United tempo "messed us up": Froling

With just over six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter of Thursday night’s game one Playoff clash with Melbourne, Illawarra looked to be in an almost unassailable position of victory, however United pegged back the 16-point margin in the final minutes of the clash to force an overtime period and walk away with a win.

The Hawks went almost three minutes without scoring once Melbourne started its run home, and only scored seven points in the final seven minutes of regulation, before they were smashed 15-6 in the overtime period.

They will now return home in need of a victory to force a game three, and both head coach Justin Tatum and star center Sam Froling believe United’s increase in tempo pulled their side out of rhythm in the final term.

“It looked like to me they started pressing us full-court, and it messed us up,” Froling said.

“We couldn’t get into our offence and then the ball got stagnant, we were taking some bad shots which let them get out in transition and get a bit of momentum. We gave up a few o-boards as well which let Delly and Goulding hit some open threes, and that’s tough to guard.”

“I felt that maybe Melbourne turned the tempo a little bit, they played with a sense of urgency and it threw us off,” Tatum added.

“Our tempo maybe wasn’t at the same pace that helped us get that 16-point lead, so them being at home turning the tempo up with the pressure and experience they have, it kind of got away from us.

“Our effort was great, our energy and passion was great, we just had to find a way to close the game out when we have an opportunity like that.”

Tatum raised eyebrows when he inserted veteran guard Kyle Adnam into the game late in the final quarter.

Adnam – who only signed with the Hawks towards the end of the regular season – had only played a total of five minutes across two appearances this season. He then turned the ball over on an inbound pass which allowed Melbourne to level the scores with eight seconds remaining.

“[I put him in for] his experience, his composure and his free throw making ability,” Tatum said.

“They had four fouls to give until we got into the bonus, so we wanted to make sure we had some of our most solid and best decision makers in the game.”

Froling starred early for the Hawks against Jo Lual-Acuil Jr, however his scoring tailed off as the game progressed and United found their defensive niche.

The Next Generation Award winner has long been touted as a future star of the NBL, and has cemented his place among the top local bigs in the competition this season.

He says while Lual-Acuil Jr is one of the best centers in the league, so is he.

“I’m not afraid of anyone, whoever it is I’m going at them,” he said.

“I’m not worried about where my shots are coming from – whatever happens to win the game is what needs to happen.”

Game 2 of the Playoff Series between Illawarra and Melbourne will tip off at 3pm AEDT on Sunday, live on ESPN via Kayo Sports.