Wildcats win Indigenous Round thriller over Tassie
Written By
Jordan McArdle
With Bryce Cotton (ribs) sidelined and captain Jesse Wagstaff sick, others stepped up with five players reaching double-digit points led by forward Kristian Doolittle as the Wildcats evened their season ledger to 5-5.
Doolittle was enormous across the four quarters, finishing with an 18-point, 12-rebound double-double including a pair of crucial defensive boards in the last 17 seconds.
Tai Webster and Elijah Pepper contributed 14 points apiece to go with nine assists and six rebounds between them, with both players stepping up late when the game was on the line.
Nominated Replacement Player Todd Withers, who came in for Cotton, had another import cameo, finishing with 12 points and some late plays.
Withers was in hot form from outside the arc, shooting four from four, as well as a late block on Fabijan Krslovic.
Big man Keanu Pinder (13 points and seven rebounds) was another handy contributor before getting fouled out in the dying minutes.
The lead changed a remarkable six times in a tense final stanza with Tasmania up by one with 2:14 left.
Pinder, Pepper and Webster all hit crucial late buckets to seal a tight victory ahead of a tough road game against Melbourne United at John Cain Arena on Saturday night.
Webster brought his usual energy and pace when he came onto the court.
Webster provided a perfect no-look pass to Henshall last in the opening term with the young gun hitting his second triple of the night.
Withers the three-point party before a stunning buzzer beater from Pepper levelled the scores a 27-apiece.
The two teams continued to go for blow for in the second term with Milton Doyle proving to be a handful with 17 first-half points including five threes.
Withers was doing his bit off the bench and Doolittle was a force at both ends of the floor with 11 points and five rebounds for the half.
But it was the Doyle-inspired JackJumpers up 51-47 at half-time.
Perth came out firing to start the second half with Pepper’s mid-range jump shot followed by a Pinder three giving the home side the lead.
The Wildcats went on a 14-1 run in the third to open up a seven-point buffer with three minutes left, with Pepper at the forefront.
Izan Almansa’s two-handed dunk was one of the highlight of the term before Tasmania hit back ahead of three-quarter time to trail 68-65 with a quarter to play.
The JackJumpers snatch the lead back briefly early in the final term before Webster produced some big team-lifting plays.
Then it was Withers time as the replacement player followed up a clutch three with a huge block at the defensive end to get the Red Army on their feet.
Tassie wouldn’t give up as their main man Doyle, who ended up with a game-high 30 points, once again shifted the momentum in their direction.
But the Wildcats steadied for a memorable victory in front of 10793 fans.
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