Bullets fall in opening round to new look Hawks

It was a tough night for the Bullets in the first game of their NBL21 campaign, coming up just short in a close encounter with the Hawks, 90-84. 

After a long pre-season, Brisbane got off to a great start. Veteran shooter, Jason Cadee opened the scoring account, doing what he does best, knocking one down from beyond the arc. In the following possession former NBA talent, Vic Law showed his athleticism, getting above the rim for a slam to take an early 5-0 lead. 

The Bullets took advantage of multiple Hawks turnovers, attacking the rim early with 16 points in the paint in the opening quarter. However, the Hawks kept the pressure on with accurate shooting from long range, going 5-7 as opposed to the Bullets 1-7. The visiting side went on a run at the end of the first, tying up the game at quarter time 23-23. 

The second quarter was tight with the multiple lead changes throughout. In a blow for the Bullets, they lost import Orlando Johnson to an elbow injury mid way through the period.  

The Hawks injection of scoring off the bench was key and kept the scoreboard rolling for the visitors. After taking a narrow three point advantage into halftime, the Hawks extended their lead to seven early in the third. 

Law was working hard on both ends and back to back buckets from the import kept the Bullets score ticking over. Anthony Drmic was also attacking aggressively finishing well and getting to the free throw line on his way to 14 points. However it was Sam Froling and Emmett Naar who kept the Hawks ahead, finishing with 19 and 17 points respectively. 

Despite a six point defeat, there were some positive signs for the Bullets in their opening game. 

Vic Law was impressive at both ends of the court, finishing with a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. A solid glimpse into what we can expect from him for the NBL21 season. 

Harry Froling also finished with a double- double showing his strength on the glass to finish with 10 points and 12 rebounds. 

Another stand out was Nathan Sobey who was particularly effective in the second half, scoring 13 of his 19 points to lead the team in scoring.

The Bullets will face the Hawks again in Round 2 at Nissan Arena on Thursday 21 January at 6:30pm. Tickets here.

Brisbane Bullets: 84 (Nathan Sobey 19pts, Vic Law 17pts, Anthony Drmic 14pts)

Hawks: 90 (Sam Froling 19pts, Emmett Naar 17pts, Tyler Harvey 16pts)