Round 2 Preview v SE Melbourne Phoenix

There was so much crammed into one afternoon on Sunday between the Adelaide 36ers and South East Melbourne Phoenix that it's going to be fascinating how both teams respond when they do it all again on Wednesday at Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

The 36ers and Phoenix played out a cracking double overtime contest on Sunday afternoon with Adelaide ending up prevailing 116-108 after the 50 minutes of action that was needed to separate the two teams.

The Sixers would have come away feeling relieved to have got the win and avoided an 0-2 start to the season following the loss to Melbourne United on Friday night while the Phoenix would have come away frustrated to have not come away with the victory.

THE COACH REFLECTS – ROUND 1

JOHNSON SETS IT UP, GIDDEY INSPIRES 36ERS OPENING WIN

On the back of playing that remarkable contest on Sunday, both teams have now had two days to recover and review, and now prepare to lock horns once again on Wednesday night when the 36ers and Phoenix open Round 2 of the NBL season again at Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

The game takes on extra interest and significance on the back of what happened on Sunday with Adelaide now having the chance to build on that momentum and try to win consecutive matches since January 6 and 11 last year.

But the Phoenix won't be short on motivation to get a measure of revenge for that double overtime loss and open their account for 2021, and get their first NBL win since January 12 last year.

The Phoenix lost their last eight matches last season so are now on a nine-game losing streak heading into Wednesday's game which includes Adelaide now having won its last four clashes with South East Melbourne.

The Phoenix did beat the 36ers in the first meeting in Melbourne last season, but the Sixes won the next three encounters between the two teams and when you factor in Sunday's win, Adelaide is on a four-game winning streak against South East Melbourne.

Everyone coming out of the game on Sunday was talking about Josh Giddey and it was easy to understand why when the NBL's youngest player virtually put the 36ers on his back in overtime while running the ship as the point guard.

In just the second game of his career, he was inspirational in leading the 36ers to the win and it even including him hitting the floor hard face first after throwing down a breakaway slam dunk.

Ultimately it is that incident that has now seen him ruled out of Wednesday's rematch with the Phoenix and while that might be a disappointment for the Adelaide fans excited to come watch him again, what it does is present big opportunities for some experienced guards.

Donald Sloan, Brendan Teys and Daniel Dillon are all proven performers across different leagues in the world so the 36ers are well equipped to cover the absence of Giddey for this one match.

Sloan might not have quite had the impact he would have hoped in his first two NBL games for the 36ers, but he is a player with 222 games of NBA experience, he has starred throughout Europe, won a championship in China and had a legendary college career with the Texas A & M Aggies.

The newly-turned 33-year-old will now be called upon to play an even bigger role on Wednesday night for the 36ers and he's more than capable of stepping up as he prepares for another fascinating battle with new Phoenix import Keifer Sykes.

Then you have Teys and Dillon. Both of them are now NBL veterans, both of them are part of the leadership group this season along with Daniel Johnson and being able to step up when needed is exactly why you have senior players like them on your roster.

Teys and Dillon might not always play big minutes, but they are always ready to go and are able to come on and make an instant impact whether it's to put up some shots, to run the offence and provide a cool head or to play some strong leadership.

They are both seasoned professionals who can adapt to any situation and Teys showed that with his six-point cameo in the second overtime period in Sunday's win against the Phoenix.

Then there is Dillon who is in his second season with the 36ers. He's already an NBL championship winner from the South Dragons back in 2009 before being part of the Cairns Taipans' Grand Final team of 2011, and then plying his trade in Romania, Poland, Japan and France.

He will now celebrate his 100th game in the NBL on Wednesday night and he'll have an increased role to play for the 36ers to mark the milestone occasion.

That means the Sixers are still well equipped in the backcourt, there's Jack McVeigh and Tony Crocker to share the three man spot, and then Daniel Johnson, Keanu Pinder and Isaac Humphries to again need to stand tall up front.

It's not going to be easy against the Phoenix though. Mitch Creek was brilliant on Sunday with 30 points, eight rebounds and six assists while he had good help from Yanni Wetzell (24 points, 11 rebounds), Keifer Sykes (18 points, 11 assists), Kyle Adnam (14 points) and Cam Gliddon (14 points).

They are then well equipped with veterans Adam Gibson and Reuben TeRangi along with import big Ben Moore so while the 36ers will be buoyed and heartened by Sunday's win, they will need to perform even better to make it another successful evening on Wednesday.

2020/21 Hungry Jack's  NBL Season – Round 2

Friday, 22 January 2021
Adelaide Entertainment Centre
Adelaide 36ers v New Zealand Breakers
Tip-off 7.00pm

Broadcast – ESPN, SBS on Demand, NBL TV, Twitch 
Tickets available by clicking here.

Adelaide 36ers Memberships are available, click here for more information.