Phoenix turn it round to defeat Bullets

The Brisbane Bullets have this afternoon been defeated by the South East Melbourne Phoenix 99-83 at John Cain Arena in Melbourne.

It was the Bullets first game as part of the inaugural NBL Cup and after a promising 27-16 first quarter, the Phoenix slowly clawed their way back into the game, with a strong final quarter proving the difference.

Scores were level at the main break, and it was only a two-point game in favour of the home side at three-quarter time.

The Bullets lost veteran and inspirational-leader Jason Cadee after only 2:33 court time with a left ankle injury and Head Coach made mention of the disruption that made to the make-up of his team.

“Losing Jason was a big thing for us,” he said. “That was a big blow, it halted momentum for us at that time for us.”

Lemanis also made mention of the Bullets’ ability to handle the shifts in momentum.

“There were a few swings in the game and they got into us physically.

“We had some looks but only went 6/23 from the three-point line.”

Centre Matt Hodgson backed up a strong showing against the 36ers last Monday with another stellar performance.

“Hodgy is a difference-maker for us. It’s good he’s back as part of the rotation now.

“He was 9/10 in the field, and had 9 boards in 23 minutes.

“In this league he’s something to deal with.”

Brisbane now have to wait until Friday to play again, when they take on the Illawarra Hawks at John Cain Arena, with tip-off at 4:00pm (AEST).

To view the full BOX SCORE, click here. 

PHOENIX 99 (Creek 29, Gliddon 19, Adnam 15)

Def.

BULLETS 83 (Hodgson 20, Drmic 16, Sobey 16)