Patterson fires to keep Bullets in playoff hunt

The Brisbane Bullets faced a must-win scenario against the South East Melbourne Phoenix on Thursday night, and Andrej Lemanis’ side responded with aplomb led by Lamar Patterson in the eventual 94-82 victory.

The Bullets produced a gutsy, backs-and-against-the-wall performance at John Cain Arena on Thursday night to improve to an 11-13 record with their playoff hopes remaining intact. 

It was an effort befitting their 1995 Heritage Round jersey – honouring the golden days of Leroy Loggins and Shane Heal – as they downed a favoured South East Melbourne Phoenix side by 12 points.

Brisbane raced out to a 22-15 lead at the first break, which came largely due to some superb play from their marquee man Lamar Patterson, and in a small part due to the Phoenix’s ice-cold shooting. South East Melbourne shot 5/24 at quarter-time, equating to 20 per cent shooting from the field. 

Perhaps the most dramatic moment of the night was a scary collision in the second quarter that saw Phoenix’ star Ryan Broekhoff hit by a stray Nathan Sobey elbow, which didn’t appear intentional. 

It did force Broekhoff to retreat to the locker-room while the referees assessed the replays for flagrant. Broekhoff did not return in the match due to blurred vision. 

His absence did not help the Phoenix’s shooting slump. However, it did thankfully tick up to 28 per cent by half-time. Considering these issues, it was remarkable that the Phoenix were within two points of the Bullets (36-34) at half-time.

And when spark plug point-guard Kyle Adnam opened the second half with a three-pointer, the Phoenix hit the lead. 

The deficit inspired the Bullets’ sharp-shooter Sobey, who made a trio of three pointers in the first four minutes of the third quarter. The Warrnambool-born Boomer finished with 20 points on 6/13 shooting. Similarly, the Bullets’ Anthony Drmic produced his first 11 points of the game in the third quarter, on his way to 15 for the match. 

It was enough to hand the Bullets a 69-59 lead at the end of the third quarter. It would have been more if not for a last-second bucket from the Phoenix’s Yanni Wetzell (six points, six rebounds), which you sensed kept the Phoenix just within sight. 

But strong fourth quarters from Phoenix’s New Zealand-born pair Reuben Te Rangi (12 points, three assists) and Izayah Le'Afa (nine points, four assists) weren’t enough, as South East Melbourne failed to overcome the double-figure lead. They would go down by a dozen points, 94 to 82. 

Dogged by questions about his fitness, Patterson silenced his doubters again with a strong showing. He finished with a game-high 27 points and seven, and also stood up in the fourth when Phoenix showed flickers of life. 

Brisbane coach Andrej Lemanis was full of praise for the toughness and commitment shown by his group to come out and play so well while still on the road after a tough week.

"There was an overall commitment and unity in our group today. We did a really good job in that situation of not being panicked," Lemanis said.

"In terms of riding the highs and the lows, I think that is easier to talk to but harder to ride in the moment. I thought the intensity defensively and the effort defensively was there was a grim. 

"Offensively, when we're scoring 50 points in the paint at 57 per cent, it means that things are happening for us and we're not settling offensively. 

"I'm pleased with the attitude of our team. We've dealt with some stuff in the last month or so as we're the team that COVID follows around. I've really enjoyed this group and I've said it a few times. This is the closest I've felt to a team for a long time.

Six out of the last seven we've lost [and we're still pushing], that's a really strong side. Two and the last three-quarter months, we've been home for 10 days and those 10 days we've been in lockdown... that's disruptive. But through all that the spirit has been good. We come in, the guys work hard. "

Phoenix coach Simon Mitchell was disappointed post-match but won't be just shaking it off as a poor performance given they have more than a week before hitting the floor again.

"We didn't take control of the game at all at any stage tonight. Even when we hit the lead, we weren't hitting them with any pace. When you're taking the ball out of the net a lot it's hard to generate any pace going the other way," Mitchell said.

"We won't move on from it, we've got to take out lessons from it. We've done a lot of soul searching in the last couple of weeks. We've not been happy with our performances, especially at home. 

"The guys need a rest and they'll get one this weekend.  It's about management. It is disappointing to lose 'Rowdy' again. Tomorrow we'll watch video and do some recovery."

The Bullets will be raring to go in 48 hours against the Adelaide 36ers on Saturday at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre while the Phoenix will enjoy a nine-day break until a Throwdown with Melbourne United next Saturday.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL ROUND 16

SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE PHOENIX 82 (Moore 18, Gliddon 17, Te Rangi 12)

BRISBANE BULLETS 94 (Patterson 27, Sobey 20, Drmic 15) 

BOX SCORE