BOXSCORE

The Adelaide 36ers took out the battle of the cellar-dwellers with a polished 87-63 triumph over the Wollongong Hawks in their iiNet NBL Championship clash at Adelaide Arena on Friday.

The 36ers were the better side throughout, setting up the win with a dominant first-half display featuring classy offense and organised defence.

Forward Diamon Simpson (22 points) and towering centre Daniel Johnson (21) were in fine form for the 36ers, while Joevan Catron (19) was most dangerous for a Hawks team that again struggled to score.  

Both sides struggled to penetrate some rigid defence early, but the 36ers were first to break the stalemate with Simpson and Johnson leading the way.

By quarter time, Johnson had already slotted 14 points, including three sublime three-pointers, to give the home side a 26-14 lead over the misfiring Hawks.

The 36ers continued to look more threatening after the break, particularly when a Darren Ng triple stretched the difference to 15 points.

The Hawks were rattled, although guard Rhys Martin momentarily silenced the small crowd with a brilliant running basket.

Powerful forward Catron emerged late in the term with two baskets in heavy traffic to provide some hope for the visitors, but the 36ers maintained a comfortable 46-33 advantage at the main break.

The Hawks showed some fight in the third term, with Catron proving a handful for the home defence. But the Hawks struggled to cope with the offense of Simpson and Johnson and the 36ers surged to a 71-43 lead at the last break.

A late Hawks challenge failed to materialise in the final term, and the 36ers could relax for the first time this season, the result keeping their slim finals hopes alive.

Adelaide 36ers 87 (Simpson 22 Johnson 21 Warren 12)
Wollongong Hawks 63 (Catron 19 Coenraad 12 Campbell 8)

Crowd: 3597 at Adelaide Arena