Home fans at HoopsFest treated to victory as Wildcats defeat Hawks 92-87

Written by Lachlan Sherriff

(Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

Coming into tonight off a three game winning streak, RAC Arena was always going to be lively for the Perth Wildcats’ HoopsFest game, no matter who the opponent.

But with the opponent being the Illawarra Hawks, who boast one of the NBL’s greatest ever imports in JaVale McGee, there seemed to be even higher interest in tonight’s game.

Indeed, McGee showed his talent early into the game, as he scored the first basket of the game off a huge alley-oop dunk that was thrown up by Tyler Harvey. Nonetheless, it would be Perth who led at quarter time, leading 18-13.

As the game went on, Perth managed to hold the lead, finding themselves ahead 44-37 at half time. Ben Hanshall was the top scorer for Perth with eight points, while Kristian Doolittle was contributing at both ends of the floor with seven points and seven rebounds.

Wani Swaka Lo Buluk and Todd Blanchfield may have had a chip on their shoulder, as the former Wildcats were Illawarra’s two top scorers at half time, with thirteen and eight points respectively. Surprisingly, JaVale McGee failed to score in the second quarter, and was stuck on four points and seven rebounds at half time. McGee also missed a shot from point blank range in the final seconds of the second quarter, much to the delight of the home fans.

It seemed like nothing McGee did was going right for him, as he only added two more points to his total in the third quarter, while shooting a lacklustre 3/7 from the field.

McGee was dominant on the boards with twelve, but was being matched at the other end by Kristian Doolittle, who already had a double-double by three-quarter-time with thirteen points and ten rebounds, as Perth led 65-58 with one quarter to go.

The atmosphere picked up in the fourth quarter, as did the play on the court, with each team trading baskets back-and-forth all quarter. Surprisingly, Justin Tatum decided to play without JaVale McGee in the final seven minutes, opting for shooting instead. It nearly paid off, as Will Hickey hit two big threes in the final minute while Todd Blanchfield and Johny Narkle also converted from behind the three-point-line in the dying seconds.

Alas, Perth didn’t let it slip at the free throw line, which saw the Wildcats win 92-87, their fourth straight win.

(Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

Kristian Doolittle had a monster night for the Wildcats, ending with 21 points and eleven rebounds, while Jo Lu-Acail Jr also impressed with twenty points and seven rebounds.

Todd Blanchfield ended up as Illawarra's top scorer with sixteen points. JaVale McGee was the game’s leading rebounder with fourteen, but struggled to score the ball, ending with eight points on 4/11 shooting.

It was a rough night for Illawarra, but one thing that pleased Hawks coach Justin Tatum was his bench, which outscored Perth’s bench 46-18.

"I was pretty excited about (my bench). That's why I brought Johny (Narkle) on with us, Luca (Yates), Biwali (Bayles), guys like that. Davo (Will Hickey) was a big part of that scoring factor off the bench. He could be either a starter or a bench person. So, they gave us a ton of energy like they do every day at practice."

- Justin Tatum on his bench unit

As for Wildcats captain Jesse Wagstaff, he was pleased to get such a crucial win, especially in front of the home fans at HoopsFest.

"It's really cool. I was out yesterday. My daughters played at halftime of the the Lynx game. It was a great turnout. It's a really good atmosphere. Obviously, it's nice to to stay in Perth, but to have a weekend where you (have) the WNBL, the NBL, it's just kind of basketball all week. I think it's a fantastic initiative and I think the the public has has really shown out. It was a great turnout last night and I really like the atmosphere and it was no different tonight. So, I assume tomorrow is going to be pretty similar. It's it's been fantastic so far."

- Jesse Wagstaff on HoopsFest

The Wildcats return to action at home next Thursday against the Taipans, while the Hawks travel down south to take on Tasmania next Saturday.