Phoenix edge Kings in high-scoring affair
The Sydney Kings have suffered their first loss of the NBL25 Blitz, losing 113-101 to the South East Melbourne Phoenix on Wednesday night.
Match summary
The Phoenix, thanks to imports Matt Hurt and Joe Wieskamp, jumped out to a 7-0 advantage before Alex Toohey – in his first appearance at the NBL Blitz – rattled off five straight. Keli Leaupepe then scored five straight himself, which combined with his strong defence, helped the Hoops Capital side hit the lead for the first time. The two opponents then exchanged baskets, with Izayah Lea’afa and Cam Oliver making an impact off the bench for Sydney. At the end of a high-scoring affair, in which the two sides combined for eight triples, the Kings led 36-31.
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Another three, this time by Bul Kuol, got Sydney underway in the second – as the free-flowing play continued. Hurt’s shooting for the Phoenix was cancelled out by efforts from Jaylin Galloway and Shaun Bruce. Not to be outdone, Oliver and Toohey scored in a range oif fashions for the purple and gold, to lead pushed out to double-digits. With a late push by former King Derrick Walton Jr, South East closed the margin to 68-63 at the main break.
OUTRAGEOUS OLIVER 👑
— Sydney Kings (@SydneyKings) September 11, 2024
Our guy Cam has 16 points at the half, as we lead South East Melbourne 68-63.
Keep watching our NBL Blitz fixture against the Phoenix live on Kayo Sports!#WeTheKings pic.twitter.com/olv4LuTtNQ
The Phoenix scored nine of the first 13 points to tie the game up at 72-all before a Wieskamp triple gave them their first lead since the opening term. Another long-range bomb by the latter, quickly followed by one by Hurt saw their advantage blow out to seven midway through the term. Timely scores by Toohey and Jaylin Galloway stemmed the run for the Kings before a triple by the former restored the Kings’ lead. Down the stretch, the foes exchanged scores, before South East led 89-88 at the end of three.
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A 14-4 run to open the period by South East pushed their lead out to 11, with a clutch triple by Oliver stopping the bleeding temporarily. But another seven unanswered points ensued from South East. Their three-point barrage showed no signs of slowing down, as Nathan Sobey got in on the act. In the end, the Victorian-based side ran out winners 113-101.
Where the match was decided
South East secured the win on the back of statistical victories in field goal percentage (54-44), rebounds (40-36), points in the paint (44-22) and fast-break points (17-12).
Key moment
A 50-33 second half by the Phoenix set up their 12-point win at the Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre.
Player of the game
In his first appearance on the Gold Coast, Toohey was the star for the Kings with 26 points, three rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block.
Other standouts were Oliver (19 points, six boards, two dimes and two blocks) and Bruce (11 points, two assists, one board and one steal).
What’s next
Brian Goorjian’s team, who are 1-1 on the Gold Coast, next face New Zealand on Friday, September 13 in game three of their NBL25 Blitz campaign.
The fixture will be shown live on Kayo Sports.
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