Phoenix Season to Tip-Off with a Bang

South East Melbourne Phoenix will host Boomers Coach and Heartland royalty Brian Goorjian’s revamped Hawks in their NBL21 home opener on Thursday, January 14.

Mitch Creek and the Phoenix will take on former NBA forward Deng Adel, Golden State rookie Justinian Jessup, and Boomer Cam Bairstow in front of the Phoenix faithful.

In exciting news for basketball thirsty fans in the Heartland, the Phoenix will feature twice in the first five days of the season, with the Hawks game following an ‘away’ Throwdown with Melbourne United on Sunday, January 10 to tip-off the season.

(Last season's Throwdown opener was a thriller)

The NBL released the fixture for the first five rounds of NBL21 today, including home games for the Phoenix against the Hawks and Bullets, and away clashes with NBL20 finalists Cairns and Sydney.

A total of 39 games will be played over the first 37 days of the season in front of fans across Australia.

“To be opening our season with a crosstown Throwdown followed by hosting the Hawks and former NBA player Deng Adel is a perfect start to the season. We can’t wait to get the games underway,” Phoenix CEO Tommy Greer said.

Head Coach Simon Mitchell added: “I think all of the players and staff welcome confirmation of a starting date. It's great to know what we're preparing for now and how we will schedule our year.

“I love that we are kicking things off with a grudge game against United. Obviously, we have great memories from last season’s kick-off.”

Phoenix Fixture Rounds 1-5:

R1: Sun 10 Jan - Melbourne United (away) Venue TBC

R1: Thu 14 Jan – Hawks (HOME) Venue TBC

R1: Sat 16 Jan – Hawks (away) WIN Entertainment Centre

R2: Thu 21 Jan – Brisbane Bullets (away) Nissan Arena

R2: Sun 24 Jan – Brisbane Bullets (HOME) Venue TBC

R3: Sun 31 Jan – Cairns Taipans (away) Cairns Pop-Up Arena

R4: Wed 3 Feb – Hawks (HOME) Venue TBC

R4: Sat 6 Feb – Adelaide 36ers (away) Adelaide Entertainment Centre

R5: Sat 13 Feb – Sydney Kings (away) Qudos Bank Arena

FULL NBL ROUNDS 1-5 FIXTURE

Starting times and venues for games will be confirmed. Games will be broadcast live on SBS and ESPN.

The remainder of the NBL21 schedule will be announced in rolling stages and the NBL is still considering the option of using a hub for part of the season.

Phoenix star Mitch Creek is optimistic about his new squad and says the team will be ready to attack the season from day one.

“We’ll be raring to go,” Creek said.

“It’s going to be a very exciting time for basketball all across Australia and especially in Victoria.”

Official pre-season games in December and January will replace the NBL Blitz, which will not be staged this year.

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Phoenix Media (03/12/2020)