If Jerome Randle and the Adelaide 36ers think they know what's coming for them against the Hawks in game two of the NBL play-offs, they may have underestimated just how hostile the Illawarra crowd will be.
That's the view of Hawks coach Rob Beveridge, who is expecting close to a sell-out for the do-or-die clash.
And he expects the crowd will be directing their hatred at one man in particular: Jerome Randle.
"Absolutely. There's no doubt in my mind. For sure," Beveridge said on who will cop the brunt of the abuse by the parochial Hawks fans. [Randle's] come out and pretty much rubbed it in our face [after game one]. He's gone for that. I'm not into that at all. But I know what the Illawarra crowd's like. He's poked us."
Randle stirred the pot prior to game one by suggesting the Hawks were a "dirty" team who he "didn't like". He backed that up with a standout performance in the first game, scoring 26 points, six rebounds and four assists in Adelaide's 93-78 victory.
Beveridge described the Hawks as "agitated" after their loss, knowing that they were not good enough in the crucial first game. He said the result was a combination of nerves and a very strong 36ers outfit.
"It could've been the occasion that they just weren't up for it, but playing Adelaide in Adelaide with their crowd and how vocal they are, if you make mistakes over there you get punished. We made too many self-inflicted wounds that really, really hurt us.
"[The 36ers] get on runs. It's like a tsunami coming through. You see it but you can't do anything about it."
Beveridge said the Hawks fans were known to be intimidating for both opposing players and the referees, and wants the Illawarra faithful to apply the pressure for the full 40 minutes in game two.
"The home crowd is great for the team, but what I'm finding a lot of the time, they become so intimidating for the referees as well," he said. "So when you've got thousands of people screaming at every call, whether it was right or wrong, it really affects the psyche of the players or referees out there.
"So that's what I'm expecting from our crowd, particularly as they are well-known for being a boisterous, probably hostile crowd, for visiting teams."
With that hostile crowd focused specifically on the NBL MVP Randle, Beveridge is expecting him to rise to the occasion, which will keep the Hawks on their toes.
"He's probably going to love that as well," Beveridge said. "He's that type of person that loves the attention. He's going to love the crowd booing, and he's going to make some big plays. He'll probably shove it up our crowd as well."
