Illawarra Hawks: Home run presents fresh challenges

The Hawks managed their first win at the WEC since New Years' Eve 2019 against Brisbane on Monday night, running away with an emphatic 96-72 victory.

It was just their second outing in Wollongong in their opening 18 games, but it was the first in a run of four home games in their next seven. It starts against South East Melbourne on Thursday after a draw shake-up due to a snap COVID lockdown in Brisbane.

Currently sitting third on the ladder, the Hawks can bank on an even more home-weighted back end to the season, putting a finals berth well within reach. It's favourable, but Goorjian admits it comes with its own unique pressures.

"It's not ideal to play 16 games on the road and all of a sudden have a bunch of games at home," Goorjian said.

"Now there's a lot of pressure on these games and that's why I was really wound [up] coming into [Monday's] game. You lose that one and now, all of a sudden, there's a big monkey on your back for these home games.

"We've got to get something done over these next two or three weeks if we want to be in the formula for the top four. It's gotten to that point and I was really happy where we went on our home court and that we got a big win against a team we're fighting [against] for that top four spot.

"We've gotten them three out of four now so it gives us a nice positioning there with them."

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The win over the Bullets leaves the Hawks at 10-8 for the season but Goorjian believes his team is traveling better than that heading into the home run.

"I said this during the hub when we were losing, it's about how you're playing and it's about our development," he said.

"If you're playing well, good things are going to happen. If you get a win here or there now, because of circumstances, it's not going to get you there. We need to give ourselves a cushion during this period of time but you just realise there's so many more games to play.

"I think we've moved forward even thought the record doesn't indicate that, just the fact we've played the teams that we've played and the grind that we've been in.

"I really think we're playing better right now than we were in that hub. The key for us now is to build on this and maybe we can get some momentum at home and give them some confidence."

South East Melbourne boast an identical 10-8 record heading into Thursday's showdown, giving the Hawks to kick clear of another top four rival. More than that, Goorjian says his team's keen to atone for poor performances against the Phoenix this season.

"That's been our bogey team, not just because they've beaten us," Goorjian said.

"You look at the losses and the wins, we've been in it against everybody else. We've played everyone really tough other than them so this'll be a real challenge for us."

Goorjian does expect to have star guard Tyler Harvey on deck despite him leaving the court in the third quarter against Brisbane and not returning, though not before dropping 28 points at 8-10 from deep.

"It was a back spasm so that'll settle down and he'll be right for the next game," Goorjian said.