NBL Wrap: Round 17 - Kings trounce winless Wildcats, Hawks scalp league leaders, and Anthony Drmic: New Zealand heart breaker

Jed Wells

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NBL Wrap: Round 17 - Kings trounce winless Wildcats, Hawks scalp league leaders, and Anthony Drmic: New Zealand heart breaker image

A few weeks ago, it felt that the NBL finals were close to set in stone. Cut to today, and it is clear that the race is on for young and old. 

We saw the top two teams lose, and a new team entered the top two as a result - one who barely a month ago was questioning their finals hopes. 

And if that wasn’t enough, it also featured one of the most baffling ends to an NBL game you’ll ever see, concluding in a cold-blooded game-winner. 

Missed the round 16 action? Check out our wrap with all the major moments.

Perth slide to third after losses to Tasmania and Sydney 

Once considered a lock for the grand final, Perth have had a horror round 17, dropping two straight games, the second of which came against the team who was directly below them, the Sydney Kings. 

After dropping Thursday's game against Tassie by just two points, they were then run out of their own building by Sydney, defeated by 22 points in a dominant display from the seemingly unbeatable Kings. 

To watch every game of the 2021/22 NBL season, sign up to Kayo. Just want a taste? Each week, Kayo offers Sunday's 1pm and 3pm game as part of its Freebies offering. No credit card required. 

In their ninth straight win, the Kings claimed their spot in the top two, thanks to a group effort that saw five separate players score at least 15 points: Jaylen Adams, Dejan Vasiljevic, Makur Maker, Jarell Martin, and Ian Clarke. 

In comparison, Perth only had three players in double digits. Obviously Bryce Cotton and Vic Law contributed massively with 20 and 16 points respectively, but the combined top scorer for the Cats was youngster Luke Travers, dropping 20 points, eight rebounds, two steals, and two blocks in front of ESPN Draft Expert Mike Schmitz, who has been in Australia scouting the NBL’s prospects over the last week. 

Not only does this Wildcats loss see the Kings bunnyhop them in the standings, but also ties their record with the Illawarra Hawks, meaning that depending on how both teams perform in the next round, there is a world in which the Wildcats are fourth on the NBL ladder. 

Lacking Goorjian, Illawarra Hawks flex their muscles in 15 point pounding of Melbourne United 

It’s been a long and complicated season for the Illawarra Hawks, but it seems that they are coming into their own at the right time, and this was illustrated perfectly this round as they took down the league-leading Melbourne United to the tune of 15 points. 

This was doubly impressive as the Hawks were without coach Brian Goorjian, who is under COVID protocols, meaning assistant Jacob Jackomas became interim head coach, sealing his first-ever NBL win. 

Antonius Cleveland was the standout - 20 points, eight rebounds, four steals, two assists and two blocks for the import as his value continues to skyrocket for the Hawks. 

Tyler Harvey was also active with 19 points, and Duop Reath feasted inside, with 15 points, five rebounds, and five blocks. 

Melbourne fought well, but their offence was lacking in firepower - only three United players reached double digits in Jo Lual-Acuil, Chris Goulding, and Caleb Agada (who recorded a double-double). 

This was a big win for the Hawks, and a tone-setting one, considering the strength of their remaining schedule is one of the hardest in the league. 

To round out the year, the Hawks will face a rematch with United, Perth once, Brisbane twice, and Sydney twice - only two games out of six against a team not in the top four. 

However, this win is doubly important as it coincided with a South East Melbourne Phoenix loss, giving the Hawks at least a two-game buffer for fourth. 

Drmic ices the Breakers after McDowell -White throws away the game 

When it comes to close games, one of the crucial steps to victory is ensuring that the ball is inbounded correctly. 

For Will McDowell-White, I’m sure he would like his chance over again after a costly brain snap lead to an excruciating loss for the New Zealand Breakers.

Up by two points with five seconds left in overtime, all the Breakers had to do was inbound the ball, and they for all intents and purposes win the game. 

Instead, McDowell-White tried for a full-court pass… which was picked off by Deng Deng. From there, Deng lasered it to Drmic, who hit the game-winning three. 

To watch every game of the 2021/22 NBL season, sign up to Kayo. Just want a taste? Each week, Kayo offers Sunday's 1pm and 3pm game as part of its Freebies offering. No credit card required. 

In less than five seconds, the Breakers had their sixth win of the season stripped away, whilst Drmic earned what is inarguably one of the highlights of his career. 

The lesson here? Always make the easy pass. You never know what can happen.
 

Jed Wells

Jed Wells Photo

Jed is a writer and social media producer, who has a keen interest in the intersection of sports and popular culture, especially basketball.