Wildcats hold off surging 36ers in NBL

The Perth Wildcats survived a spirited comeback then turned on the afterburners to beat the Adelaide 36ers 90-79 in their NBL game at Adelaide Arena on Friday night.

The Sixers trailed throughout and were down 77-64 with three minutes to play before making three consecutive steals to ignite a 13-2 run.

When centre Daniel Johnson nailed his third triple of the night and followed it with a steal and basket the deficit was just four.

A Diamon Simpson block then led to a Stephen Weigh bucket and the Wildcats were precariously poised at 79-77.

Kevin Lisch answered with a massive three-pointer to break the 36ers’ run as he scored 14 points in the intense fourth quarter and 23 overall.

Jesse Wagstaff finished with 17 points and six rebounds while Damian Martin was superb with 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

Johnson stepped up in the second half and top-scored for Adelaide with 24 points and eight boards. Chris Warren and Weigh finished with 12 points each.

The Wildcats’ outside game gave them the edge in the first quarter with the visitors dropping 5-of-7 three-point attempts.

Inconsistency plagued the Sixers in the second quarter, an Everard Bartlett steal and basket a highlight contrasted by wasted opportunities from the foul line.

Wagstaff remained a focal point for the Wildcats – his 13-point first half giving his side a 44-36 advantage.

Perth switched on in the second half, extending the lead to 14 thanks to fullcourt efforts from Martin and Wagstaff, before Brad Robbins set up Luke Nevill for an alley-oop to silence the crowd.

The Wildcats were controlling the game but Johnson’s increasing influence kept the scoreline a manageable 60-52 with 10 minutes to play.

Lisch made some early baskets in the fourth quarter and the contest was headed for a mundane conclusion, but the Sixers charged home to scare the Wildcats before ultimately falling short.

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