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Can sydney end the curse of the Perth Arena?

Although the popularly called "Jungle" is a recently new venue, it did not take Kings long for it to become their worst away court. Teams generally suffer from a bad shooting percentage in Perth Arena, so a curse is often spoken of

The Perth Wildcats won their first round game, but with more difficulties than expected. Although they are known to play great defense in their home games on this court, and concede few points, the absence of Matt Knight disturbed their tactical setup somewhat. This led to them winning by only +3 vs the 36ers in front of a full house.

An excellent first game by Ennis, who scored 25 points, is definitely a cause for happiness. Wagstaff added 15 more, while Beal and Redhage scored another 11 each. Although playing without Knight, the Wildcats offense did a very good job in the paint.

-Ennis had a lot of clear shots and should probably penetrate towards the basket more, but he still managed to adjust to their defense. I think this was an excellent first game for him- said the new Wildcats coach sincerely.

Apart from scoring 30 points from the paint, the Wildcats also confirmed that perimeter shots will be one of their strong suits this year. They scored 11 three pointers, of which Ennis scored four.

Although they are aware an even harder challenge awaits them now, the Wildcats have fond memories of their games vs the Kings. The last time the Kings won was way back in 2008, and they have not seen a victory since. The reasons were mostly their limited offensive capabilities and forcing Ben Magden, to which the Wildcats always found a counter.

However, this time the situation on the Kings roster is somewhat different. They confirmed this by beating the Tigers, with Jamey Harvey as the hero of the game. The experienced Harvey scored 10 points in the last five minutes of the game and clarified why he is considered a wild card off the bench.

-I definitely recognized some flaws in the Tigers defence from the bench in the first half. I knew that the faster passing of the ball will leave me a lot of room. I haven't played from the start, so I was fresh in the final part of the game and used the fatigue of the opponents- said experienced Harvey.

Other than Harvey, Ogilvy also had a good first game with 14 points, but he is still expected to display more. He is the key factor in the coming game with the Wildcats. The absence of Knight opens up a lot of room in the paint for Ogilvy, and it is exactly dominance in the paint that the Kings will need in order to surprise. They have quality in all positions, and a good perimeter lineup that goes for the basket aggressively but can score three pointers as well. The key will be stopping the Wildcats quick transition and slowing down the tempo as much as possible.

Although they were the biggest favorites for the title prior to the season, the Wildcats did not impress in the season opening. True, they did win, but the team have lost their old identity under a new coach. Their biggest strength is no longer defense, they are now forcing a faster game with many transition points. Knight getting injured is a big problem from them, as that leaves much more room in the paint to their opponents. This is exactly the reason why the 36ers pushed playing in the paint, and used the perimeter shots less. The Kings roster, on the other hand, is in full strength. Gibson and Frye, important players for them, have returned, so the team is expected to play even better. They have brought in excellent reinforcements, and are very well covered in all positions. They will be at a great advantage in the paint in this game, enough to even win in my opinion. Apart from that, Magden is almost 100% ready, so they too have a shot at fast basketball. Bad performance in Perth Arena is not a good enough argument for me, as both teams have changed. I'm convinced that the Kings will cover the handicap margin, and would not be surprised if they even won and took down the "curse",