MARKING their fourth straight home win in double figures, the Sydney Kings smashed the Perth Wildcats 108-87 at Qudos Bank Arena on Saturday night.
Despite the strong play of Xavier Cooks on both ends of the floor, the Wildcats led in the early parts of the contest 9-6 but Sydney’s bench mob of Kouat Noi, Angus Glover, Shaun Bruce and Jaylin Galloway sparked a 10-0 run for Chase Buford’s side – who led 19-11 with just over two to play.
A triple by Cooks and a full-court connection between Bruce and Noi extended that run to 15 unanswered points for the Hoops Capital side with a timeout called.
That didn’t change the visitors’ fortunes, as Sydney grabbed a 27-14 lead.
The purple and gold onslaught continued in the second and 18 first-half points by Cooks, helped Sydney lead 58-41 at the main break.
That margin quickly closed to 11 though, as the two foes traded baskets but the real story of the period was the Kings’ ability to convert their free-throws, nailing 10-13 shots from the charity stripe before running out Round 14 winners by 21 points and solidifying their top spot on the ladder.
The harbour city side, who are now 15-5, will temporarily end their summer home run with a quick trip to take on Brisbane on Wednesday night at Nissan Arena.
Buford’s team will then return to Qudos Bank Arena on Sunday, January 15, to play the fourth and final Adrian Hurley Cup clash of NBL23 against Illawarra.
