Sunday saw the Adelaide 36ers record their 10th win from 11 matches, by defeating the Perth Wildcats 95-84.<\/p>\n
But the competition front-runners, who are now 17-4 on the season, didn’t have it all their own way at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.<\/p>\n
The Wildcats, who had already tasted success in Adelaide this season, jumped out to a nine-point lead at quarter-time, before a29-9 third period set up the host’s comeback win.<\/p>\n
The catalyst for the victory was former Wildcat Bryce Cotton, who tallied 36 points and 7 assists.<\/p>\n
During the 36ers fightback, coach Mike Wells could see that his five-time MVP was locked in to the task at hand.<\/p>\n
“He had that look in his eye,” Wells said in Sunday’s post-game press conference.<\/p>\n
“At times he was telling us to get everybody out of his way.<\/p>\n
“He was locked in the zone, which is something we’re all still adjusting to.<\/p>\n
“But I saw the look, as did the rest of our team. He wanted his teammates to shoot the open shots and he wanted everybody to be aggressive.<\/p>\n
“Collectively though, it started on the defensive end. We cleaned up the boards and we kept him out of the paint.”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Next up for the 36ers is a home clash with the Sydney Kings, who have defeated Adelaide on both occasions this season.<\/p>\n
One player that knows the Kings better than most is Dejan Vasiljevic, who won two championships with the club.<\/p>\n
“[After our day off], we’ll all lock in on Sydney, who we haven’t beaten yet,” Vasiljevic said.<\/p>\n
“We’ll do our due diligence and scout before Friday night, in a prime-time clash.<\/p>\n
“It’s going to be awesome to open the new year in front of a full house.”<\/p>\n
Adelaide’s Round 15 clash with Sydney tips off at 7.30pm AEDT on Friday, live on ESPN.<\/p>\n
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