THE Perry Lakes Hawks head to Lakeside on Friday night to open Week 3 of the Men's SBL competition with coach Charles Nix not shying from than the fact that they are hunting the Championship in 2016.

Nix took over as coach at Perry Lakes midway through the 2013 season after Shawn Dennis departed to take up his position in charge of the NBL's Townsville Crocodiles, and it has been all about building towards a Championship in that time.

They did finish the regular season in second in 2013 before losing to grand finalists the Wanneroo Wolves in the semi finals of 2014 and then in 2015 it was a sign that Perry Lakes wasn’t far off the mark.

The Joondalup Wolves romped to the 2015 Championship but the Hawks pushed them all the way in three games of the quarter-final series.

And now to start 2016, Perry Lakes is unbeaten having beaten the Goldfields Giants and Mandurah Magic ahead of taking on the Lakeside Lightning this Friday night at Lakeside Recreation Centre.

Also on Friday night, the Perth Redbacks play the South West Slammers and the Cockburn Cougars host the Stirling Senators.

And on Saturday night, the Stirling Senators play the Mandurah Magic, the East Perth Eagles face the Kalamunda Eastern Suns, the Rockingham Flames host the Cockburn Cougars, the Geraldton Buccaneers take on the Joondalup Wolves and the Goldfields Giants take on the Willetton Tigers.

Then finally on Sunday afternoon, the Kalamunda Eastern Suns play the Rockingham Flames at Ray Owen Recreation Centre.

The Hawks have won five Men's SBL Championships but none since the fourth straight that came in 2004.

While there obviously is a lot of work still to be done to be genuine contenders for the 2016 title, they have built a strong squad with some new arrivals like Brian Carlwell on top of a team that was really flying late in 2015, there's good reason for Nix's confidence.

There is no sign of over confidence or getting ahead of themselves at the Hawks, but Nix knows that if they aren’t aiming for a Championship then they wouldn’t be doing themselves justice of what they can achieve.

"Obviously a championship is our goal and it should be. We have the talent and we have the depth now, and we have the experience. We have a bunch of guys who have played over 150 games and we go two or three players deep in every position," Nix said on SBL Slam on 98.5 SonshineFM.

"If we aren’t looking for a championship, then to be honest we are kidding ourselves. It does depend on our mindset though. If we come in every week and stick to our processes, and play the right way then we give ourselves every chance to reach that ultimate goal that is a championship."

Import point guard Bryton Hobbs came back from an early injury to start 2015 and ended up having a dynamic and outstanding season for the Hawks almost leading them to what would have been a stunning upset against the Wolfpack.

He has now had an even better start to 2016 earning Team of the Week honours in the first two rounds of the 2016 season.

Nix couldn’t be happier with the way his star is performing but he's just as happy with the help around him with the likes of Ben Purser, Jordan Hickert, Ben Dixon, Josh Garlepp, Ryan Smith, Rob Cassir and Carlwell.

"I think it's more understanding the league and understanding his teammates. He has built that chemistry with the guys and for us to be successful we thought it would be a three or four-year process with this group," Nix said.

"We are sort of in year three of that and it's his second year in, so he has a better understanding of what our strengths are and what he can do in this league. It's more that he's comfortable."

WEEK 3 MEN'S SBL FIXTURES
FRIDAY
Perth Redbacks v South West Slammers, Belmont Oasis Leisure Centre 8.30pm
Lakeside Lightning v Perry Lakes Hawks, Lakeside Recreation Centre 8.30pm
Cockburn Cougars v Stirling Senators, Wally Hagan Stadium 8.30pm

SATURDAY
Geraldton Buccaneers v Joondalup Wolves, Active West Stadium 7.30pm
Goldfields Giants v Willetton Tigers, Niels Hansen Basketball Stadium 7.30pm
Stirling Senators v Mandurah Magic, Warwick Stadium 8pm
East Perth Eagles v Kalamunda Eastern Suns, Morley Sport and Recreation Centre 8pm
Rockingham Flames v Cockburn Cougars, Mike Barnett Sports Complex 8.30pm

SUNDAY
Kalamunda Eastern Suns v Rockingham Flames, Ray Owen Recreation Centre 2pm

Article by Chris Pike