5/25/2023 0 Comments Itriumph bank![]() They missed six consecutive attempts at three but an Angus Glover triple towards the end of the second quarter gave the Kings the lift they needed. Sydney were unable to attack the paint as normal, locked out by resolute New Zealand defence and forced into taking low-percentage shots. The NBL fined both Kings coach Chase Buford and Breakers CEO Matt Walsh for criticising its referees this week but only Sydney attracted the attention of the officials early on Wednesday - the Kings gave six fouls away before the Breakers gave one. The Breakers were quicker to come out of the blocks and led by as many as 11 points in the first quarter as Will McDowell-White (12 points, eight rebounds), one of their best this series, called the shots. Sydney's fifth NBL title comes after one of the closest championship series in NBL history - it marked only the fifth time a best-of-five series had been taken to five games, and the second time since 1997 the team that lost game one went on to clinch the trophy. The win put paid to a Breakers fairytale - New Zealand spent the whole of last season on the road due to COVID-19 and finished bottom of the ladder - as they were denied the chance to write the final chapter in their rag-to-riches story under rookie coach Mody Maor. The victory confirms a dynasty for the Kings, who have now won back-to-back titles in Chase Buford's first two seasons as coach despite significant roster changes in the off-season. In front of the largest NBL crowd in history - 18,124 - NBA-bound forward Xavier Cooks had his best game of the series to help the Kings fight back from 12 points down in the first half. The incident was the only sour note of an otherwise spectacular night of basketball. That’s just completely unacceptable,' Australian basketball legend Andrew Gaze said on commentary. The defending champions won Game 5 in Sydney 77-69 to make it two titles in two years
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