Kings dominate in NBL Cup Game One

Written by Matt McQuade for Kings Media 

Result: Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings 94 Adelaide 36ers 77

Stats That Matter: Kings 51% FG; Kings 13 three pointers; Kings 11 steals; Kings 32 points off the bench

Kings MVP:Casper Ware continued his sizzling recent form and led from the front.

Turning Point:The start of the second half. The Kings came out with greater energy and intensity and blew Adelaide off the floor in the final 20 minutes.

The game was over when:Brad Newley had a steal and dunk to put the game away with less than three minutes remaining.

Trending in the right direction:Jordan Hunter was awesome defensively and neutralised Adelaide’s MVP candidate Isaac Humphries.

A devastating third quarter blitzkrieg led by Casper Ware has powered the Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings to a 94-77 thrashing of the Adelaide 36ers at John Cain Arena in Melbourne in Sydney’s opening game of the NBL Cup.

Ware (23 points, three rebounds, two assists) hit three killer triples in a row as part of a 19-0 Kings run that blew the game apart in a sensational five-minute spurt in the third period.

After Adelaide thoroughly dominated Sydney in the second period to grab a 51-48 advantage at intermission – this after the Kings went 11 of 14 from the field in the opening quarter to lead 30-22 after one – the purple and gold turned the tables right from the start of the second half and obliterated the 36ers in the final 20 minutes.

Incredibly, Sydney held Adelaide to a paltry eight points in the third quarter to establish a 71-59 lead after three periods and restricted the 36er offence to just 26 points in the second half, earning wins in three of the four quarters to finish the game with six of the available seven points in the NBL Cup format.

But it wasn’t all plain sailing for the Kings. After their blistering opening quarter, where Tom Vodanovich (nine points, three rebounds) and the returning Daniel Kickert (11 points) combined for four three pointers, Adelaide took advantage of some lackadaisical defending by Sydney in the second quarter to take control of the game into the main break.

Only 11 points in the frame from Rookie of the Year candidate Dejan Vasiljevic (22 points, two rebounds, two assists) – who became the first Sydney Kings rookie in franchise history to score in double figures in his opening eight games – kept the Kings in touch as they headed to the change rooms.

Head Coach Adam Forde was frustrated by what he felt was a lack of intensity and energy from his troops in the opening half and his message at halftime was loud and clear – step up the effort right now.

To their credit, his boys responded, although their sideline leader wasn’t totally happy with their performance in the post-game media conference.

“We’ve got to not pick and choose to decide when we want to play,” Coach Forde said.

“It’s not just one or two guys, it’s everyone. We take possessions off and we can’t afford to do that.”

“We didn’t have a great second quarter and we gave up 29 points, which is unacceptable. We’ve got to set a standard and adhere to it.”

“The boys have got a creed which they see as what’s valuable in the process of not only winning games but also growing as a unit. They need to hold each other accountable for that and I thought for the most part they did that, especially in the second half.”

And while attention will be focused on the third quarter offensive explosion, the unsung hero and an enormous key to the turnaround was centre Jordan Hunter (six points, nine rebounds, four steals, two blocked shots), whose effort defensively was simply outstanding.

Jordan was everywhere on the floor in the third quarter, rebounding, rim protecting and getting his hands in the passing lanes, and he helped his undermanned group – a roster missing import Jarell Martin and key forward Xavier Cooks – to shut down Adelaide’s vaunted frontline.

Sydney maintained their newfound defensive intensity for most of the final period and were never challenged the rest of the way, with Brad Newley (eight points, six rebounds, four assists), putting the icing on the cake with a couple of breakaway jams.

That second half defensive effort must now be the four-quarter blueprint for this group moving forward, especially given who is currently absent from the line-up.

“We have to take a ton of pride on the defensive end,” said Jordan Hunter.

“We’ve lost some great offensive threats in our team, but we know that our points come from the (defensive) end of the floor.”

“Getting a lot of a stops is often turning into points for us, so it’s about keeping a defensive focus and knowing that will create offence for us.”

Another big story on the night was the contributions from everyone on the roster. And in yet another example of the team’s next man up mentality, Sydney’s second quarter defensive woes forced Coach Forde to go deep into his bench, with development player Archie Woodhill given key minutes.

And the young forward stepped up beautifully, grabbing a couple of offensive rebounds, competing hard at the defensive end and was even rewarded with his first NBL basket with a minute remaining.

“In the first half Jordan wasn’t bringing it, Tommy wasn’t bringing it, Craig (Moller) wasn’t bringing it, so all right Archie, give it a crack,” Coach Forde said.

“He goes out there and he grabs two rebounds in three minutes. Then we get into foul trouble and we go back to him.”

“He played a couple of minutes in Adelaide a few weeks back but the reality is he trains hard, he hasn’t missed a practice, he’s done it all, but yet he’s had to sit on the bench game after game after game and never complain.”

“He gets an opportunity and in nine and a half minutes he does not waver. Credit to him, and credit to his approach. This is the identity we are trying to build with this group.”

The Kings will do battle with the Perth Wildcats on Tuesday night at John Cain Arena in their second game of the NBL Cup. Tipoff is at 5:00pm and the game will be broadcast on ESPN and SBS On Demand.

Rise With Us Sydney.

BRYDENS LAWYERS SYDNEY KINGS 94 (Ware 23, Vasiljevic 22, Kickert 11)
ADELAIDE 36ERS 77 (Crocker 15, Humphries 14, Dech 13) at John Cain Arena, Melbourne.

BOXSCORE