IT WAS a dominant second-half performance that steered the Sydney Kings to a 14-point win over the Perth Wildcats over the weekend, closing out the National Basketball League (NBL) semi-final series between the two sides in dominant fashion.

Following a tense one-point victory to the Kings in game one, the series headed to Perth for the second matchup, where the visitors were looking to wrap up proceedings and book a spot in the Championship Series, while the Wildcats would need to secure a win at home if they were going to keep their title aspirations alive.

Despite the Wildcats holding a slim half time lead, the Kings blew the game open after the main change, delivering with the game on the line and punching their ticket to the decisive series with an impressive performance on the road.

Perth Wildcats (75) def. by Sydney Kings (89)

Sydney started the game strongly with the first four points of the match to silence the crowd at RAC Arena, and eventually opening up a 15-6 lead to show that they are still the biggest threat to the title in the coming weeks. However, Perth’s backcourt rose to the occasion in the final minutes of the opening frame, with Ben Henshall and Elijah Pepper leading the hosts to a one-point buffer at quarter time on Saturday night.

The Wildcats’ lead was pushed out to seven thanks to some sharpshooting from behind the arc, and the home crowd began to get involved as Perth had hope of its chances of forcing a game three. Although Kendric Davis was fighting to get his side the lead at half time and Makuach Maluach was inspiring for Sydney, Henshall was electric with ball in hand, posting 17 points to the main break and leading his team to a three-point buffer.

Although the Wildcats went into the main break, the Kings turned up on the defensive end, holding the Wildcats to just 13 points in the third term which allowed Brian Goorjian‘s men to take control of the contest. Momentum switched to the visiting side, and Sydney’s half time deficit turned into a one-point buffer heading into the final change.

An 8-0 run in the early stages of the final frame set the tone for the Kings, and Sydney started to get its tail up with a double-digit lead. Once the margin ticked over to 10 points, the Kings looked incredibly comfortable at RAC Arena, cruising home to a 14-point win as the ladder-leaders booked their spot in the Championship Series.

Although not his most efficient game (9/23 FG), Davis was still extremely productive for the Kings, posting 27 points, five rebounds and five assists, but it was Maluach who was the story of the night for Sydney. The big man had a career-best performance with 23 points, eight boards, two steals and two blocks to completely own the frontcourt battle.

Henshall was slowed down by a calf complaint in the second half but still managed 20 points in a strong scoring performance, picking up the slack after Kristian Doolittle was smothered by the defensive pressure of Matthew Dellavedova.

The Kings will now await confirmation of their opponent in the Championship Series following Tuesday’s decider between the Adelaide 36ers and the SEM Phoenix, while it is season over for the Wildcats.