THERE were plenty of things to like about Illawarra's first preseason outing against the Wildcats on Tuesday, but Deng Adel hobbling from the floor in the dying seconds of a 91-83 defeat wasn't one of them.
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Cats superstar Bryce Cotton did what two-time MVP's do with 25 points, at 5-7 from long range, as the defending champs saw off a spirited Hawks outfit that showed a formidable scoring arsenal of its own.
Golden State Warriors Draftee Justinian Jessup finished with 24 points while Tyler Harvey had 20 points at 4-5 from long-range, though a calf injury to Adel will be the biggest concern for coach Brian Goorjian.
The former Cleveland Cav showed flashes of the ability that has seen many tip him into pre-season MVP discussions, including a huge coast-to-coast slam in the opening quarter.
He ultimately finished with 10 points before being helped from the court in the dying moments. It came after scores were locked at 83 apiece with 90 seconds to go before Cotton closed the show, with seven of his side's last 11 points.
He had two from the line on an unsportsmanlike foul that saw Harvey sit the remainder of the game, effectively putting it out of the Hawks reach, and an alley-oop after Adel coughed up the ball in injuring his knee.
It will rule him out of Thursday's second clash with Cats and put the 23-year-old star at long odds to take on the Kings in Sydney on Sunday.
It was a rusty start from both sides, with Adel grabbing the first field goal of the game after more than two minutes had passed. He followed it up with rim-rattling slam on a powerful slash to the basket as the Hawks led 7-6, with both sides combining for just 13 points through almost six minutes.
The hosts got going through back to back threes from Clint Steindl for a five-point cushion. The Hawks re-took the lead on a three from Max Darling on the first-term buzzer, the first triple for the Hawks from five first-quarter attempts.
Harvey had seven points, including his first triple, to start the second term, while Jessup also had a quick-fire seven as the visitors led by three midway through the term.
Cotton got going with a four-point play to finish the half with nine points while Steindl hit another long bomb to finish with 11 of his 14 points at halftime, which finished at 42 apiece after Emmett Naar nailed what's becoming his habitual half-court heave on the buzzer.
Cotton and Harvey traded threes to start the third as the big guns got firing, Harvey adding another three and a seemingly impossible runner from mid-range in eight points for the quarter
Cotton didn't slow either, with 18 points at 4-6 from long range through three terms with the scores again locked at 64-all at three-quarter-time after the referees cruelly denied Naar a second bomb from deep inside his own half, the shot all net but beaten by the buzzer.
Kevin White and Jessup traded threes to start the fourth before Harvey nailed a transition triple from way beyond arc. He added another, his fourth from five attempts, to take the lead late but Cotton's re-injection and Mitch Norton's first points from deep gave the Cats a one-point lead with just over two minutes to play.
Cotton had the final say, with a couple from the line on an unsportsmanlike foul that saw Harvey out of the game. He had an alley-oop slam next time up the floor as the lead ballooned to seven with 35 seconds to play.
Worse still for Hawks fans, Adel was helped from the floor injured as the clock wound down.