ALTHOUGH his side sustained a six-point loss in overtime at the hands of Melbourne United, Illawarra Hawks big man Sam Froling produced a dominant bigman performance at WIN Entertainment Centre on Saturday evening.

The Hawks suffered a sixth consecutive loss, but it took overtime for United to get the job done as the two sides delivered clutch play after clutch play. It was an arm wrestle for the entirety of the contest, as each side traded blows, before United landed the knockout punch in double overtime.

Froling produced his best game of the season by the length of the Flemington, producing a whopping double-double and playing a massive role in the game going to double overtime. Despite not getting the win, Froling had some big moments and lifted as he tried to pull Illawarra out of its current form slump.

Illawarra Hawks (100) def. by Melbourne United (106)

Sam Froling – 27 points (13/17 FG), 17 rebounds (six offensive)

The Hawks were looking to move the ball through star guard Tyler Harvey, and Froling was mostly required in the rebounding department, flying in to secure the loose ball. Combined well with import guard Peyton Siva to cut for a lay-up and get on the board for the match. He was subbed out after putting in some strong defensive work against Isaac Humphries, but returned to the match with three minutes left on the clock, and took advantage of being the only starter on the court to nail a pair of consecutive buckets as the Hawks took a two-point lead into the main break.

Froling pulled down a pair of offensive boards to start the second term, although his put-back attempts were wayward. After getting himself into some foul trouble, Froling headed to the bench so coach Jacob Jakomas could use him later in the game. He came back on the court in the final minutes to score four of the last six points for Illawarra, rounding out a solid half of basketball for the big man.

Froling continued to dominate the opposition inside the paint, cutting inside for a dunk in the opening minutes of the second half. The big man also chimed in for a rare three after finding himself with the ball as the shot clock wound down, before heading to the bench to close out the third term with his side two points on top.

Starting the final term on the bench, Froling entered the game with just over six minutes to play. He made an immediate impact with a putback layup to cut his side’s deficit back to just one point. Unfortunately gave away the ball with an offensive foul, but made sure his rebounding and inside scoring spoke higher volumes.

The game headed into extra time, and there was no one more damaging in the first five minutes of added play than Froling. The big man had seven points over that span, driving into the paint and causing plenty of chaos for the United defence. He even had the opportunity to win the game for the Hawks, but his and-one conversion attempt was wayward, as the match headed to a second overtime.

Froling was still fighting tooth and nail to get his side over the line, giving Illawarra the lead with another score in the paint. However, a valiant individual performance was overshadowed by a narrow loss in bonus time. Regardless of the result, it was Froling’s best showing of season 2022/23 to date.