ILLAWARRA have broken their preseason duck in emphatic fashion with a 91-69 win over Brisbane in he opening game of the NBL Blitz on Thursday.
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Jordair Jett continued his hot run of form on his NBL return, leading all scorers with 17 points and four assists while veteran David Andersen had 12 points and six rebounds after starting the match in the absence of AJ Ogilvy.
Tom Coenraad continue to embrace his new role in the four spot with 12 points at 80 per cent from the field, five rebounds and three assists in a game that saw all 10 Hawks players get on the scoresheet at a collective clip of 48 per cent.
It was the Hawks first win of the season having dropped their first two hit-outs to Adelaide and Sydney, and will leave them high on confidence heading into games against New Zealand and Melbourne on Saturday and Sunday respectively.
The Bullets struggled in response, shooting at just 37 per cent from the field, with Boomer Jason Cadee the notable exception with all of his 15 points coming from long-range at a 55 per cent clip.
Cam Bairstow was the only other Bullet in double figures with 11 points, with Stephen Holt’s nine points all coming in the final 12 minutes of the match with the result well in hand for Rob Beveridge’s men.
It came after a slow start, with Alonzo Gee and Cam Gliddon both dropping threes as the Bullets shot out of the blocks on a 10-2 run.
Brian Conklin had four quick points and Kevin White hit from the perimeter as the Hawks cut the deficit back to five. Reuben Te Rangi and Todd Blanchfield traded threes, with Adam Gibson also getting in on the act from long-range.
Coenraad and Daniel Grida fired from mid-range with Emmett Naar finishing a 16-10 run with a lay-up to cut the margin back two at the first break.
Blanchfield hit his second triple to start the second term while Coenraad had three from the line to take his side’s first lead of the match at 24-23. The remainder of the quarter largely played out from the line, with both sides in the bonus, before Te Rangi, Cedric Jackson and Cadee all found their range from deep.
Jett came to life late, muscling his way in for a lay-up and finishing the half with an and-one play to take 48-40 lead to the main break. Cadee started the third with a three but Naar responded with one of his and the Hawks pushed the lead into double digits on a lay-up from Conklin.
The long-range battle continued with Cadee and Grida going shot for shot from the perimeter and the Bullets were back within four when Cadee hit back to back triples. Illawarra steadied, with Jett finishing at the basket for an 8-3 run and 68-59 lead at the final change.
Holt gave his side a sniff with a pair of triples to start the final term but it was all the Hawks from there, with Jett producing a three-point play and a triple while White and Grida also fired from long range as the clock wound down on a 22-point victory.