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Adelaide’s stunning late-season rejuvenation under interim coach Scott Ninnis has them within touching distance of the NBL top six after beating Sydney 85-78.
A 31-19 fourth quarter saw the 36ers (11-14), outscored in each of the first three terms, prevail at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre on Friday night and leapfrog New Zealand and Cairns into seventh spot on the ladder.
Former Kings Isaac Humphries and Dejan Vasiljevic, who re-signed for a further three years during the week, top-scored for Adelaide with 20 points each.
Import Jaylen Adams led Sydney with 21 points but only shot 28 per cent, typifying the evening-long shooting ills of the Kings (12-14), who crashed to sixth position.
The Kings connected at 35 per cent from the floor and 23 per cent from three-point territory, starting with an off-line opening term, at the end of which they led just 18-17 despite racking up seven offensive rebounds.
Adams’ inside-outside combination with Jonah Bolden gave Adelaide plenty to ponder in the second term as the Kings moved five points clear.
36ers import Trey Kell’s triple snapped Sydney’s 7-0 run but the visitors went into the sheds at halftime with a 41-37 lead and the momentum after a slick Adams-to-Kouat Noi pick-and-roll in the dying seconds.
The Sixers emphatically ripped back the impetus – and the lead – by starting the third period with a 9-0 burst amid an overall 16-2 spree.
The Kings called a time-out and responded in even more unequivocal fashion, scoring 16 of the last 17 points of the stanza to lead 59-54 on import Denzel Valentine’s tough finish on the three-quarter-time bell.
The 36ers started the fourth term with another 12-3 flourish to move ahead again.
A contentious unsportsmanlike foul on Sunday Dech, reaching around to pick Adams’ pocket, threatened to derail the home side but Humphries and Vasiljevic continued to attack relentlessly down the stretch.
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