I was SO pumped for this match! New import Bryce Cotton made his debut for the Wildcats and the skipper returned after a couple of months away – what a dream!
The Perth Wildcats flew to Sydney to take on the Kings at Qudos Bank Arena on Saturday and had an impressive 6-point win on the road. Cats Captain Damian Martin returned after a knee injury, which had sidelined him since the 5th of November 2016.
If that wasn’t exciting enough, new import Bryce Cotton made his NBL debut for the Cats, and did so in sensational fashion, finishing the match on 26 points. Before this game, no Wildcats player had ever scored more than 25 points on debut in the clubs 35-year history. To put some perspective on it, James Ennis scored 25 and Ricky Grace scored 24 in their debut games.
Cotton also became the 200th player to represent the Perth Wildcats. I just wish he got to debut in front of the #RedArmy so that we could have showed our support and cheered him on!
The Wildcats had a good start, leading the Kings by 15 at one stage during the first quarter. Cotton dropped 12 points in the first quarter at 100 per cent shooting to give the visitors the momentum leading into the second. The Kings managed to edge themselves right back into the game in the second quarter however, the Cats were able to keep hold of their advantage at half time.
Sydney had a debutant of their own, eighteen-year-old William McDowell-White, who kept the Kings in the game with some impressive shooting. He helped the home side close the gap to just 3 points heading into the final quarter. The Kings looked a little sluggish though, it didn’t feel like they matched the Cats intensity at any point during the game.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS
The Cats held on in the fourth to record their second back-to-back victories on the road since October, hopefully re-igniting the finals flame. Jameel McKay was again outstanding for the Wildcats, finishing on 19 points, 8 rebounds and 4 rejections. McKay is a weapon, that’s for sure. He improves every game and has showed the rest of the competition that they should not underestimate him.
Wildcats stats leaders for the game:
Bryce Cotton – 26 points
Matty Knight – 8 rebounds
Jameel McKay – 4 blocks
Damian Martin – 2 steals
The Perth Wildcats will take on the Brisbane Bullets on Monday at Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, tip-off at 4.30pm WST.
Show your support for the Perth Wildcats @PerthWildcats #RedArmy
