Kings win thriller over Wildcats in the jungle

The Sydney Kings have made it two wins to start the NBL25 season by edging the Perth Wildcats 88-87 at RAC Arena on Friday night. 

Match summary 

Tough defence by the Kings forced turnovers by the Wildcats on their first three possessions, as Jaylen Adams scored Sydney’s first five points. A putback dunk by Xavier Cooks followed before an and-one by Adams made it 10 after 3.20 minutes of action. A huge chase-down block by Bul Kuol and a three-point play by Jaylin Galloway saw the lead grow to 11 (13-2). Bryce Cotton did what he could for the hosts but a triple by Cam Oliver and driving two by Cooks made it 20-9 with 1.39 to play in the first. Late scores by Cooks and Oliver saw Sydney’s lead grow to 16 (27-11) at the first change. 

The hosts responded by scoring 13 of the first 19 points of the second, thanks largely to Cotton, Dylan Windler and Elijah Pepper. A triple by the latter closed the margin to just five (34-29) before Kristian Doolittle made it 34-32 with 3.57 to play in the half. Bul Kuol silenced the home crowd with a corner three, with tough baskets by Oliver and Adams pushing the lead of Brian Goorjian’s side back out to seven. A shot by Doolittle as time expired made it 43-40 at half-time. 

PURCHASE YOUR NBL25 FULL-SEASON MEMBERSHIP NOW

Adams and Doolittle exchanged triples to start the third, with buckets from Alex Toohey and Cooks keeping the scoreboard ticking over for the Hoops Capital side. Oliver and Galloway were then both doing it on both ends, with key steals followed by emphatic scores – as Sydney led 58-47. Despite Cotton’s efforts, another hoop and harm by NBL23 MVP Cooks as well as a lay-in by Galloway stretched the lead to 10. The latter soon after connected on a huge alley-oop with Oliver, forcing John Rillie into a time-out. The harbour city then went into the final change up 67-58. 

Tough scores by Adams opened proceedings for Sydney in the fourth. Despite scores by Cooks, sparks by Michael Harris and Pepper closed the margin to just four midway through the term. A Cotton jumper brought it to within two but a clutch triple by Kuol settled things for Sydney. But Perth’s run continued, as a Pepper shot from downtown levelled proceedings (81-all) before he hit another one to make it 84-81. A putback dunk by Cooks helped the Kings re-gain the lead (85-84) with just over a minute to play. Oliver followed suit with a huge offensive rebound and-one but Doolittle cancelled that out, in a play that saw Cooks fouled out. Pepper missed a contested triple as time expired, as Sydney held on for a memorable 88-87 win. 

Where the match was decided 

The match was won by statistical victories in steals (12-8), points in the paint (46-24), points off turnovers (21-7), fast-break points (13-5) and turnovers (11-20). 

Key moment  

Just when it looked like Perth had momentum, following a barrage of threes by Pepper, clutch baskets by Adams, Cooks and Oliver sparked the Kings to finish the game on a 7-3 run, to win by one point. 

Player of the game 

Adams was the star on the win, finishing with 27 points (10/19 from the field), six assists, six steals and two rebounds. 

That total marks Adams' sixth straight road game of scoring more than 20 points.

Other standouts were Cooks (22 points) and Oliver (18). 

Watch Alex Toohey and Brian Goorjian's post-game press conference after their win in Perth via the Sydney Kings' YouTube channel above. While you're there, be sure to hit subscribe, to ensure you never miss out on any of our great videos.

What’s next 

Brian Goorjian’s team now return to Qudos Bank Arena for their first home game on NBL25 against Freeway Series rivals Illawarra. 

Tickets to the match, tipping off at 2.15pm AEST on Sunday, September 29, are still available here.