It saw the Hawks bounce back solidly from a first-up defeat on Tuesday, with five players in double figures in an 82-74 victory on the back of greater second-half hustle.

Tyler Harvey continued to show his scoring prowess, with 14 of his team-high 18 points coming the first half, while Justinian Jessup had 14 points and six rebounds.

After an underwhelming first outing for the club on Tuesday, Justin Simon was also solid with 14 points and five rebounds but it was defensively where he shone, keeping Bruce Cotton to just six points and producing a staggering eight steals. Deng Deng (12) and Emmett Naar (10) were the other men in double figures.

John Mooney had a 19-point, 13-rebound double-double in response for the hosts, with Clint Steindl (13), Mitch Norton (11) and Corey Shervill (10) cracking doubles digits.

Read more: Hawks play waiting game on injured Adel

It was a strong bounce back on a chaotic build-up after WA Premier Mark McGowan announced on Thursday afternoon that anyone arriving from NSW on or after December 11 must undergo COVID testing and remain in quarantine until negative results are confirmed.

The fresh directive came in response to 17 new COVID cases on Sydney's northern beaches over the previous two days, sparking initial fears that the entire Hawks camp could be forced into an immediate lockdown having arrived in the west on Monday (the 14th).

However, having complied with the NBL's strict COVID protocols over the past month in which the squad has been entirely based in Wollongong, the visiting players and staff were all cleared to take part.

The NBL and WA government also gave the stamp of approval for the game to go ahead, with the Hawks agreeing, only for the Wildcats to decline. The call was ultimately reversed, allowing both teams to finally take the court, with tip-off pushed back half an hour.

The defending champs' approach raised eyebrows given the two sides had already met on Tuesday. The Cats were also awarded their second straight championship last season after the Kings withdrew from the grand final series when the pandemic first hit.

The NBL's decision to award the title to the Wildcats despite the series being incomplete was controversial, with plenty of fans taking to social media to point out the irony of Thursday's developments.

The preseason trip west had already taken a fair toll on Brian Goorjian's team, with star swingman Deng Adel (calf) a casualty of the Hawks first-up loss to the Cats on Tuesday, clouding his availability less than a month out from the season tip-off. Star big Cam Bairstow is also yet to feature in the Hawks preseason campaign that will continue with a local derby against the Kings in Sydney on Sunday.