Heartland Hustle: A Much Needed Win for Phoenix Face the Winning Streak of the Kings

It’s not yet a crisis but South East Melbourne has lost three games in a row and is now out of the NBL’s top-four for the first time in over 100 days.
But, in struggle, comes opportunity and the Phoenix return home to The Fire Pit to take on the red-hot Sydney Kings.

Here’s a look at how the two teams are shaping up ahead of Saturday night’s top-four shaping clash.

(Phoenix will be hoping to bounce back and stop the Kings winning streak.)

Key Details

SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE 11-8 (5th) v Sydney Kings 12-7 (3rd)
Where: The Fire Pit, John Cain Arena
When: Saturday, March 19, 8pm AEDT
Watch: ESPN, Kayo

The Teams

Phoenix
Ryan Broekhoff’s shoulder injury will keep him out for this as he continues to recover, but the Phoenix got a solid contribution from Reuben Te Rangi, who scored seven points in the second quarter as the Phoenix tried to rally against the Hawks. Lachlan Barker will once again be Broekhoff's nominated replacement player.

The Phoenix went to Zhou Qi early and often in Wollongong and he looms as a key factor against the Kings’ bigs. Expect Mitch Creek to be fired up after he struggled against the Hawks early.

(Zhou has had back-to-back stellar games in losses.)

Kings
Sydney leads the season series 2-0 and, oddly, has never lost to the Phoenix at the Fire Pit. The Kings have not lost any of their last seven matches and come into the game as the hottest team in the NBL. Key big man Xavier Cooks missed their last outing against Cairns with an ankle sprain and will also miss the game against Phoenix along with Shaun Bruce due to a calf injury.

Players to Watch

Mitch Creek
It’s not often Creek goes through a rough patch, but it lasted three quarters against the Hawks before he broke out with 12 points in the last quarter as the Phoenix looked to steal victory. Creek is one of the NBL’s superstars and will give the Kings’ imposing frontline everything it can handle on Saturday night

Jaylen Adams
Hard to take eyes off the Kings’ playmaker who leads the team in scoring, assists and steals. Adams does it all and his duel with Xavier Munford could be a decisive one. The Phoenix must quiet his explosive influence in order to win this game.

Last 5
Phoenix: WWLLL
Kings: WWWWW

The Stats

Phoenix
Points: M Creek, 21.32ppg
Rebounds: Q Zhou, 7.06rpg
Assists: X Munford, 3.94apg
Blocks: Q Zhou, 2.12bpg
Steals: R Broekhoff, 1.56spg

Kings
Points: J Adams, 20.79ppg
Rebounds: X Cooks, 9.61rpg
Assists: J Adams, 6.07apg
Blocks: X Cooks, 1.83bpg
Steals: J Adams, 1.5spg

(Creek will be hoping to get back to his best after a quiet game.)

The History
Regular season Head-to-Head: 
South East Melbourne Phoenix 1–9 Sydney Kings

Last time out: Rd 11, NBL22
South East Melbourne Phoenix 87-92 Sydney Kings

The numbers

Phoenix
Broekhoff: 25 points
Creek: 23 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists
Barker: 14 points, 3 assists

Kings
Cooks: 23 points
Martin: 20 points, 8 rebounds
Vasiljevic: 14 points

Recap

The undermanned Phoenix played from behind most of the night before fighting back to almost pinch it at the end. It was always going to be tough without import guard  Munford, who was a late scratch due to Covid protocols, but the Phoenix were treated to 14 points from his replacement, Lachie Barker.

The Kings led 29-22 at quarter time, despite eight points from Broekhoff and six from Barker. Broekhoff and Zhou then keyed a second-quarter fightback, with the sides all but locked away at 64-62 at the long break.

The two teams continued to be neck and neck in the third as  Creek lifted his output, but the game looked over when the Kings increased their lead to 11 points half way through the last quarter.

Broekhoff refused to die, though, scoring 10 of the last 15 Phoenix points to reduce the margin to three with a minute left. The Phoenix tried to play the foul game, but the Kings were too efficient and walked away with a five-point win.

(Brandon Ashley will be hoping to have a good game while staying out of foul trouble.)

Quotes

“They’ve had a good run. They’ve been able to turn things around, which gives us a little bit of positivity that ‘OK, we can get this done as well’. I don’t look at them as a bogey team, I look at them as a team where we probably haven’t had the rub of the green. We’ll go into this game and we’ll be confident that we can go and take care of our business, but there’s certainly things we need to tighten up in this group.”
—Phoenix coach Simon Mitchell on the challenge the Kings pose

“The Phoenix are a tough outfit. The fight is between us, them, Perth, Illawarra. They’re all huge games. For us, we have to come out and compete, do what we do and not worry about who the opponent is.”
—Kings coach Chase Buford on the Kings’ mindset ahead of Saturday’s game.

Tickets are still available for Saturday night - CLICK HERE to secure your seat.

Please Note:
-Eastern Car Park is SOLD OUT for Saturday night, please seek alternative parking in the City, Richmond or around the Botanical Gardens or use public transport.
-The Eastern Car Park will experience some traffic and road closures until the crowd disperse from AAMI Park on Olympic Boulevard will be closed between 9:40-10pm.

Phoenix Media (18/3/22)