Round 16: Breakers vs Hawks

A trip across the Tasman and a date with the New Zealand Breakers to kick off Round 16 awaits your Illawarra Hawks.

The never say die attitude of the Hawks will be out to the test against a Breakers side looking to right their season after three straight losses.

Sunday afternoon's Freeway Series lived up to all the billing, with a fourth game against the Kings this season going the distance.

The Kings held on to an 84-79 victory, but it wasn't without its fair share of concern, as the Hawks fought back from 10 points down early in the last quarter to be within striking distance in the final two possessions.

The backcourt trio of Tyler Harvey and development players Davo Hickey and Lachie Dent had the visitors a basket away from a famous victory at Qudos; however, it was another heartbreaker for the Illawarra faithful.

No one relishes the challenge of the Kings fixtures like Tyler Harvey. His 24 points, including a deep three late, had Hawks Nation believing a win was within reach.

Lachie Dent wasn't going to let his Round 1 explosion against the Kings be a one-off, and his 15 points on 6 of 9 from the field was a game-changer.

Froling and Swaka Lo Buluk chimed in with 14 and 10, respectively, but the league leaders closed things out and sent the gallant Hawks to New Zealand in search of victory.

Keep a Hawks Eye On

 Lachie Dent.

 While the wins continue to evade the young Hawks side, the opportunity for some of our younger brigades to perform in extended minutes has been positive of late.

After starting the season on fire, Dent has had to bide his time as Siva and Hickey were introduced into the rotation.

Dent continued to work on his craft on the practice floor, and under the watchful eye of the injured Justin Robinson, he was ready to take his chance when the opportunity presented itself.

Look for Lachie to continue developing in the coming weeks as he shares the play-making duties with Davo Hickey.

 Opposition Watch

 The Breakers have spent most of the NBL23 season in the top echelon of the league standings.

A run of three straight losses has seen the Breakers drop to third, some three games behind the Cairns Taipans.

Import guard Barry Brown Jr leads the Breakers attack at 20 points per game, with Jarrell Brantley [15ppg] and Dererk Pardon [12.5ppg] rounding out the Breakers' leading scorers.

Izayah Le'Afa and Will McDowell-White provide an ominous 1-2 punch from the guard position, and Next Star, Rayan Rupert, continues to rise up the NBA draft board with some impressive moments off the bench.

The trip to NZ is one of the toughest in the competition, and Coach Mody Moar will expect a response from his side if they are to truly challenge for a spot in the NBL Championship round.

How to Watch

Catch all the action from 5:30pm AEDT on ESPN via Kayo & Foxtel.

Hawks Socials

Follow all the action from Thursday’s game, on the Hawks social media channels @illawarrahawks and use the hashtag ‘Hawk Nation’ when you share your pics and stories.