GAME REPORT: Breathtaking first quarter powers Kings to important win over Wildcats

Result: Sydney Kings 99 Perth Wildcats 91

Stats that matter: Kings 55.2% FG, Kings 16 three pointers, Kings 24 assists, Wildcats 20/20 FT

Kings MVP: It was close but give it to Kendric Davis for an extraordinary first quarter followed by outstanding facilitation the rest of the way.

Turning Point: Sydney’s opening period was one of the best in the history of the franchise.

The game was over when: Torrey Craig savagely rejected Perth’s Kristian Doolittle at the rim with less than a minute remaining.

Trending in the right direction: Makuach Maluach showed he is human by actually missing a couple of shots, but he made his first four threes and looked dangerous every time he touched the ball.

A remarkable first quarter has keyed the Sydney Kings’ 99-91 victory over the Perth Wildcats on Wednesday night at RAC Arena in Perth.

The purple and gold roared out of the blocks with a near-historic shooting display, making their first ten shots of the ballgame and going a scarcely believable 13 of 14 from the field in the opening ten minutes, led by an incredible display from superstar point guard Kendric Davis (24 points, seven rebounds, nine assists, two steals), who had 16 points in the frame on a perfect seven of seven from the field.

Makuach Maluach (14 points, two rebounds) added nine points on a perfect three of three from downtown, and the Kings jumped out to a 33-21 advantage at the end of the first.

“I knew that we were going to be locked in,” Sydney Kings Head Coach Brian Goorjian said afterwards.

“I knew after the last couple of days and what took place in our last game that the guys were going to be locked in defensively and we were going to move the ball better.

“That was a focus right from the start of the game.

“It was a great start to the game. I knew we’d come with energy, I thought we moved the ball well and it created good shots for us.”

The Kings kept up the pressure in an explosive second quarter as KD cooled off from the perimeter but took over with his floor leadership, punishing the Wildcats whenever they double teamed him by finding open teammates.

The chief beneficiaries were Andrew Carr (15 points, eight rebounds, three steals), who had seven points in the period, and Torrey Craig (26 points, five rebounds, two blocked shots) who added six points of his own.

A triple from Tyler Robertson (11 points, three rebounds, three assists), capped what looked to be a soul-destroying and game-winning 17-3 run from Sydney that gave the Kings a monster 56-31 advantage with just over two minutes remaining in the half.

However, the Wildcats finally responded with a late 9-1 run with Elijah Pepper (17 points) knocking down a pair of triples to awaken the 10,095 strong crowd, and Perth had some momentum heading to the main break down 17, 59-42.

Indeed, momentum is a funny thing in basketball. A game can turn in a hurry, and that’s what happened in the second half, as the Kings, despite their almost total dominance in the opening twenty minutes suddenly found themselves on the back foot as the ’Cats suddenly gave the Red Army something to cheer about.

11 points in the third quarter from Perth’s new import point guard and former NBA player Brandon Knight (27 points, five rebounds, four assists) had Wildcat fans dreaming of an unlikely comeback as he helped his team slice what had been a 25-point deficit to just seven points with less than four minutes remaining in the period.

However, the Kings responded in a big way. Triples to Robertson, Jayden Stone and KD kept Perth at bay, and Sydney turned for home up 80-70.

Still, the Wildcats maintained their rage and kept coming at the Kings, throwing one haymaker after the other as the fourth quarter got underway, reducing the margin to just six points in a hurry.

That man Craig responded with a trio of buckets to calm the situation for the visiting team, who found themselves under enormous pressure yet were responding to every challenge.

And down the stretch, the Kings’ stood up to a man, led by team captain Xavier Cooks (five assists) who had his first points of the night with an imperious two-hand slam, dimed up Stone for the deuce then found Craig wide open for a corner three to give the Kings a ten point lead with two minutes remaining.

To their credit, the Wildcats kept coming, and a Pepper three with 21 seconds left made it a six-point ballgame and had Kings fans feeling just a touch nervous, especially when Davis was called for an offensive foul in the backcourt as Sydney were trying to inbound the ball from the baseline.

But Pepper missed a triple, Carr grabbed the defensive board, was fouled, went to the line and calmly knocked down a pair of free throws to give the Kings their first road win of NBL27 and a total of five points in the Ignite Cup scoring system.

It was a performance from the Kings that was full of merit, especially given how young this squad is. And a victory that keeps them entrenched in the top four of the NBL standings with a 6-3 record.

And now they face what may be their most significant challenge to date as they head to Launceston in Tasmania to play the formidable – and league-leading – Tasmania JackJumpersat the Silverdome on Friday night. Tipoff is at 7:30pm AEST.

SYDNEY KINGS 99 (Craig 26, Davis 24, Carr 15)
PERTH WILDCATS 91 (Knight 27, Pepper 17, Windler 16) at RAC Arena, Perth
CROWD: 10,095

BOXSCORE

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