Phoenix hit back to hammer champs

The South East Melbourne Phoenix put in a blistering performance after a tough loss 48 hours earlier to torch the defending champion Illawarra Hawks 116-76 and leave then in bottom spot on the NBL table.

The Phoenix lost by 17 points on Thursday in Adelaide and had the quick turnaround returning to John Cain Arena to host the Hawks on Saturday night.

The Hawks did open their account for the season last Saturday night beating the Brisbane Bullets by 27 points but they had no bite to their game this time around with South East Melbourne taking full advantage.

Angus Glover led a long-range assault for the Phoenix, coming off the bench to fire a career-high 26 points, 23 coming in a blistering opening two quarters.

The home side knocked down 15/28 from downtown in the first half, with Glover contributing 7/8, to see the home team already leading 66-40 after a stunningly dominant opening 20 minutes.

There was no let up from there either with another 50 points to 36 in the second half to win by 40 on the back of making 18/45 from three-point range for the game with 22/26 at the foul line while having just the seven turnovers.

On top of Glover's 26 points with 8/12 three-point shooting, co-captain Nathan Sobey had 21 points, five rebounds, four steals and three assists in his 301st game.

Hunter Maldonado also had 13 points, nine assists and five rebounds with John Brown III adding 11 points, three boards and two steals, Jordan Hunter eight points and nine rebounds, and Malique Lewis eight points and eight boards.

It was a horror night for Illawarra who are now 1-4 in bottom place after shooting 37 per cent from the field and 6/21 from three while coughing up 25 turnovers.

JaVale McGee was a force for them still with 22 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks with the Hawks only outscored by six in the 23 minutes he played.

Tyler Harvey also had 14 points and three assists with Harry Froling providing 11 points in just under nine minutes.

There was no sign of the carnage to come when the Hawks, paced by McGee, made the early running.

The three-time NBA champion was everywhere, following his rejection of Jordan Hunter's three-point attempt by tip-jamming his own miss at the other end, then finishing a coast-to-coast drive with a crafty spin hook.

McGee had 10 points in the opening term as the visitors moved ahead 16-13, before Glover subbed on and splashed back-to-back triples.

He had 11 for the term as South East Melbourne drew clear 30-23 at quarter-time.

It got worse for Illawarra in the second stanza as Glover and Sobey spearheaded a 16-0 burst amid an overall 22-2 run.

The Phoenix dominated the quarter 36-17 to hold sway 66-40 at half-time. The hosts' hot shooting cooled after the long break but their defence ramped up.

Glover hit his eighth trey then blocked Todd Blanchfield's drive to see South East Melbourne in complete control, up 83-52 at three quarter-time.

McGee fouled out early in the fourth as the relentless Phoenix motored clear by 47 points late and won by 40.

The Phoenix remain at home to play host to the Sydney Kings on Thursday night while the Hawks aren’t in action for a full seven days when they are on the road for a second time already in NBL26 to the Perth Wildcats.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL SEASON 2025/26

SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE PHOENIX 116 (Glover 26, Sobey 21, Maldonado 13)

ILLAWARRA HAWKS 76 (McGee 22, Harvey 14, Froling 11)

BOX SCORE