Game Preview: Phoenix Open NBL Cup Campaign against Bullets

Opponent: Brisbane Bullets

When: Sunday Feb 21 - 3:00pm AEDT

Where: John Cain Arena, Melbourne

Tickets: CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

Broadcast: SBS Viceland, SBS On Demand, Twitch, NBL TV

Live Updates: @SEMelbPhoenix on Twitter

South East Melbourne Phoenix’s NBL Cup campaign tips off on Sunday at John Cain Arena against the 3-4 Bullets.

The Phoenix have been the buzz team in the NBL all week since recording a bounce back victory over Perth and signing Boomers star Ryan Broekhoff for the rest of the season.

With Broekhoff at least two-to-three weeks from joining the team, the Phoenix will hope to continue their promising form with the current squad before injecting the sharpshooter into the rotation and making a title push.

The matchup is first of two games in three days for the Phoenix, who return to John Cain Arena to tussle with Adelaide on Tuesday night.

SQUAD

Adam Gibson (calf) and Dane Pineau (back) remain out.

Ryan Broekhoff (travel) is arriving in Australia to begin quarantining in the next 48 hours.

KYLE ADNAM:

“Brisbane are a new team for us, we’ve obviously played Perth a fair few times and sort of stayed in our little group between Adelaide and Perth – we also played United and Illawarra. It’s going to be nice to step outside of that. It’s a great matchup for us, we did see them in the pre-season but things have changed so we’re really excited to get back out there again.”

“The no-crowd game against Perth was tough, especially in our home arena. We really missed the fans being there and I know in the NBL Cup a big advantage for us is going to be having our home fans there at games. We need you guys to get right behind us, we appreciate it so much and absolutely love seeing everyone there.”

PLAYER TO WATCH

Reuben Te Rangi scored a season-high 16 points in the win over the Wildcats last Sunday and seems to have found his offensive touch.

The Kiwi has been a force on the defensive end all season so finding his feet on the other end of the court will make him an extremely valuable player for the Phoenix.

OPPOSITION REPORT

Brisbane sits sixth on the NBL ladder with a 3-4 record.

They’re coming off a big road win over Adelaide and have put together solid victories over Sydney and Cairns. All four of their losses have been to the top three ranked sides in the NBL (Melbourne, Illawarra, Adelaide).

Guard Nathan Sobey leads the league in points (24.3), while import forward Vic Law (20.7) isn’t far behind.

Law also ranks third in rebounds and fourth in blocks, shaping as a versatile and dangerous threat for the Phoenix.

HISTORY VS. OPPOSITION

Head-to-Head Record

Phoenix 2 Bullets 1

NBL20:

Phoenix def Bullets 113-93

Phoenix def Bullets 110-95

Bullets def Phoenix 108-101

Sam Bunn for Phoenix Media (20/02/2021)