Mason Bragg had a few good games last season. Haven't seen much of him this season though.

Dex has shown glimpses too although again not much this season. Trev hasn’t really given the young guys a lot of opportunities

I'm so confused with the ladder. Can anyone finish top still? If the Cats win the rest of their games (highly unlikely I know) could they end up there?

Any of the top four can finish first.

You would expect the Cats to be licking their whiskers with this game.

Cairns are out for the season so like a wounded wildebeest hobbling across the savannah towards the waterhole must cross a path where a hungry cat is waiting.

I get the feeling that if the cards had fallen differently for the Snakes, they could have been top 4 this season. Then again, if my cards had have fallen differently I could have dated Kate Fischer. You just need to make the most of your opportunities.

I think the Cats just have a bit too much hanging on this game to let this wildebeest through to the waterhole.

Very rare that Perth give younger guys much of a run.
Too much reliance on an aging core

Any of the top four can finish first, second or third

Mathematical odds against each team finishing first:

Melbourne - 1/10
NZ - 14/1
Perth - 84/1
Adelaide - 113/1

If Perth win all three of their remaining games their odds drop to 13/10 and Melbourne's rise to 1/1 (even money). NZ's odds would rise to 15/1 and Adelaide could not finish first.

Jawai out. "Precautionary treatment on his knee."

Just give up bagging Perth, in the finals, dropped a few games to Sydney lost by 2 to United and combined 10 to New Zealand. Win 3 of those and we are equal top. Perth can get better that's the part we want to happen.

One both away gamed with ease, the pressure is on the home team to perform. Sometimes better to play away.

Actually, Perth fans, of the Wildcats young scrubs, which ones are most likely to have a solid NBL future?

"Last season the Cats won because Sixers choke"

No Perth won last year because they won all the finals games. You can't make an assumption that the 36ers would of beaten them because it never happened.

TFerg was not up to import standard (under Joey).
Randle and Creek decided to poke a stick at the Hawks.
Randle played hero-ball sans the hero part.
Joey didn't reign him in.

Jawai out. "Precautionary treatment on his knee."

The Antonov was not available between Cairns and Perth

Redhage reminds me of Plank from Ed Edd and Eddy.

A bone in Stephen Weigh's foot could break at any time. His injury is more serious than people may realise.

Both were said by the Taipans within the last week, yet here is Stevie on court?

Cairns can not miss hit some well contested shots. Perth is only as good as jp is engaged on defence, he is busy freelancing atm... they look flat

Poor form Fearne not playing Weigh at home given he's on court tonight. No excuses.

Anyone find it ironic cooke is the only cat that doesnt get called dor illegal screens. Probs the biggest offender

Kuany Kuany reminds me of the Queensland Minister of Education, Grace Grace

Minister FOR Education*
Got to properly address these honourable politicians

Yep brandt just went for a walk cause he felt like it... if wagstaff fouled surely brandt was hit harder... no consistency

Foul on a trap Jesse bail out, usual shocker call!

Fearne playing Weigh & Kuany as last surprising moves as coach?

Taipans lead but interview Wildpussy player.....Joke!

JP with a not-so wankerish interview. Gazey-length interview

What's a Kuany

I can only understand about 35% of what comes out of JP tokoto's mouth.

"anybody can shoot uncontested shots"

Greg hire can't.

Tokoto lets the player go, ref signals he caught him with his leg. Could it get much worse? Gliddon pulls the chair perfectly ref calls foul. Ffs just call what is there!

All the pressure is off so now Cairns are playing well.

The absence of Jawai shouldn't be discounted either.

Sphincter's have been loosened in Cairns

Fk sake Homicide. Cheers champ

They went zone he brought steindl straight in, and kenny too. You're hating. Its the players not talking on defence, getting lost and worrying more about stoping the paint than the three thays killong them

Egwu looks like a garden gnome

The face

Remember how people thought tokoto was better than prather... he chases highlights on offence and defence.

Remember how people thought tokoto was better than prather... he chases highlights on offence and defence.

For the record, I never said that. I'm actually always right. Gift and a curse

Thick as two short planks, Jerry

In what universe is that a foul?

Jerry clean as. Smart player, Jerry

Yep, problem with the flop tech, some weeks its a t some a reward for a flop

Egwu isn't the sharpest tool in the shed.

Jpt going for a steal when he should be playing d

Just a dumb player.

Would be a highlight play if he madr it...

The angle above the basket shows how far forward egwi was mobing into the player with the ball. Yet the easiest of calls is not made...

Off Cotton clearly

Great offence lads

Dumb play by Weigh too, how bad have Cairns been down the stretch

Refs didn't screw us till 50secs to go. Useless qualityof refs in this league

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

THE. BOYS. ARRRGGHHHHHHH. YES. WHAT A WIN.

Oh man. Solid.

Trevor, you get no respect because you have none. So glad Cairns won

Fun game.

Timber - it's always the refs isn't it?

How many big plays did Martin make down the stretch. Normally when he has that kind of influence, Cats win

Cats skinned alive.
Snakes slither home despite home cooking

The +/- numbers for Perth are interesting. All positive for the bench, all negative for the starters - Cooke Jnr leading the way with +12.

Which player was he saying gets no respect from officials?

If it's Cotton, well the lack of respect he's talking about could be due to the bullshit flailing. Cotton shooting himself in the foot with that flopping. If it is Cotton, that is

Cotton not fouled? Once again hoops can only viee a game through the hate cats lense. The refs were horrible, that was a disgraceful open court foul, he was about as on the side as steindl, he was moving towards the o player in the air. Noone can say thay wasnt a foul. A big call to mess up

Ah, I thought he said "he" and I thought I heard "gets" with an 's', which you wouldn't say if talking about a collective. Unless Trevor doesn't know how to speak properly.

Loughton +23 on the +/-

As a neutral bloody loved this one. So much heart from Cairns.

Bloody good game of basketball.

I'm still not writing off Perth’s finals chances though.

The J is for joke

Let's face it, we were lucky to make all those threes. Played well to get them tho

Refs fine till that call on Cotton no way Egwu was straight up. Was a body foul everyday

Can't really write anyone's chances off in a 3 game series. All Perth have to do is win the first game of a series and the advantage is all their's.

Cairns shot the lights out. Played unbelievably well. But that no call on Cotton changed the game

Quality win. Just good smart positive play nearly all game.
Meanwhile the Cats are so patchy and they look very individual by comparison.

I'm going back to check.

But also, why didn't Gleeson call a timeout on the dead ball with 13sec left? After Gliddon dribbled off his knee. Weird

@ anon #1967; on form no, but all it takes is for Cotton to have one of THOSE type of games, and they can win any one game.

The Cotton call - even the commentators thought it the right call

Right call on out of bounds direction, missed the foul though

After Weigh missed his first foul shot:
"Bryce gets no respect from you guys"

After Weigh's second foul shot, while the players are setting up to play the final 0.5sec of the game:
"He (Cotton) gets hit on the layup (the Egwu out of bounds play). There was no respect (I think?). He (Egwu) moved a metre to try to block. He gets no respect from you guys."

Such a dick, he is

How is it a joke? He was vertical and moved into the offensive player in the air, he cant do that its a foul. Does it mean the call on evans jr and fliddon were right, no, they were terrible as well. Time of game and open court, it was a terrible terrible call. Ware, randle, anyone gets that call, cotton doesn't. He didnt even play for it he was trying to pass and got hit mid air.

Gliddon would look good in a Perth jersey next season.
Credit to Cairns they deserved the win.

Perth looked very good when they played defence, didnt do it often. They still have a level that blew adelaide out, brought them back tonight. The fact they cant seem to bring it is very unperth like and concerning, its costing them games, but 40mins of ball from them can still get it done. Odds are long though

Who from Perf will start the official "Sack Gleeson" post

Cotton has been figured out. Either that or he's leading his own demise

Walker's production has gone south and the general energy and focus in the team has too.

The rest isn't too much different to how they were at the start of the season

Was a foul on cotton drive as it wasn't a vertical only jump by the defense. But it was a dumb play anyway.

Wouldn't have gone to him for the final shot either, half his point were free throws. Wasn't the hot hand.

Btown agrees it was actually a foul on perth. Yet people above are calling that opinion a joke. Remove the hate lenses. It was one of the more poorly officiated games, both ways theu called what they shouldnt and little they should have

Cotton had zero intention of scoring on that play, he just jumped into Egwu and flailed. He does it all the time, and it fails quite frequently. If he just attacked the bucket looking to score he'd end up on the line.

Burning the entire clock before jacking up a contested three while down one was also stupid.

None of the three imports should be back next year.

Perth fans imploding brings so much joy to the world

Anon without pulling an lv here, both ways there were atrocious calls as stated. the only cop out is you comprehended of "both ways" to only be referring to one call cited at that time, but not a few posts up. That is called context, immediate context to be precise.

Don't always agreed without Koberulz but clearly Cotton lost the ball, playing for the foul - just get the ball to the ring, then worry about the foul, simple.

Gee, the Wildcat's little red wagon has lost a wheel. Fans going into meltdown.
I remember when the fans loved Cotton, they thought he was fine. Now it seems they think fine Cotton is a ring in.

Hmm... 180+ comments... I wonder if I want to waste my time... but morbid curiosity, like a car crash, makes me want to get into this thread...

Keeping Cooke was the wrong move.
Hoping an early playoff exit will force some major roster changes.

"The angle above the basket shows how far forward egwi was mobing into the player with the ball. Yet the easiest of calls is not made... "

So we need two additional refs, one sitting on the top of each backboard. Great idea J. We really need to clean up that mobing - it's ruining the NBL.

These Perth fans don't want to accept that their team played like utter shit, so they focus their attention on the refs

Foul or no foul on that play, the bigger issue for me is why would Damo who had a clear lay up after the steal, pull up and pass to Cotton allowing the defense to catch up and making something a lot harder than it should have been, and then Cotton went into " hungry hippo mode ", when he should have drawn the defense and dished off to Walker, piss poor basketball, no way with our mentality can we threaten anyone in the finals. our last two minutes were horrible, and not what a play off team should be doing this of the year.

Yep Cairns shot the lights out, wasn't too hard though with the minimal defensive pressure we put on them.