Brave Cadee sparks Bullets, Law seals the deal

An unlikely hero has emerged for Brisbane with Jason Cadee overcoming what appeared to be a serious ankle injury to suit up and star in the Bullets thrilling 97-91 win over the Illawarra Hawks in the NBL Cup on Friday.

It came down to the wire in an enthralling encounter with the scores locked up with under nine seconds to play. 

A Deng Adel foul on Bullets import Vic Law gave the Bullets the free throws that pushed them in front and a last gasp slash at the basket from Justinian Jessup was unsuccessful. An unsportsmanlike foul in the final second allowed Brisbane to seal the win.

While Law roared back to form with 29 points, nine rebounds and three assists the story of the night was Cadee. There were major fears for the veteran Bullets guard after rolling his ankle at right angles five days ago against the South-East Melbourne Phoenix. 

It was expected that his 193-game consecutive game run that has spanned seven years would be snapped. 

The only thing that was snapped was the Hawks winning record against the Bullets this season as Cadee emerged as the ironman of the NBL with a huge performance. 

He came out of the blocks firing with four assists in the first quarter and went on to finish with 10 points, six assists, three rebounds and a steal in a busy performance.

It was exactly what the Bullets have been screaming out for, as their over-reliance on stars Nathan Sobey (18 points, six assists) and game-high scorer Law has been a major concern this season. 

They needed someone to go with them and Cadee shrugged off injury to provide that assistance, along with Matt Hodgson (12 points, four rebounds) and Anthony Drmic (11 points). It was the team performance that coach Andrej Lemanis has been waiting for all season.

Bullets coach Andrej Lemanis said that losing Cadee had been a huge reason behind the loss to the Phoenix on Sunday and praised him for recovering in quick time to deliver a big performance.

"It looked horrendous but it was on the best scale in terms of being able to recover," he said.

"What was most evident (in that loss) was when he went out of that game. With his organisational skills, he brings a sense of calmness to the group. 

"There are parts of the game where it gets tough, things go against us or it gets a little bit ratty he puts people in spots, he sees what is going on and runs plays at the appropriate time. When he is not on the floor, when things go against us it can get a bit chaotic and disruptive."

Law has a unique take on how the game was won.

"We are undefeated when I have a moustache and it is back so we won," he joked.

"I did have a point to prove. I took it easy on (Phoenix) and wasn't aggressive early. I gave them a break, tonight I made a point to be aggressive... I had to put a stamp on this one and get a Bullets win."

There was plenty to like about the Hawks who mowed down a six-point deficit in the final two minutes and come within a basket of stealing the win in a see-sawing encounter. 

While Jessup couldn't find the victory basket, he was huge for Illawarra with 26 points and seven rebounds while there were threats all over the court including Tyler Harvey (15 points), Justin Simon (13 points, five rebounds, four assists) and Sam Froling (13 points).

Hawks coach Brian Goorjian said the disruptions of COVID-19 were taking their toll and blamed their decision making for the loss.

"Our decision making was horrendous and a deciding factor," he said.

"That last possession I was just shocked. We all know that you pull that thing out and get the last shot of the game, I think that typified us tonight.

"I thought we were horrendous tonight on decisions on the push of the ball. We didn't want to play in the half-court, we wanted to play in the full court, we wanted stops and to run.

"We are not playing with the energy, passion and communication that we had in those first four games."

In the end, the Deng foul and missed Jessup layup was the only difference between the two teams in a high-octane content.

It was a shooters paradise in the early exchanges with both teams going along at a clip over 50 per cent but Bullet Hodgson announced the arrival of the big men with two commanding dunks. Then it was razzle-dazzle time for Brisbane as Johnson set up fellow import Law for an alley-oop dunk.

Both sides adopted a run and gun approach and almost nothing could separate them on the scoreboard, a brace of Cameron Bairstow baskets earning the Hawks a slender 51-49 half-time lead.

Law had a quiet game against the Phoenix but exploded early in the third quarter as the Bullets went on a 14-point tear. Harvey wasn't about to let Brisbane off the leash, though, and buried consecutive triples to cut the margin back to just six.

Just when everything seemed to be going right for the Bullets as Sobey splashed a triple from way outside the arc, a series of turnovers invited the Hawks back and Jessop cashed in including the go-ahead triple which levelled his equal NBL best of 24 points. 

The Bullets went big with Hodgson and Harry Froling on the floor and reaped the rewards, taking a 77-71 lead into the final break.

It went right to the wire but after two losses against the Hawks this season, this time it was the Bullets who held their nerve.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL ROUND 7
NBL CUP WEEK 2

BRISBANE BULLETS 97 (Law 29, Sobey 18, Hodgson 12)

ILLAWARRA HAWKS 91 (Jessup 26, Harvey 15, Froling 13) 

POINTS AWARDED – Brisbane Bullets 5.5, Illawarra Hawks 1.5

BOX SCORE