Perth Wildcats’ three-point barrage raises funds for fire victims, consigns Illawarra Hawks to NBL defeat
A stunning three-point barrage from the Perth Wildcats has helped swell the NBL players’ donation to Australian bushfire victims and consigned the bottom-placed Illawarra Hawks to a third straight loss.
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Perth Wildcats have ensured NBL players will dig very deep for Australia’s devastating bushfire crisis, producing a remarkable half of three-point shooting that buried the Illawarra Hawks.
Before Round 15, the Australian Basketball Players Association, in conjunction with the NBL, pledged $300 towards the Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery for every three-pointer made.
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Coming off a horror 4-21 outside shooting night — a season-low for three-point makes — in a loss to Brisbane, the Wildcats blazed away with stunning efficiency against the Illawarra Hawks, draining 12 first-half triples from 22 attempts.
Conversely, the Hawks shot just 1-11 from the outside and faced a 36-54 deficit at the half.
Marksman Clint Steindl said the three-point barrage — which ended with 17 makes, worth $5100 to the cause — was made possible by improved effort at the defensive end.
“We were able to get some run-out, get some easier looks and once they start to drop, you start to get your ones off the pin downs and tough ones come along easier then,” Steindl said.
“We’re doing our job (at the defensive end) and if we continue to do that, hopefully we can build on it in the coming weeks.”
Hawks coach Matt Flinn said he was “embarrassed” by his team’s first-half performance, giving them a good old fashioned bake, indicating a frustration that continues to build among the Illawarra camp.
Flinn can teach and preach as much as he wants, but he can’t put the ball in the hole or produce defensive effort — that’s up to the players and they were just not working hard enough.
They did, however, come out with an improved effort after the long break and Todd Blanchfield’s sole trey of the night at the three-quarter-time buzzer capped a 9-0 run that closed the margin to 13 and gave the Hawks a glimmer of hope.
But 11 points would be as close as they would get as the defending champions flexed their impressive muscles.
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Fresh off a 35-point, seven trey night against the Bullets, Blanchfield led the way for the Hawks again with 26 points, but could only make of his six attempts from deep.
It was Bryce Cotton, as per usual, who caused the most damage, the gun import guard draining 23 points, ably supported by partner in crime Terrico White with 17, while big man Nick Kay had a 14-point, 10-rebound double double.
“It feels good to get back on the winners’ side,” Cotton said after the game, the win snapping a two-game losing streak for the Wildcats.
“We’ve got to stay true to who we are, we have shooters out here, sometimes the ball’s going to fall, sometimes it’s not, but we’ve got to be the players we are.
“Coming out for the last seven games of the season, we’ve seen this movie before, we know what time it is and we know what we’re prepared for.”
New ex-NBA centre Miles Plumlee preached he had joined the Wildcats to bring “energy, a presence in the inside and rebounding” ahead of his debut and his first act off the bench was perfect big man dirty work — a screen that gave Mitch Norton a wide open three, one of three triples the point guard made in the opening term.
Plumlee’s first bucket was a pretty post spin move and soft touch off the glass over Josh Boone that was better than anything the departed Dario Hunt had served up in a Wildcats kit, indicating he will be a valuable asset to Perth in the run home.
“They’re a great bunch of guys, I think this win is a testament to our chemistry, they give me confidence and make it easier to play with them,” Plumlee who finished with six points, 3 rebounds and two blocks in 16 minutes, said after the match.
Perth retains second place on the ladder, while the Hawks remain firmly rooted to the bottom of the ladder ahead of a home date with South East Melbourne Phoenix on Sunday. The Wildcats get a week’s break before hosting the New Zealand Breakers Saturday-week.
SCOREBOARD
Illawarra Hawks 77
Todd Blanchfield: 26 points, 8 rebounds
Sunday Dech: 15 points, 5 rebounds
Dan Grida: 11 points
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Perth Wildcats 99
Bryce Cotton 23 points, 6 assists
Terrico White: 17 points
Nick Kay: 14 points, 10 rebounds
Mitch Norton: 14 points, 5 assists
Originally published as Perth Wildcats’ three-point barrage raises funds for fire victims, consigns Illawarra Hawks to NBL defeat