Davo's day out against former team

The NBL Finals always throws up unlikely heroes. In last season’s Championship Series it was Sydney’s Angus Glover, in NBL22 it was Tasmania’s Josh Adams. This season, it’s William Hickey.

After playing a key role in Illawarra’s heartbreaking overtime defeat to Melbourne on Wednesday, the former United guard put his former side to the sword in the Hawks’ Game 2 overtime win to level the series.

Hickey has long been known as a defensive stopper, but it was on the offensive end where he did the real damage. He played a career-high 33 minutes, scored a career-high 18 points on 7-11 shooting and made all his free throws – all while maintaining that trademark terrier-like mentality on defence.

And, to top it all off, he scored the game-tying layup on the fourth-quarter buzzer to send the game to overtime.

“I can speak all day about this young man, about the patience and resilience and toughness he has,” head coach Justin Tatum said of Hickey post-game.

“It’s tough to be as talented as he is and have to wait your turn. I think the patience he has had all season for us came out today and he showed what he can really do. Having a ‘Davo’ or a Biwali (Bayles) or a Todd (Blanchfield) on our bench, we’re really deep and these guys are ready to go at any time.

“It’s just a plus to have and I’m really proud of him right now. We wouldn’t be sitting here with smiles on our faces if it wasn’t for this man.”

Hickey’s career has been a slow burn to get to this point. He played just nine games across two seasons for Melbourne and South East Melbourne, and played a bit-part role for the Hawks as they went 3-25 last season.

His role has expanded under Tatum – particularly in the latter stages of the regular season – and he says he’s staying balanced despite his surge into Hawks heroism.

“Even keel man, that’s the thing that’s getting me through this, because when times were bad I had to keep with it, so just as when the times are good you have to ride it out,” Hickey said.

“I’m enjoying it so much, just the boys, the culture we’ve created as a team all the way up to the owners and the staff in the office. I just love this club and what they bring, it’s a really fun environment to be around.

“We’ll just keep this ball rolling. Momentum is in our favour right now. We haven’t got anything to lose, and the pressure is on them.

“They (United) finished on the top of the ladder and they don’t want to lose to us. I feel like if we go in like we’ve been doing all season – worrying about us and worrying about what we do – the pressure is on them.”

Game 3 of Illawarra’s Playoff Series against Melbourne United will tip off at 7:30pm AEDT on Wednesday night, live on ESPN via Kayo.