Hawkeye - Illawarra Hawks v Adelaide 36ers R20 Preview

THE MUST KNOWS 

When: 3pm AEST, Sunday 30 May

Where: WIN Entertainment Centre

Broadcast: SBS Viceland, SBS On Demand and Twitch

Past meetings:

Round 8 at State Basketball Centre: Illawarra 98 def Adelaide 89
Round 12 at Adelaide Ent Centre: Adelaide 84 def Illawarra 72
Round 18 at WIN Entertainment Centre: Illawarra 71 def Adelaide 66
Round 19 at Adelaide Ent Centre: Illawarra 81 def Adelaide 73

THE PRELUDE

As we enter the final week of the regular season, the scenario for the Illawarra Hawks is simple - win any two of their last three games against the 36ers, Wildcats and Kings and they are guaranteed to play post-season basketball.

Simple in theory that is, with three tough matchups over the space of five days to finish the season sure to test the side on the back of their recent trip to New Zealand to face the Breakers.

Illawarra enter today's contest having won six of their last seven games (no other team has been in such form) - with their only loss in that span to ladder-leaders Melbourne United.

Adelaide's fortunes sit at the other end of the spectrum however, with the 36ers coming back into Wollongong having lost their past five games.

Adelaide hasn't lost six straight since December 2014, and would be more than happy to play the spoiling role against a Hawks side desperate to play finals hoops.

Illawarra will suit up a full roster while the 36ers will be playing without Josh Giddey and Isaac Humphries again with the duo shut down for the remainder of the season.

THE FUN FACTS

The 36ers came to Wollongong in Round 18 and were blown off the court early with Adelaide restricted to 10 points and 11 turnovers in the first quarter. They committed 24 turnovers for the game on that occasion, which remains the NBL season record.

When these teams met back in Adelaide a week later, the Hawks set a new season best with an 18-0 run to close the first period and they kept Adelaide to a season low 28 points at half time – the mark falling one short of the 36ers all-time lowest score.

The Hawks lead the league in turnovers forced at an average of 16.1 per game - and since Round 12 - Illawarra has created 66 more turnovers from their opposition and come up with 58 steals.

In the second half of the season, the Hawks are averaging 8.7 steals per game which would be the most by any team in the 40-minute game if it was replicated across the whole season.

In his last two games against Illawarra, Daniel Johnson has averaged just 11 points and 3 rebounds per game. Across the season he is averaging 19.8 points and 6.9 rebounds.

Brandon Paul has struggled against the Hawks bigtime, with the American scoring just 10, 7 and 6 against them while going at 28% from the field. He's only shot 5-from-22 threes and has not been to the free-throw line in 85 minutes of game time against Illawarra.

THE MATCH UP

Tyler Harvey v Daniel Dillon

When Tyler Harvey scores 25 points or more the Hawks don't lose. The record currently sitting at 7-0 when the Hawks marquee man knocks down 25.

Harvey also became the first player this season to have five steals and five three-pointers in a game when he torched the Breakers on Friday night. 

The point-scoring whiz has added another string to his bow of late as well, with Harvey dishing off at least five assists in his last four games. Only the Taipans' Scott Machado has more assists than Harvey over that span. He loves playing against the 36ers as well, with Harvey averaging 21.7 points and 6.3 assists including five.3 three-point makes a game at 47%.

Adelaide’s oldest player will have the hard task of trying to keep pace with Harvey on Sunday. Daniel Dillon has stepped into the shoes of Giddey since he shut it down, with the 35-year-old averaging 16.6 points and 5.6 assists per game since taking over the point.

In his last game against the Breakers, Dillon posted a new career best 22 points. Dillon actually began his NBL career as a development player with the Dragons in 2009, winning a championship under current Hawks coach Brian Goorjian.

THE SPOTLIGHT

Sam Froling - In his 50^th NBL game on Friday night against the Breakers, Froling equalled his career best offensive output with 22-points.

The QLD-born big man is relishing his big role with the Hawks in his sophomore NBL season, with coach Brian Goorjian speaking glowingly about his enormous potential after Friday's win.

Froling is continuing to perfect his low-post game, and can now be considered a legitimate rim protector after racking up 11 blocks across his last five games and 20 in his last 10.

He'll have to bump chests with the perennial professional Dan Johnson on Sunday, but with big matchups looming with the likes of John Mooney and Jarell Martin in the next week, Froling must be salivating at the prospect of challenging himself against the league's best.