Undefeated Phoenix have high hopes in NBL

Sunday, 20 October 2019:

Expectations are on the rise for unbeaten new franchise South East Melbourne Phoenix but their coach is looking forward to see how his players handle the toughest challenge the NBL has to offer.

Wins over Melbourne United and Brisbane Bullets left the Phoenix poised to eclipse the West Sydney Razorbacks' record for successive wins to open a season for an expansion team heading into Saturday's clash with the Illawarra Hawks.

In front of a near-capacity crowd of 10,098 at Melbourne Arena, the Phoenix battled their way to a four-point win as they improved to a 3-0 record, setting up an intriguing away clash on Friday against reigning champions Perth Wildcats.

"We were anxious about this one, different sort of pressure I guess for our team," Phoenix coach Simon Mitchell admitted after the 106-102 win over the Hawks.

"You can fire shots when you are the underdog and come up against two semi-final teams, now all of a sudden there is a little bit of expectation.

"I thought this was a real challenge for us ... I guess people would say we were favourites going into the game."

After nailing 18 three-pointers against Brisbane, the Phoenix struggled from the perimeter against Illawarra, at one stage shooting just 3-18 from distance.

But some fierce offensive rebounding from Dane Pineau (12 points, 10 boards) and Keith Benson (five offensive rebounds in under seven minutes on court) handed the Phoenix numerous extra opportunities with John Roberson (26 points, five triples) and 200-gamer Mitch Creek (23 points) eventually taking full advantage.

While Mitchell expressed it was nice to open the season with three wins on the trot, he expects to learn more about his squad when they face the Wildcats at a packed RAC Arena in Perth.

"I'm really looking forward to that because I want to see who we are, I really want our team to be tested," he said.

"It's a honeymoon period right now because we are 3-0 and we are playing pretty well, we are building a culture and I want to see it dented.

"When you go into Perth, you're going to be facing some huge hurdles and we are going to be under pressure - I want to see how we handle that."

The Wildcats will be primed to inflict a maiden defeat on the Phoenix but also desperate to atone for last Friday's stunning 23-point loss on their home floor to the Cairns Taipans.






AAP






Check out our FREE full form, ratings for meetings in nine countries each and every day.