Broekhoff Fighting Fit for Play-In Qualifier

Ryan Broekhoff looks likely to return to the court for Thursday’s do-or-die Play-In qualifier against the Perth Wildcats after missing South East Melbourne’s last two games due to injury.

Broekhoff’s last appearance came against Thursday evening’s opposition in Round 16, where he exploded for 26 points in 24 minutes before being forced from the court with a groin issue.

Although the Phoenix went on to register a crucial victory on that occasion, Broekhoff was obviously emotional to be struck down by the injury bug once again having already missed numerous games over the course of the campaign.

He played just 19 of a total 28 games for the Phoenix across the regular season.

He says he’s got through training and has ticked the boxes he needs to to put his hand up for a timely return.

“I’ve got through the last couple of days training so I’m putting my foot forward to be available for the game,” Broekhoff said.

“It’s been challenging but I’m feeling comfortable – I’m feeling confident in it so we’ll see what happens tomorrow.

“The last couple of days have been some short, really sharp sessions trying to go through what Perth does really well, [and] for me just to get out, get a run and get the legs under me to get a bit of conditioning.

“When it comes to a game like this, we’ll probably set some minutes [restriction], but if I need to play a little bit more I’ll play a little bit more – but we’ll be smart about it.”

Head coach Simon Mitchell says the performances of Broekhoff has generally been a measure of how the side as a whole is playing.

“Over the last couple of years since he joined us he’s been a bit of a barometer of success for us. It’s lovely to have him back,” Mitchell said.

“He had a great game against Perth last time we played them up until the point of his injury.

“He certainly balances our line-up.”

Last time the sides locked horns the Phoenix cruised away with a 21-point victory. A deficit the Wildcats will be keen to overturn.

Although they didn’t emerge with a victory in their Round 18 clash against Perth Sydney set a new standard for how to contain the ever-dangerous Bryce Cotton. The Kings kept the six-time scoring champion to just seven points on 1/19 shooting.

Broekhoff says the Phoenix could look to employ a similar tactic to the Kings to stop the guard.

“Obviously Cotton is the head of the snake. [We want to] try to limit him as best we can, force him into tough shots and contested shots and try to bring his percentage down,” he said.

“We know it’s going to be a dogfight and it’s going to be a challenge for us to limit their scoring.

“For us, we feel confident we can go up the other end and score by using our post players to our advantage.”

The Play-In Qualifier between South East Melbourne and Perth tips off on Thursday, February 9 at 6:30pm AEDT.