Hawks blow away the cobwebs - and the Rams - in big NBL win

Canterbury Rams' Sam Smith fights to contain the Hawks' Hyrum Harris. Photo / Ian Cooper

The Taylor Hawks have shown a year out of national basketball league action has done little harm by blowing away the Canterbury Rams with victory by 14 points in a Sunday afternoon match at the Pettigrew Green Arena in Taradale.

The 104-90 win celebrated the Hawks' first Sal's NBL match since losing the 2019 final but completed a dismal few days on the road for the Rams, who had bitten the dust by more than 20 in succumbing 95-74 to the Wellington Saints on Thursday night in Wellington.

It places the Hawks as one of four unbeaten sides in the 10-team competition, with the Saints, Southland Sharks and Auckland Huskies which have each opened with two-from-two.

The Saints and the Sharks face-off in Wellington on Friday ahead of the Sharks trip to Napier for the second of the three home games launching the Hawks into their season.
The Hawks made a strong start and led 30-17 at the first quarter, 53-44 at the half and 75-66 at the three-quarters mark, before coming home to the second-highest score of the nine-match opening round.

On the way, the Hawks winning 104-90 at home at Pettigrew.Green Arena on Sunday. Photo / Ian Cooper

The match was headlined by the Hawks' prolific offence and efficiency from the free-throw line, at 21 from 22, all five of the starters reaching double figures, headed by American import Devondrick "Sky" Walker's 26 points from 39 minutes on-court, including six triples, five assists and five rebounds. Tall Black Derone Raukawa was on his tail with 25 points.

The Hawks began to stamp their authority midway through the opening quarter but were barely percolating for some time in the second, with the first seven attempts all failing to drop, letting the Rams onto a 13-1 roll which closed the deficit to one.

Walker answered the crowd's call for someone to spark something for the Hawks and closed the period with 11 points.

Forward Hyrum Harris, having arrived from Australian NBL side Cairns Taipans just a few days earlier amid question marks over whether he'd make it at all, justified the investment with 18 points as the Hawks kept the scoreboard operating, but needed a good final quarter after the margin had closed to just nine points at the final break.

Result: Taylor Hawke's Bay Hawks 104 (Devondrick Walker (26pts, 5ast, 5rbs), Derone Raukawa (25pts, 5rbs), Hyrum Harris (18pts, 7rbs) Canterbury Rams 90 (Quintin Bailey (21pts, 5rbs), EJ Singler (15pts, 9rbs, 6ast).

Other first-round scores: Wellington Saints 95 Otago Nuggets 73, Auckland Huskies 99 Franklin Bulls 96, Southland Sharks 84 Nelson Giants 65, Southland Sharks 78 Taranaki Mountainairs 76, Wellington Saints 95 Canterbury Rams 74, Auckland Huskies 106 Manawatu Jets 97, Otago Nuggets 93 Taranaki Mountainairs 66, Franklin Bulls 100 Manawatu Jets 99.