Phoenix Schedule Update

The South East Melbourne Phoenix have a new opening round matchup for the 2021/22 Hungry Jack’s NBL Season after changes were made to the schedule.

In line with the league’s policies regarding border closures and openings, the first six rounds have been re-shuffled to maximise the opportunities for fans to attend games.

The Phoenix were originally scheduled to play Illawarra on December 4th but will instead face the New Zealand Breakers.

Tip off for opening night has also moved back from 5.30pm to 8pm.

The Phoenix and Breakers will play again at John Cain Arena on December 10th.

(Mitch Creek lines up for some free throws vs the Breakers during NBL21.)

The other changes to the Phoenix schedule include;

The New Year’s Eve clash against the Taipans in Cairns moves to Saturday January 8th.

The Phoenix will now play the 36ers in Adelaide on January 2^nd.

Fans and the integrity of the schedule were the priority during the rescheduling according to Hungry Jack’s NBL Commissioner, Jeremy Loeliger.

“We will always prioritise having as many fans in home venues as possible as per our policies and processes,” he said.

“Like every sporting organisation around the country, we were acutely aware our schedule would likely change as Australia and New Zealand started to open up and consider vaccination rates and health advice.

“We have the ability to swap and change when necessary but will always maintain the integrity of the schedule and we will always put fans first.

(Fans enjoying themselves at the Fire Pit.)

“Getting teams into states and fans into venues safely remains are absolute priority. We will maintain a flexible approach to the schedule to ensure any potential further changes are made with these two objectives at the forefront.

“We will ensure each team still plays 14 home games and we will endeavour to give fans as much notice as possible when further changes are made after Round 6.”

The Perth Wildcats will now play five home games in the first three weeks of the season before hitting the road for a block of away games while the Western Australian border remains closed to certain states.

Phoenix Media (10/11/2021)