The Sydney Kings will be out to strengthen their position at the top of the NBL ladder in the all New South Wales rivalry when they host the struggling Illawarra Hawks. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage of this match from 7:30pm (AEDT).
It’s been a tale of conflicting storylines over the last fortnight for the two New South Wales-based clubs, with the Kings flying to the top of the ladder and the Hawks going from record breakers to the bottom.
Starting with the hosts, and after a loss to open their season they have been nothing but dominant over the last fortnight.
Three straight wins have rocketed them to the top of the ladder with things clicking on both ends of the floor, even without centre Julian Kazzouh.
There is no question that former Hawk Kevin Lisch has been a key man for the Kings this season, but backed up by fellow guard Jason Cadee they are forming a lethal combination which is sparking the Kings offence.
Aleks Maric has stood up strongly at centre as well, while their imports Greg Whittington and Josh Powell have been on fire.
Interestingly, the Kings took the decision to cut Michael Bryson during the week, signing former Los Angeles Lakers sharpshooter Steve Blake, but whether he plays in this game is still up in the air.
The Hawks, on the other hand, started the season in fine fashion with a thumping win over the Adelaide 36ers, running up a 40-minute era record of 122 points.
Since then, though, it has been all downhill as they have lost three straight to sit in second last, only better than the Cairns Taipans.
Unfortunately for the Hawks, they just haven’t had the defence to shut down other teams during the quiet periods of their offence.
While their offence has weapons left, right and centre, led by former league MVP Rotnei Clarke, they just haven’t been able to shut down other teams, losing to Melbourne and Perth in their last two fairly convincingly.
When these sides met just last week, the Kings came away with a tough four-point win on the road, with Kevin Lisch man of the match.
Prediction
At home and in some brilliant form, it’s hard to see the Kings losing this one. The Hawks will need to score a lot of points to get the job done, and because of their style it will be high scoring, but the Kings will strengthen their position at the top of the ladder.
Kings by 8.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of the final match in Round 3 from 7:30pm (AEDT) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.
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Scott Pryde
Expert
Not as big as the first couple of games, but being a Monday Night that's hardly a surprise. I would guess somewhere around the 4k mark.
Ozzie Bob
Roar Rookie
Well done to the kings, Great start to the season. Any idea on the crowd number????
Scott Pryde
Expert
Full report to come in a moment. Thanks for joining me this evening on The Roar for our live coverage of the 2016-17 NBL Season as the Sydney Kings got a strong win over the Illawarra Hawks at home. Hopefully you enjoyed the coverage. We will be back with every game of Round 4. Bye for now.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Round 4 Fixtures - all times AEDT - Cairns Taipans vs Melbourne United (Thursday 7:30pm at Cairns Concention Centre) - Illawarra Hawks vs Perth Wildcats (Friday 7:30pm at WIN Entertainment Centre) - New Zealand Breakers vs Adelaide 36ers (Saturday 7:30pm at Vector Arena) – Sydney Kings vs Brisbane Bullets (Sunday 3pm at Qudos Bank Arena) – Illawarra Hawks vs Cairns Taipans (Sunday 7pm at WIN Entertainment Centre)
Scott Pryde
Expert
Stats Leaders SYDNEY KINGS Points: Brad Newley (20), Kevin Lisch (19), Jason Cadee (14) Rebounds: Kevin Lisch (8), Greg Whittington (7), Brad Newley (6) Assists: Jason Cadee (6), Greg Whittington, Alexs Maric (4) ILLAWARRA HAWKS Points: AJ Ogilvy (20), Rotnei Clarke (12), Oscar Forman (6) Rebounds: AJ Ogilvy, Nick Kay (5), Kevin White (4) Assists: Rhys Martin, Tim Coenraad (3), AJ Ogilvy (2) Sydney Kings 90 Illawarra Hawks 73
Scott Pryde
Expert
Match Statistics Field goals: Kings (34/74 @ 45%), Hawks (26/51 @ 50%) Three pointers: Kings (14/34 @ 41%), Hawks (7/18 @ 38%) Free throws: Kings (8/12 @ 66%), Hawks (14/24 @ 58%) Rebounds: Kings (40), Hawks (33) Assists: Kings (23), Hawks (14) Steals: Kings (18), Hawks (5) Blocks: Kings (5), Hawks (8) Turnovers: Kings (10), Hawks (21) Points in paint: Kings (38), Hawks (34) Second chance points: Kings (16), Hawks (12) Points off turnovers: Kings (28), Hawks (17) Bench points: Kings (23), Hawks (25) Sydney Kings 90 Illawarra Hawks 73
Scott Pryde
Expert
Quarter-by-Quarter Scoring Breakdown 1st Quarter Kings 25 - Hawks 23 2nd Quarter Kings 28 - Hawks 22 3rd Quarter Kings 25 - Hawks 6 4th Quarter Kings 12 - Hawks 22 FULLTIME Sydney Kings 90 Illawarra Hawks 73
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thoughts on the match Roarers?
Scott Pryde
Expert
FULLTIME Well, that was a fantastic win for the Kings. Prewster hits the final bucket out of the post and the Kings have four in a row for the first time in five seasons. This team are on fire with Steve Blake and Julian Kazzouh still to play! Sydney Kings - 90 Illawarra Hawks - 73
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 0' The Kings now with it through former Hawk Tolovae before Prewster misses a three. Missed ally-oop for the Hawks before Moller dishes to Tolovae on the run and the Hawks poke it out. Kings - 87 Hawks - 73
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 0' Liu to Hill and that misses from deep before Rotnei Clarke sinks a transition three. 37 seconds on the clock. Kings - 87 Hawks - 73
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 1' Moller, Liu and Hill there before Prewster goes insdie and that misses. Hawks quickly down the floor before Jamieson misses with Hollyfield to dunk it home. Kings - 87 Hawks - 70
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 1' Rhys Martin makes both. Kings - 87 Hawks - 68
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 1' The Kings with a quick miss and turnover now before the Hawks get into the paint and there is a hard foul. Into 'rubbish time' now. Both teams emptying the benches. Kings - 87 Hawks - 66
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 2' Pair of misses at the line for White. Kings - 87 Hawks - 66
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 2' Quick foul from the inbound as the Hawks look to get it into the paint. Whittington subs out now and Bo Liu checks in for a few minutes of gametime. Kings - 87 Hawks - 65
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 2' The Hawks have really drifted in an out of this game at the defensive end. Much better there and they cause another shot clock violation. Kings call time out. Kings - 87 Hawks - 65
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 2' Only one made from the line by Ogilvy. Kings - 87 Hawks - 65
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 2' Great defence now forces Clarke to miss a turnaround shot in the key before Newley controls for the Kings. He pulls a crossover, generates some space and misses the three. Lisch called for a foul on the rebound. Kings - 87 Hawks - 64
Scott Pryde
Expert
Q4 3' The Kings through Newley and Lisch now with the shot clock running down and he misses on a three. Kings - 87 Hawks - 64