Valentine sparks Kings to victory over Taipans

The Sydney Kings returned to the winner’s circle in emphatic fashion on Friday night, smashing the Cairns Taipans 101-82 at Qudos Bank Arena.

The victory, in front of 12,783 fans, helped the Hoops Capital side end a two-game skid and solidified their spot in the top four.

It also saw the first-ever Hoops Capital double-header clean sweep, after the Flames earlier downed Townsville in overtime.

Match summary 

Shaun Bruce (in game 150 as a King) and DJ Hogg linked up to create early movement for the Kings in the opening stages, before fouls in Cairns’ favour which saw the board tied. Five quick ones from Bul Kuol had the Taipans slithering ahead, despite a lay-up from Hogg. Fouls in Cairns' favour, coupled with major contributions from Kuol, had the Taipans racing to a 16-10 lead over the Kings. Jaylen Adams and Alex Toohey worked to ensure Cairns was maintained, cancelling out a lay-up from Tahjere McCall. A three from Angus Clover pushed the points margin to one, with Denzel Valentine backing him up to put the Kings in the lead. Late minute contributions from Valentine and Glover saw the board at 27-24 at the end of the first quarter. 

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A triple for Bruce drew the purple and gold ahead early, though a lay-up from McCall pulled the Kings back in. The unbelievable defence created a major movement for the Kings, as Jordi Hunter pushed the lead to three. A link-up from McCall and Mayen handed the lead over to Cairns, though five from Hogg ensured this lead was wiped. McCall fought back with back-to-back points, but his efforts were cancelled out by Noi and Valentine. The latter continued his masterclass with consecutive triples which pulled the points margin to six. Three from three from the charity stripe for Adams proved costly, though Cairns maintained composure to remain in the single digits entering half-time (54-45).  

Zel is COOKING?

Bro has 18 points on 70%?

Catch the final quarter on ESPN via Kayo Sports #LetItReign pic.twitter.com/kFyLyQ2SV8

— Sydney Kings (@SydneyKings) December 29, 2023

Sam Mennenga raced to pull Cairns back into lead contention within the first minutes, with five consecutive points and a foul drawing the points margin to three. The Kings struggled to attain points until the five-minute mark, where Toohey pulled through with a lay-up to cut the scoring drought short. The score ticked over to the double digits thanks to a jump shot from Valentine before a coaches’ challenge stopped play. A jump shot from Valentine opened the game back up, and pushed the points gap to 13. Jonah Bolden ensured this lead remained despite fouls, as a last second basket from Valentine allowed the Kings to push into the final quarter with a 12-point advantage (69-57). 

The final quarter tipped off with consecutive fouls in the Kings’ favour, before a lay-up from Adams encouraged play - and was matched by a jump shot from Patrick Miller, as Cairns attempted to get back on the board. Contributions from Hunter and Jaylin Galloway made this difficult as the purple and gold’s lead grew to 16. Channelling his prior momentum, Mennenga came back with a jump shot, though an and-one from Hunter pushed this effort back. Contributions from Kuol and Josh Roberts saw the score back in single digits - pushed quickly back into the double thanks to Hogg and Galloway. Unphased by the Taipans’ venom, Hunter's career-high rebounds (16) kept the Kings secure until the end of the game - as he and Valentine clutched up for the Kings to take home a 19-point win over Cairns (101-82). 

Where the match was decided 

The biggest discrepancy in the statistics was in the rebounding count, which the Kings won 62-42 - behind Hunter's career-high 16.

Other statistical wins came in free-throw percentage (81-65), steals (10-6), points in the paint (42-32), second-chance points (16-7), points off turnovers (23-13) and bench points (49-18) - while committing less turnovers (10-16).

Key moment 

The 23.21 minutes Valentine played on the hardwood was extremely effective, producing a +28 for the harbour city side during the win.

Player of the game 

Valentine has his best game as King in round 13, producing 29 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Others to score in double-figures were Adams (15 points and six rebounds), Hogg (14 points, nine rebounds and five dimes) and Hunter (13 points and 16 boards).

What’s next 

Mahmoud Abdelfattah’s side, who are now 10-8, now continue their summer of hoops in Sydney by hosting league-leaders Melbourne United at Qudos Bank Arena on Thursday, January 4. 

Tickets for this 7.15pm AEDT blockbuster are still available here.