Sydney’s all-time NBL report 17-game road-winning streak has come to a pulsating finish after Cairns overcame a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Kings 94-88 in extra time on the Cairns Convention Centre.
Keanu Pinder (30 factors, 13 rebounds) was terrific all through the Monday evening basic and proved unstoppable in the course of the five-minute extension to tip Sydney off the highest of the ladder.
He was aided by import DJ Hogg (20 factors), who shook off a horrific capturing evening to return up large with 12 fourth-quarter factors.
Hogg nailed a pair of three-point daggers inside the ultimate 40 seconds of regulation, the second tying the scores and forcing extra time.
Kings captain Xavier Cooks posted 25 factors and 10 boards in a advantageous return from an ankle harm.
But when he fouled out with 3:37 left within the fourth time period, with Sydney up by eight factors, Cairns did not look again.
“DJ struggled all game but he’s a big-time player and he made the big-time shots when it was needed,” Taipans coach Adam Forde stated.
“I felt real confident going into overtime.
“I assumed momentum was in our favour.”
Cooks scored Sydney’s first six points before Cairns recovered some ground late and trimmed the Kings’ quarter-time lead to 24-23 when skipper Tahjere McCall launched a long outlet pass in the last second of the term to Sam Waardenburg, who spun around and buried a three-point prayer on the buzzer.
Pinder went to work in the second period which, after seven changes, ended with scores tied at 44-44 on Cooks’ last-second tip-in.
The Taipans went cold in the third stanza, going 1-of-11 from downtown, while the Kings, conversely, finally found their range from outside through Derrick Walton Jr and Angus Glover.
Sydney outscored the home side 21-11 for the quarter and looked in total command when their buffer swelled to 69-55 before Pinder and Hogg took over.
“We had been doing nicely, they fouled Xav out, we did not accomplish that nicely after that,” Kings coach Chase Buford stated.
“We had our alternative, we turned it over rather a lot, we did not deal with the tough moments that we could not management.”
