Match Report: Wildcats vs Kings Rnd21 NBL26

The Wildcats were right in it early in a back-and-forth first term. Dontae Russo-Nance showed composure with eight points in the opening quarter, but it was Sydney’s work on the offensive glass that proved costly as the Kings stayed in touch through second-chance looks. 

The Wildcats were up for the fight as they went into the first break up by a point, 29–28.

The game swung in the second quarter as the Kings found rhythm through Kendrick Davis, who caught fire and punished any daylight Perth offered.

Elijah Pepper and Sunday Dech brought energy at both ends, but when Sydney pushed the margin to nine with three minutes left in the half, Perth needed a response. They got it out of a timeout as Jesse Wagstaff and Dech nailed back-to-back threes to cut the gap to three, before Sydney answered with five quick points of their own to restore control.

Davis capped a dominant half with a buzzer-beating three, giving him 18 points at the main break and sending Sydney to halftime up 55–45.

The Kings threatened to break it open in the third, extending the margin to 20 at one stage as Perth’s comeback attempts were repeatedly checked. 

Kristian Doolittle and Jo Lual-Acuil Jr kept competing and dragged the Wildcats back from that peak deficit, however Perth were starting to feel the absence of Ben Henshall and Dylan Windler as the away side struggled to consistently halt Sydney’s momentum. 

By three quarter-time, the Kings held a 79–64 lead and looked on track for a 10th straight win.

Any opening of a fourth quarter comeback looked to close fast in the fourth. Sydney opened the term with an 8–0 burst in the first minute to blow the lead out further and force a Wildcats timeout, stretching the margin beyond 20. 

The Kings continued to get downhill and finish plays above the rim, with Torrey Craig throwing down a dunk off a Shaun Bruce assist, while Tim Soares converted an alley-oop and later hammered home a dunk that brought up the Kings’ 100th point of the game.

Davis’ night kept rolling into the final quarter, reaching 30 points before he was subbed out as Sydney’s lead proved too steep. Perth kept fighting late through Wagstaff’s relentless work on the glass and in transition, but the veteran fouled out late in the contest for the first time this season, a fitting snapshot of how physical and demanding the night became for the Wildcats.

Pepper provided a late highlight with a three in the final 90 seconds, but the closing stages largely played out with Sydney in control as the Kings finished the job 102–84.

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