Basketball On The Internet.

FROM the opening tip and Nathan Sobey's dunk within four seconds, it immediately was evident Brisbane was meaning business against another playoff wannabe in South East Melbourne, and the Bullets blazed on to a comfortable win, aided by Gary Browne's "moment of madness" and Sobey continuing on to 35 points. 

Sobey was white hot in the opening quarter as the Bullets steadily pulled clear, yet still had to sit down for some unknown reason. He looks fit enough to play 40 minutes and when a guy is going that well, why sit him down?

Can never understand that. But it's not as if it's a new sensation.

Mike Dunlap was doing that to Mike McKay at the Adelaide 36ers 30 years ago. He'd sub McKay in during the first quarter, Mad Max would hit three quick threes, and he'd have to sit back down again.

What is that? Can you imagine Lindsay doing that to Andrew? Or Lanard? Hell, there was a brief period during Gazey's career while the NBL was playing 48-minute games, Melbourne Tigers had a couple of overtime matches in that run so at one stage - no word of a lie - Andrew was averaging 49.5 minutes a game.

And games were 48 minutes.

It strongly suggests coaches such as Dunlap, a holy host of others and now Brisbane's Justin Schueller, were never great shooters and therefore do not understand the shooter's mentality. No player - man, woman or child - wants to come off when they are shooting the ball particularly well.

It's ridiculous but it is rapidly becoming the norm because, hey, we've got to get 10 or 11 players in.

Be that as it may, South East had Alan Williams looking solid inside but with Sobey getting support from Josh Bannan (17 points at 57 per cent, six rebounds), Sam McDaniel (14 at 56 per cent, four boards) and Mitch Norton (12 points at 67 per cent, three assists), Brisbane raced 32-23 clear after one and 57-42 by halftime.

Williams crunched his knee at one stage in the second quarter and looked unlikely to continue but he limped back into the action and while in obvious discomfort, tried his best to compete.

When he first left the floor, Mitch Creek immediately became more active offensively but even though he gave his all, as always, his match fitness after missing three games made it a tough night.

Browne started the second half impressively, laying it up after stealing the ball on Brisbane's first offence, then drilling a 3-pointer for 47-57.

Abdel Nader similarly strung together five points and Matt Kenyon was active in between as the Phoenix began to close in. Free throws by Anzac Rissetto had them at 62-67, sphincters tightening around Nissan Arena.

An Owen Foxwell three-point play drew South East to 67-68, Sobey and McDaniel bumping the lead back to five with a quarter left.

The Phoenix still were well in the contest despite Sobey's layup taking Brisbane's lead back to nine at 78-69 early in the last.

That was when Browne, nailed by a perfect screen from Aron Baynes, decided to punch him. His roundhouse right caught Baynes somewhere in the stomach-lower chest region and the big man went down like a sack of potatoes thrown off the back of a truck.

Browne was disqualified, heard it from the crowd who saw the action on the screen soon after, and left a sullen figure, guilty at the very least of derailing a growing comeback.

Baynes stuck the free throws and on the additional possession, Shannon Scott lobbed a ball to a Sobey back-cut which he just got his hand to - it would otherwise have been a 3-point pass! - the score now 82-69.

To their credit, the Phoenix battled on gamely but it was a lost cause, Kenyon still adding seven of his 14 points after the unsavoury incident before a corner 3-pointer by Mitch Norton, followed by a layup from him closed the door, Rocco Zikarsky's game-closing dunk leaving Bullets fans delighted. 

BRISBANE BULLETS 95 (Sobey 35, Bannan 17, McDaniel 14, Norton 12; Harrison 8 rebs; Scott 7 assts) d SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE PHOENIX 83 (Kenyon 14, Williams, Browne, Nader 13, Creek 11, Foxwell 10; Williams, Creek 11 rebs; Ayre 5 assts) at Nissan Arena. Crowd: 4,208