NBL Round 12 – Selected Fixtures and Betting Tips

The following are previews with betting tips for Round 12 of the 2021 NBL season.

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Thursday, April 1

Illawarra Hawks vs South East Melbourne Phoenix WIN Entertainment Centre 7:30pm AEDT

The Hawks are coming into this clash on the back of a commanding 96-72 win over the Bullets in Wollongong. While for the Phoenix they suffered an 80-60 loss to United in Victoria. For Illawarra and S.E.M they sit in 3rd and 4th respectively with identical 10-8 records. But with all of Sydney and Brisbane only a win behind them each, a win for either side here would create a tiny bit of breathing room between them and the rest of the competition.

The crucial Q for the Hawks was the 2nd. Here they won 26-14 which allowed them to really pull the clash away from the Bullets grasp. For the Phoenix the 3rd certainly did them no favors. This as they lost 24-13.

Illawarra’s key performers were Harvey who posted 28 big points and Bairstow and Deng who had 12 and 11 each off the bench. Harvey went 8/10 from deep! As he also had 1REB and 3AST. Bairstow shot 2/3 from deep as he also got 5REB, 2AST and 1BLK. For Deng, he pulled in 11 boards, had 6 dimes and also 1 swat.

For S.E.M Gliddon had 13PTS, Moore 12 and Broekhoff 8 coming off the bench. Gliddon hit 3/3 FT’s as he had 5REB and 4AST as well. Moore converted 54.5% of his attempted shots as some of his other stats included 7REB, 2AST and 1BLK. Broekhoff also put in an encouraging effort with his 3REB and 1STL, as he played over 20 minutes.

Analysing the Phoenix’s 20-point loss to United Gliddon shot 4/11, Adnam 2/9, Te Rangi 2/7 and Wetzell 2/6 and those are just the starters. Le-afa went 1/5, Karena 0/2, Skyes 2/6 and Broekhoff 3/7 off the bench. If they shoot this way against the Hawks then Harvey and his Illawarra team will run them into the ground. They’ll have absolutely no chance of beating the Hawks if they play this way. So it’s pretty simple, they’ve got to shoot more efficiently and work for better shots. If they can do that then they have a chance of winning, if not then the Hawks should take it out rather comfortably.

Betting tips: Pick the Hawks to win at $1.81 (Sportsbet)

Also pick the Hawks to win Q1 at $1.80 (bet365)

 

Perth Wildcats vs Sydney Kings RAC Arena 9:30pm AEDT

Playing in Sydney at Qudos Bank Arena Perth absolutely smashed the Kings winning by 24 points in what was an 89-65 score-line! The Wildcats continued their recent dominance over Sydney as they further cemented 1st place with a 13-4 record on the season. As for the Kings they are in 5th with a 9-9 record. But in a sign of how close things are this season, they (Sydney) are also just a single victory off of 3rd position.

Q1 ended 21-19 in Perth’s favor. Q2 ended as a 25-all draw. Q3 again belonged to Perth as they snatched the game away from Sydney by winning 19-9! And Q4 was again a dominant effort from the Wildcats as they won 24-12, with all of that resulting in what was the eventual thrashing.

For the winners Cotton was again ballistic with 29PTS. Hitting 3 3’s from beyond the arc, he also had 3REB, 4AST and 2STL. Mooney was also crazy as he pulled in 17 boards. He also had 3AST, 2STL and 1BLK as well. And off the pine Travers was just WOW! He shot 6/6 from the floor en route to 16PTS. He also had 3REB and 1AST.

For the losers Martin had 18PTS, Vasiljevic 13 and Hunter 10. Martin shot 7/11 from the court as he also had 3REB and 1BLK. Vasiljevic went 5/5 from the FT line as some of his other stats were 4REB, 3AST and 1STL. And Hunter shot 4/6 as he also had 6REB and 1STL.

At one stage Didi erupted for 29PTS a career-high against Perth. That was the Didi of last season, the Didi of this season has been nicknamed ‘Twiggy’ because like a twig he seems to break badly with regards to his injuries. Last week against Perth he shot 3/11 good for just 7PTS. The game before he had 5 and two and three games before that it was 5 each time. He just isn’t doing nearly good enough this season to be able to justify taking up a roster spot. Playing away at the RAC Arena he might thrive under the pressure and finally kickstart his season because we know he can do good things against the Wildcats, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

Betting tips: Pick Perth to be the first to 10 points at odds of $1.50 or more when they become available and to 20 at $1.55 (bet365)

Also pick the Kings to win Q2 at odds of $2.30 or more when they become available.

 

Friday, April 2

Melbourne United vs Cairns Taipans John Cain Arena 5:30pm AEDT

Playing at the John Cain Arena last round Melbourne prevailed with ease over S.E.M as they won 80-60 as they battered their rivals. For Cairns they were also very convincing at the Cairns Pop Up Arena as they won out over Adelaide proving victorious 79-65. This has left United in 2nd place with 13 wins and 5 losses so far, being only one win behind Perth in 1st. While for the Taipans that was their 5th win so far to date and being only 2 w’s behind Adelaide in 7th they can easily avoid finishing in last place at the conclusion of the regular season.

Winning Q2 23-16 really helped United gain a bit of an advantage over S.E.M. While similarly in Q2 for the Taipans one in which they won 22-16 helped them gain an edge for the rest of their clash against the 36ers.

For United Goulding was big with 25PTS and McCarron with 12 also. Goulding shot 5/9 from beyond the arc as he also had 1REB, 2STL and 2BLK. McCarron did his job with 8REB, 6AST and 1STL. And coming off the pine Lual-Acuil was also very influential with 14PTS. He shot 7/9 from the floor as he also pulled in 2 boards.

For Cairns Oliver had 19PTS, Machado 17 and Djeric 13. Oliver shot 7/10 as he also got 10REB, 1AST and 1BLK. Machado shot 60% inside the arc as his other stats included 4REB, 6AST and 2STL. And for Djeric he was his usual self going 5/9 from the court. He as well had 3REB, 1AST and 1STL.

Machado will have to be absolutely 100% on the top of his game for his Taipans to have a chance of upsetting United here. But with 17PTS/6AST and 21PTS/7AST over his last 2 games there’s absolutely no reason at all that he can’t do it again vs Melbourne. And when he last faced off against them he shot 6/12, including 2/4 from deep for 14PTS and also dished out 9 dimes in what was a 5-star performance from one of Cairns’s marquee men. And it was only earlier this month against the Phoenix that he scored 24PTS from shooting 9/15 from the floor. He’s been very, very good recently and he’ll have to be so here as well.

Betting tips: Pick Cairns to win at $3.30 (Sportsbet)

Also pick them to be the first to 10 points at odds of $2.30 or more when they become available.