R5 Preview: Illawarra Hawks vs Melbourne United

When: 7.30pm (AEDT), Wednesday 10 February

Where: WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong

Broadcast: ESPN; Sky Sports NZ; SBS On Demand; Twitch

The last time
Melbourne 95 (Goulding 20, Long 13, Trimble 13) d Illawarra 72 (Ogilvy 15, Blanchfield 12, Boone 10), Round 19, 2019/20, WIN Entertainment Centre

The Hawks started soundly in front of a sold-out Melbourne Arena, but from there United were just too good, leading by six at quarter-time, 12 at the half, 16 at the final break before cruising to victory. Dean Vickerman’s men held the Hawks to 35 per cent from the field as Chris Goulding scored 20 points on 6-of-13 from three-point land to be the chief destroyer.

The now
The Hawks will be happy to be back at the Sandpit after getting stuck in the mud against SE Melbourne, the ultra-aggressive approach from Mitch Creek and Co opening up the Hawks’ vaunted interior, before Cam Gliddon and Keifer Sykes punished the sagging defence from outside. The Phoenix successfully targeted Tyler Harvey and Justinian Jessup, and unlike earlier in the season their supporting cast were not able to deliver a winning score.

United are happy playing anywhere at the moment as they ride a five-game winning streak to start the season, leading the league in three major statistical categories at both ends of the floor. Of course, the other team giving them a defensive run for the money is the Hawks, so with Chris Goulding sidelined, this top-of-the table clash shapes as another major test of Melbourne’s offence after battling for fluency against Perth.


The stats

 - Melbourne lead the league in defensive field-goal percentage, blocks and defensive rating, while sitting second in steals and points conceded, and third in turnovers forced and o-boards allowed

 - United also sit first in offensive rating, field-goal percentage and three-point conversion, while ranking third in points per game

 - The Hawks rank first in opposition three-point percentage and free-throw attempts, second in defensive rating and defensive field-goal percentage, and third in steals and points conceded

 - Against SE Melbourne, Harvey and Jessup combined for 22 points 3-of-9 from long range (33%). In their previous three games they’d averaged 43.3ppg on 20-of-34 from deep (59%)


The key men

Scotty Hopson – Coach Brian Goorjian would admit he was slow to unleash defensive superstar Justin Simon on Mitch Creek when he was shredding his side’s defence last Sunday, but he’s unlikely to make the same mistake twice with Hopson looming as public enemy number one on Wednesday.

While looking after the ball is key to subduing Melbourne’s deadly transition game, blanketing Hopson’s penetration is now paramount once they're in the half-court. Hop showed signs of life with 16 points in Brisbane, then dished 6 dimes against Perth, and last season NZ were 7-0 when Hopson combined both scoring 20 or more points and feeding out 4 or more assists.

AJ Ogilvy – Coaches and teammates must love Jock Landale, who can rack up superstar numbers while picking his moments like a role player. Last Sunday against Perth, Landale had just seven shot attempts but finished with a game-changing 16 points at 72 per cent, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks.

Ogilvy was once the star big man returning from Europe, racking up three All-NBL First Team gongs before his star waned. Rejuvenation has come under the guidance of Goorj, however, the Hawks a whopping 87 points better off when he’s on the floor rather than resting. He’ll need his defensive best against Landale, knowing when to help and when to respect the big Boomers’ jumpshot.



<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">DENIAL feat. <a href="https://twitter.com/AJ_Ogilvy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AJ_Ogilvy</a>...<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IllawarraProud?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IllawarraProud</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FlyAsOne?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FlyAsOne</a> <a href="https://t.co/x2FTjuOwCn">pic.twitter.com/x2FTjuOwCn</a></p>&mdash; Illawarra Hawks Basketball (@thehawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/thehawks/status/1358269239577120771?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


The quotes

Wednesday night’s game shapes as one to remember in the Hawks’ 43-year history, going down as the night the foundation franchise reclaims its traditional ‘Illawarra’ name for hopefully another 43 years and beyond.

It was coach Brian Goorjian, a man with NBL history dating back to the 1980s, who lit a spark under the public debate about the club’s name when he famously stated, on behalf of his father, that they don’t play like Hawks, they play like Illawarra.

It was a brilliantly simple statement that not only captured the history of this club in representing its region, but also gave an insight into how the Hawks raced to a 4-0 season’s start.

"There's a formula on how we've won, I've talked a lot about it to the team and through the media, and it's not an easy formula," Goorjian said after their Round 4 clash with the Phoenix.

"You've got to win those energy points, those effort points, and for us that's winning the rebound count, and keeping them off the foul-line.”

Of course, it was SE Melbourne who looked like the hungry working-class club in that game, coming away with a much-deserved 16-point win where they had more steals, blocks and o-boards than the Hawks and shot a classy 48 per cent from the field and 45 per cent from distance.

“Tonight, all those areas we lost and I thought we just looked a step off it,” Goorjian said. 

"I was banging that drum at the timeouts and at half-time, our schemes were a step off and everything seemed a bit off. They smashed us on the glass and shot at a really high percentage so that was a real concern.”



<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Don’t give this man space ? <a href="https://twitter.com/ksykesyb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ksykesyb</a> <a href="https://t.co/cTnUkFSact">pic.twitter.com/cTnUkFSact</a></p>&mdash; South East Melbourne Phoenix (@SEMelbPhoenix) <a href="https://twitter.com/SEMelbPhoenix/status/1358282952430419968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>



With Tyler Harvey and Justinian Jessup curtailed, not enough of their Illawarra mates stood tall against a hungry Phoenix side.

There were no such issues for Melbourne last round, as they rode the losses of Shea Ili and Chris Goulding in consecutive games to record Ws against quality Brisbane and Perth outfits.

“One of the biggest strengths of our team is our depth — when one man goes down or comes out of the game, we’re not losing anything at all when the next guy comes in,” rookie Jack White said.

“Even when you know we have these unfortunate injuries that stack up with the schedule that we’re starting to have now, it’s great to see guys are ready and able to come in and contribute and step up.”

White has been a huge reason for United’s fast start with his ability to defend multiple positions, protect the rim, clean the glass, and finish equally well above the rim or outside the arc.

His new teammate Scotty Hopson hasn’t had quite the same sparkling start to his United career, but he’s dished 14 dimes in the past three games and will be a critical playmaker if Melbourne are to post a winning score against the stingy Hawks.


<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Hopson +1!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StandWithUs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#StandWithUs</a> <a href="https://t.co/UPPRxDJxFJ">pic.twitter.com/UPPRxDJxFJ</a></p>&mdash; Melbourne United (@MelbUnitedHQ) <a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnitedHQ/status/1357633428863078400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


“We might need a little bit more from him over these coming weeks with those extra couple of guys out, but I’m more into the leadership that we are going to need from him and the way that he carries the ball, the way he can set the table for other people and then pick his moments to score,” coach Dean Vickerman said.

“We’re going to need really good leadership from him and Mitch McCarron to make sure this team functions the way we want it to over the next month, so I think it’s a great opportunity for Hop to grab right now.”

It’s a daunting proposition for Goorjian and Co, knowing that even with Melbourne missing two World Cup veterans and Jo Lual-Acuil, they still have to contend with Jock Landale, White, Dave Barlow, Hopson, McCarron and Japanese sensation Yudai Baba, who is likely to spend plenty of time on Tyler Harvey.

“We've got a quick turnaround and we're playing the best team in the competition at home,” Goorjian said.

“That's what I keep saying about this league... it's tough because every team in this competition is good. Wherever you go, whoever you play, it's going to be a tough game and you've got to play well to win.”