Just hope the refs don't decide who makes the top 4, let them play hardball!

Nice intro' Jack, yes it is showtime, just the platform the 6'ers like to perform on.

Usually!

The key will be Randle, his fitness will be tested early, if he survives the game the 6'ers are a chance, if his injury is not 100%, POW you guys are out...

Yes the key is Randle.

We really need him to play a "captains game" and set up some assists to get Gibbo and Ere alight and DJ sighted in before he risks his knee too much. Five or six first quarter assists would be great.

I believe he has the talent and the grit to really turn it on at will but if he sets up the team first we have a great chance.

Joey's tactics were exposed r18, NZ was train wreck and he didn't fully adjust for Cairns in as much as he didn't set anything up for Ebi early and we need him to fire again.

If Joey gets it Wright we have a chance for two road wins regardless of conspiracies.

Go Sixers

You'd think Illawarra would manage minutes for Lisch and Ogilvy tonight, so that may help Adelaide out a bit.

So you are suggesting, subtly, that the Hawks are not that fussed if they drop this game Paul?

I'll leave that to you!!

But given Lisch and Ogilvy have played over 1500 minutes combined this season I think they would be silly not to give them a bit of rest now that a playoff berth is secure, especially as some of the players they'll go up against in a week's time will have had that opportunity.

Hawks will win this.

DJ, Gibbo, Teys, Petrie & Sobey to do nothing.

Hopefully Randle can light it up to keep things interesting.

#hardball

Well, I think it makes sense, other teams appear to be resting players and preparing for finals, but no coach wants his players or his team taking the foot of the pedal and lose momentum now, so to speak.

The other theory might be that the three top teams may rather Adelaide in fourth spot ahead of New Zealand???

@Paul

Joey could assist that decision making by matching their aggressive defense and pushing the boundary there.

I wont say it any more after this, but that first play from Ebi Ere sums his season up perfectly absolutely forced crap. Meanwhile when did Kevin White go and get all loco, Randle has owned him every game.

Way to use your heads there boys, Joey really has these guys playing smart basketball in a very important game. Guess Joey always makes the finals though, so its all good right... poor effort, game effectively catchup the rest of the way.

I dont think so, Ebi flopped. Was not much in that at all.

No, Ogilvy threw him to the ground.

Were there 3 unsportsmanlike fouls called on that?

Yeah something like that, but wasnt much in it really imo. If we had kept our cool, wouldve been 2 and possession our way. Oh well. The tone has been set now.

Since when do unsportsmanlike fouls cancel each other out? I thought that was only on double fouls. Can anyone confirm???

Can we get rid of " For you kids at home watch this" off the Fox team!
Sick of his talking down attitude as if only he knows about basketball.

So why is everyone booing Randle? I started watching at 2nd Qtr

6ers suck that much, playing with passengers its ugly to watch. Creek is killing the team and himself without having a jump shot. Forces the dribble into the keyway which is always crowded. Joey looks out of ideas, not surprised, not a tactical type. Also Thunder Jam agree, Rosen is painful, and does NOT stop talking!

Daniel "Soft" Johnson

How does Johnson let White win that loose ball. Disgusting lack of effort.

"Since when do unsportsmanlike fouls cancel each other out? I thought that was only on double fouls."

Since always. You can't give both teams possession.

"Since when do unsportsmanlike fouls cancel each other out? I thought that was only on double fouls."

Since always. You can't give both teams possession.

We're shooting 18/34. That's how.

If we go down by 2 points, that end of half turnover will bite.

Big opening quarter from the Hawks, I guess that dispels any doubt that they came to play.

How is Randle holding up? Why has Gibson gone MIA?

Excellent cameo from Teys, changed Adelaide's intensity on D and got them back in the game.

Petrie keeping you guys in it...

The sooner Gibson is in Brisbane the better

But, it job st doesn't look like the 6'ers are on tonight!

...just...

Paul your right about Teys, but good luck seeing him again. For some reason he is in the dog house.

When Ebi misses, what other basketball thing does he offer? Serious question. Poor recruiting and poor close out games against the Crocs Taipans to name a few have bitten the Adelaide 36ers. The finals will be damn exciting though, I'm actually hoping for a United Hawks shootout.

Weeks > Randle

Tonight!

Our defence has been disgusting. We don't deserve to play finals defending like this and we won't be. Absolutely pathetic.

I haven't been following the conspiracy theories but which team was supposed to throw this game tonight? Illawarra with Weeks and White doing much of the scoring but somehow the 36ers still manage to be behind.

The half man showing he is all show and no substance, 5ft 5 that can't play defence and is a bloody hog, goes to water when it gets physical

A tech foul? No! Didn't think they still existed.

Even more of a joke randomly deciding to whistle it for something as minor as that - even though they've let all kinds go during the season including swearing at referees, taunting viciously etc.

6ers are a rubbish outfit

Geez these last few minutes has been amateur hour. Absolute bush league.

embarrassing end to our season. Perth will win by 30 on sunday

Yeah that was a horrible way to go out. Play a lick of D and we are in it, that said the Hawks just have so much shooting. Hope they go on to win it this year.

How goods that three year deal for Joey looking, he can recruit a few more midgets

Just my opinion but why anyone would actively go after Gibson as a starting PG (i.e Brisbane) is beyond me. Massively overrated and wouldn't have him as a top 12/13 PG in the league!

Its looking horrible, all he does is whinge and moan. He isnt great. Has regressed since that first season, and doesnt seem to be able to motivate the guys to perform. The game was lost in the first 50seconds, down 7 of stupidity on the road.

Not happy, 6ers!

3 more years, then ill be happy haha Going to be a ripping finals series, the teams that made it were always the going to make for the best matchups, especially now the Breakers have clearly got some great counselling sessions in and are on the same page again!

"Paul your right about Teys, but good luck seeing him again. For some reason he is in the dog house."

Yep, I don't know the background but it seems like a huge mistake not playing him much this season. He was a great foil alongside Ervin and Wilson and would have been next to Randle too.

You don't find high IQ, selfless guys who defend at a high level lying around and Adelaide wasted one this year (unless there was an injury or something we don't know about, but he seemed good to go when put in).

Joey fell in love with Sobey and when Teys did have an injury early on that was that, he got pushed out of the rotation. Problem was, Sobey was terrible and out of control, so just another weird thing that has happened in Adelaide this season.

Sobey had his place, but offers something completely different to Teys. When Randle was out, they desperately needed Brendan's smarts.

So much for my conspiracy theory.

Bevo and his Hawks have integrity.

Good luck vs Perth. Kill em

A big bonus for finishing third for Illawarra is having homecourt advantage if NZ beat Melbourne in the SFs.

They'd be licking their lips at that prospect after the regular season, although I think the Breakers will be a conpletely different proposition in the playoffs.

The first time they played the Hawks they were without Webster, Vukona and Pledger, and then the next three were pretty soon after Webster's personal issues all blew up and NZ were reeling.

Would be an entertaining GF but I bet the NBL is hoping for Melbourne v Perth with big crowds and Australian TV audiences.

* Sorry, Pledger played a few minutes in that first game against the Hawks.

I would've thought the Hawks would be more concerned with getting through the semi finals.

It's a wide open race. Best season in years and I'm thinking both semi finals go to a deciding game.

I hope so. Re getting through the SFs, if you know Bevo at all he would be supremely confident they can beat Perth.

Well that was disappointing, not just for the 6's but this "epic" final round has really fizzled.

I can only hope that both Martin & Randle are fighting fit for Sunday, Best Defensive player versus Best Offensive, could be an epic duel.
Not much else to get excited about.

"It's a wide open race. Best season in years and I'm thinking both semi finals go to a deciding game."

I've always thought 2001 was the NBL's best season on court - close to highest-ever level of talent, high-scoring, unpredictable, lots of good teams and playoffs that all went the distance. So far this season has ticked four of those five boxes.

Sixers +/- for tonight...

Teys +15
Sobey +7
Walker +3
Hodgson +2
Creek -5
Johnson -9
Gibson -12
Ere -16
Petrie -20
Randle -20

For the season so far...
Creek +65
Randle +53
Johnson +50
Teys +11
Sobey +7
Johns +3
Petrie -2
Larkins -3
Hodgson -4
Ere -5
McNeail -6
Carlin -14
Walker -38
Gibson -62

Rhys Martin (born 13 February 1986) QLD junior
Adam Gibson (born 30 October 1986) TAS junior

really from this seaon , and even just this game
who would you pick first to be your starting point gurd in the NBL ?

Point Guard :(

Junk outfit.

I've said it all season long.
It's a damn midget brigade with no game and the bigs are rubbish.

If Randle wasn't on the roster this season, 6ers had the spoon and you blokes would be screaming for Joeys head.

You know they had an import before Randle, right?

Yeah we know you've been saying it all season long. We've had to read it time after time after time after time after time after time.

Nah, hasn't been annoying in the slightest.

So it's not a midget brigade?

DJ and Petrie have performed at a high level?

Hawks won a game lost the finals just then.

They don't have the depth to go against Perth in the bigs department. Floppage would be licking his lips after watching this game tonight. OJ can't help himself, so a cheap foul with Sean followed by another crap tangle up with Jessie and Hawks are done.

A team that has picked itself up and won championships in the past 5 seasons you don't just let back into the finals if you are in a place to stop it.

FM see where you're coming from, but dont think Perth have the scorers to go with the Hawks to be honest. They have no go to scorers, and if they come out even remotely flat like thet have been of late, Hawks could snacth game one.

So disappointed with the Sixers missing the major round but also looking forward to the finals as all four teams are good enough to win Johnny.

There hasn't been this much intrigue for many years such has been the quality of the competition.

I'd say the Sixers were desperate to some extent, but put that energy and focus to bad use (fighting and physicality), rather than playing the game possession by possession.

Ultimately we've got the 4 best teams in the playoffs. Disappointing for the Sixers but should be a great finals series

"FM see where you're coming from, but dont think Perth have the scorers to go with the Hawks to be honest."

I think that's where so much comes down to rebounding. If Perth dominate the o-boards the tempo goes in their favour and their quantity of scoring chances can overcome the Hawks' quality.

Touch the rim, my thoughts excatly, knew from that incident early they were feeling vulnerable.

I'm pretty sure the Wildcats have outscored the Hawks four times already this season...

Didn't Perth own the Hawks 4-0 including 2 thrashings? I think that's proof in its own to say they have the scorers to match the Hawks.

Lol. Correct.

Brains optional on this thread.

"OJ can't help himself, so a cheap foul with Sean followed by another crap tangle up with Jessie and Hawks are done."

So true, even at a rate of 2 to one, 8 fouls spread on Floppsy Mk1, Flopsy Mk2, knight and Big J affects the cats very little, but give 4 on OJ and its dunk city inside for the Cats.

Yeah I understand all the Perth winning 4-0 stuff, but the playoffs are different and IMO the Hawks are potentiually peaking at the right time. Pertth fans relax, no need to defend against my thoughts to the full extent. I just think this is a different game now, and the Hawks offence will overcome the Perth grind it out style.

The Perth wins over the Hawks are also three of their four highest scores for the season. I think the "grind it out" prediction came up before all four of those games too.

Well then that's well observed of you to remember if so. Think Penney was missing in one of those games but regardless I'm basing my opinion on a hunch and guy feeing that the Hawks are ready to be ruthless offensively and hard to stop.

Yeah it's rebounding where the Cats have it over the Hawks.

Control possession and you control the game.

Ogilvy has to play out of his skin and be at his absolute best. Protecting the rim, contesting every board battle and keeping his team competitive in the rebound count. And of course being a target down low.

If he's near his best- which unfortunately he wasn't in the regular season vs Perth- then the Hawks still have a good chance of the upset

Why would it be an upset? They have two mvps plus an also Martin and co that a great role player's if Illawarra had hca would it be a upset if perth won? I. Think the winner of this semi win it all. Both teams have champions on their team.

Cats are the Hawks bogey team, it doesn't matter on how much talent the Hawks have they just seem to match up really well with them. Same goes with Crocs being the bogey team for Perth this season. Its going to be a massive task for Hawks to win in Perth where they haven't won for many years. But hey it is the finals and it's been a year of weird results.