Illawarra's 120–110 win over South East Melbourne on Wednesday did two jobs at once. It gave the Hawks a badly needed NBL27 victory and delivered five Ignite Cup points. But the Phoenix, beaten after conceding 71 points in the first half, still collected two points of their own. In this competition, losing the game doesn't necessarily mean leaving empty-handed.
The Hawks' first-half shooting was ferocious. Milton Doyle made six of seven three-pointers on his way to 22 points, while Kelan Martin hit five of seven from deep and finished with 27. Davo Hickey contributed 15 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Illawarra won the opening quarter 28–23, then overwhelmed the Phoenix 43–31 in the second. The NBL's official match report details how that 71–54 half-time lead grew out of decisive perimeter shooting and a near-flawless second period.
South East Melbourne couldn't undo the damage on the scoreboard, but it didn't stop competing for the smaller prizes. The Phoenix won the third quarter 27–24 and the fourth 29–25. Those periods weren't enough to rescue the match, yet they mattered in the Ignite Cup: Illawarra earned three points for winning the game and one for each of the first two quarters; the Phoenix received one for each of the last two. A ten-point loss therefore produced a five-to-two split in the separate cup standings.
That arithmetic is central to the NBL27 Ignite Cup rules. A club can collect as many as seven points from a match by winning all four quarters as well as the game. It also means a team chasing a lost cause on the regular-season scoreboard still has a reason to defend the next possession and run its offence properly. South East Melbourne's late improvement didn't disguise the defensive problems that cost it the match, but it did prevent Illawarra from banking a maximum haul.
Sydney remain the benchmark with 13 cup points from three appearances, according to the league's latest Ignite Cup standings update. The Kings have already played three of their four qualifying games, whereas Illawarra have just opened their campaign. That leaves the Hawks three more chances to build on Wednesday's five points. There's plenty of road left in the tournament, and the top four — not just the team leading now — will advance to the Canberra finals.
For the Phoenix, the next Ignite Cup assignment is a trip to Auckland to face the New Zealand Breakers on Wednesday, 18 November. They need better defensive possessions from the opening tip, not another frantic repair job after half-time. Still, Wednesday offered a useful reminder that the cup rewards quarters as well as wins. The Hawks earned the result they wanted; the Phoenix made sure the final two periods weren't wasted. In a race decided by accumulated points, both parts of that story count.
Comments