and ... do what we need him to do, and that’s push the ball and get some easy shots for other people and take his opportunity to find some numbers.’’
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