Hawks prepare to dethrone champs in LifeChanger Cup

Fresh off their gritty win against the Sydney Kings, the Illawarra Hawks will shift their focus to Sunday's showdown with Melbourne United.

This quick three-day turnaround, all part of the Hawks' 'Festival of Hoops', will mark the first time the two sides have met since United the Dean Vickerman-coached side won the NBL21 side - giving Illawarra a chance to 'Dethrone the Champs'.

The 1pm AEDT WIN Entertainment match will also represent the inaugural LifeChanger Cup clash.

The other major storyline on Sunday will be the first match-up between Boomers' Brian Goorjian and Duop Reath with Chris Goulding and Matthew Dellavedova since the quarter created history and won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

"That bronze medal is one of the most special moments of my life - one that has bonded our group forever," Reath said.

"As great as it'll be to see both Chris and Delly on Sunday, my main focus is to get the win for our Hawks."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Our Hawks will be playing for more than the victory when they host <a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnited?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MelbUnited</a> on Sunday.<br><br>The round six <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> fixture at the <a href="https://twitter.com/WINSportsEnt?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WINSportsEnt</a> will mark the first-ever LifeChanger Cup showdown: <a href="https://t.co/qM3mjk7PM7">https://t.co/qM3mjk7PM7</a><br><br>??via: <a href="https://t.co/h4C283M4Ba">https://t.co/h4C283M4Ba</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreIllawarra?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreIllawarra</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FlyAsOne?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FlyAsOne</a> <a href="https://t.co/u6Px3PXPT8">pic.twitter.com/u6Px3PXPT8</a></p>&mdash; Illawarra Hawks Basketball (@illawarrahawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/illawarrahawks/status/1478231718712594432?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 4, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


Reath has been a revelation during his first season in the NBL, averaging 17.4 points, eight rebounds and 1.2 blocks each game.

Continuing his strong play, alongside fellow big men Sam Froling (11 points and 9.8 rebounds per game), looms as a pivotal piece to the puzzle on Sunday, especially with United's line-up containing athletic young centres Jo Lual-Acuil and Ariel Hukporti.

While Hawks' stars Tyley Harvey (averaging 17.2 points and three steals per game) and Justinian Jessup (13.4 points) will be matched up with Melbourne's Boomers duo.

Goulding is currently the equal-ninth leading scorer in the competition, with 17 per contest, while former NBA champion Dellavedova is posting 7.67 points, 5.33 assists and 3.17 rebounds per outing.

The final match-up to keep an eye on is between athletics import wings Antonius Cleveland and Caleb Agada.

Memphis product Cleveland is tallying 12.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while Nigerian international is posting 17.33 points and seven rebounds each time he steps on the floor.

Tickets for the 'Festival of Hoops' fixture are available via Ticketmaster.