Wildcats snap Sixers win streak

The Perth Wildcats have ended the Adelaide 36ers winning sequence with a 121-100 victory at Challenge Stadium in Perth tonight.

The fortunes for both teams were poles apart, to say the least. For Perth, it was only three weeks ago that they were stranded at the foot of the table. However four straight wins, all at home, now has them sitting pretty in fifth. Adelaide were very much opposite, an eight-match win streak before this game saw them as table-toppers just ahead on percentages of the three-time champion Sydney Kings.

Shawn Redhage was the best for Perth, despite finishing third on the scorers list. He was amongst the pack at both ends of the court with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Certainly one of the best games he has played for the Wildcats.

Of the scorers captain Tony Ronaldson knocked down 25 points, while David Bailey has slotted into the point guard position, vacated in the off-season, as he again managed to net 25 points with nine assists.

Adelaide were well served by veterans Brett Maher and Willie Farley, with David Cooper and Dusty Rychart grabbing 18 rebounds between them. Farley, with his own cheer squad just behind the media bench, collected 22 points. Rychart with late free-throws finished with 19, while Oscar Forman finished just ahead of Cooper and Maher with 14 points.

Baskets for both teams early proved elusive and it was more than a minute before the first was dropped in courtesy of Sixer' Rychart. It was the Wildcats skipper with the hot hand early, Redhage chipped in to tie the scores at six-all. Then he put the home side ahead. Bailey hit the boards late in the quarter to top score with 12 at the first interval.

Perth led 33-23 at quarter time and retained that margin at the half, 56-46. Adelaide were well served by Forman, who had eight points in the first half, while Cooper held sway wih eight rebounds. For Perth, Ronaldson had 17 points, while Bailey had seven assists to go with 15 points.

Adelaide came out firing in the third quarter and narrowed the gap to just five with Farley showing his usual class around the court. With some crowd members calling out his name he let them know there was still "one more quarter" to play.

Cameron Tovey fell under the spell of Farley, who pick-pocketed the rookie Wildcat, with a little over a minute left in the third quarter. Tovey, though, responded to nail the final two baskets for the home side and a nine-point lead at three-quarter time, 81-72.

Tovey then set about ensuring the game was locked away with a clever assist to Dillon Boucher that had the crowd on their feet and the Adelaide heads down. By now the home team could hardly do anything wrong, despite Ronaldson fouling Rychart twice. Perth roared to a 20-point lead with little over five minutes remaining.

Both teams are in action again this Sunday with Perth on the road to Brisbane, while Adelaide are back at home where they take on the New Zealand Breakers.

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