COVID-19 outbreaks and subsequent border restrictions meant games were confined to Adelaide, Brisbane and Cairns in the weekend's opening round, with Perth set to play and host their first game during round two this Sunday.

The NBL on Tuesday rolled out their third round fixtures, with Bendigo to host the Melbourne rivals on January 31 in the latest expansion as organisers scramble to continue the season.

"We're also delighted to be able to play our first game in Victoria this season with the Throwdown between our two Melbourne teams," NBL commissioner Jeremy Loeliger said.

"Bendigo is a great basketball city in regional Victoria and we look forward to playing more games there across the season.

"We will continue to monitor the situation across Australia in the hope we can also schedule games in New South Wales as soon as possible.

"It was great to see so many fans attend the first round last weekend and we hope venue capacities can continue to build across the season ... the round went as smoothly as we could have hoped."

Returning to the NBL's coaching ranks after 11 years in China, Brian Goorjian quickly put the league on notice after piloting the pace-setting Hawks to a 2-0 start.

The second round begins on Wednesday when Adelaide host South East Melbourne.

ROUND THREE FIXTURES

Tuesday, January 26

* Brisbane Bullets v Sydney Kings

Wednesday January 27

* Adelaide 36ers v New Zealand Breakers

Thursday January 28

* Cairns Taipans v The Hawks

Friday January 29

* Perth Wildcats v South East Melbourne Phoenix

Saturday January 30

* Brisbane Bullets v Cairns Taipans

* Adelaide 36ers v Sydney Kings

Sunday January 31

* Melbourne United v South East Melbourne Phoenix

* Perth Wildcats v New Zealand Breakers

Australian Associated Press