THE Illawarra Hawks youth men's side, coached by Scott Balsar, have slumped to their second straight loss, after going down 80-62 to the Sydney Comets.
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On Saturday at the Comets Basketball Stadium, the Hawks found themselves only down two points (9-7) midway through the first quarter, before the hosts ended the period on an 11-2 run.
Despite trailing by nine points, the Hawks didn't drop their heads and fought back to be within four points, with eight minutes to play before half-time.
But the Comets' free-flowing offence kicked it up a notch before the break, to stretch their lead out to double digits (40-30) at the main break.
Any hopes of a fightback for Balsar's side, which features Shoalhaven's Gavin Costain and Ziad El Tobgy, were dashed in the third term, as the hosts scored 13 of the first 16 points - seeing the advantage blow out to 20 going into the final quarter.
In the last, both teams traded baskets, as it ended 80-62 to the Comets.
In the Waratah League win, the hosts were paced by William Johnston (30 points), while Harry Morris (16) and Philip Dopud (15) scored in double figures for the Hawks.
Read more: Tigers exact grand final revenge on Bulldogs
Hawks recruit Lachlan Dent, who played with Illawarra's NBL side during the 2019/20 season, was held to just nine points in his season debut.
The red and whites, who are now eighth with a 2-2 record, hit the road this weekend.
They will first play fifth-placed Newcastle on Saturday (at 3pm), before backing it up on Sunday against league-leaders Central Coast at 11am.