Bullets could be locked out of Brisbane

Matt EncarnacionAAP
The Bullets don't know when they'll return home as Queensland battles a COVID-19 outbreak.
Camera IconThe Bullets don't know when they'll return home as Queensland battles a COVID-19 outbreak. Credit: AAP

Brisbane Bullets coach Andrej Lemanis admits he is unsure when his team's next game is going to be as COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc on the NBL season.

After being flattened 96-72 by the Illawarra Hawks on Monday night, the Bullets are unlikely to return home as their city begins a three-day lockdown because of a recent outbreak.

The league on Monday was scrambling to re-arrange this week's games, with the Bullets' next game against South East Melbourne Phoenix at Nissan Arena on Friday already postponed.

Lemanis' side is now bracing for the likelihood of staying out of town for the time being.

"Every other Brisbane team is relocating to Melbourne or Sydney. Hopefully we get some clarity when we get back to our hotel tonight to what's going on," Lemanis said.

The snap decision to lock down Greater Brisbane on Monday morning meant the Bullets were confined to their hotel since arriving in Wollongong on Sunday.

Combined with a depleted roster that includes sidelined import duo Lamar Patterson and Vic Law, Lemanis couldn't blame his team for a lacklustre display against the Hawks.

The Bullets were barely in the contest after the first quarter, going down by as much as 27 points in the second half, with only two starters finishing in double figures.

"I know it sounds like excuses, but there are certain facts that need to at least be considered coming into today," he said.

"(We) weren't allowed to have our practice yesterday because of the COVID outbreak in Brisbane. We all had to sit in a hotel, get COVID tests and do that.

"This morning the escalation of what was going on in Brisbane, the NBL cancelled our shootaround and told us we weren't allowed to do that. Basically we just sat in the hotel all day.

"What you saw in the first half tonight was a product of many things, certainly that contributed to it."

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