Brian Goorjian was sensationally ejected midway through the third quarter after a moment of madness from the officials overshadowed a crucial win for Sydney over Perth.
The 800-game coach was hit with a technical foul late in the term after being told he ‘failed to control his emotions’ after a contentious call went against the Kings.
The overzealous official quickly gave him a second technical, disqualifying him from the game.
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Assistant coach Bill Tomlinson initially stepped up into the role of head coach to close out the third, before Andrew Bogut took charge to finish the game.
The whistles weren’t exclusively against the Kings, with Wildcats coach John Rillie copping a technical for giving the officials a spray following a missed call.
The two teams desperate for a win went toe-to-toe in front of 8032 at Qudos Bank Arena, with the Kings never surrendering their advantage after they surged to the front in the second quarter.
Star recruit Matthew Dellavedova had his best outing in purple and gold with 15 points, six rebounds and four assists as he led them to a big 94-72 victory.
But it was his leadership once Goorjian was ejected that was most noticeable, with Sydney clamping down Perth defensively in the fourth to restrict the visitors to just six points in the term.
RILLIE CATCHES FIRE
After the departure of import Mason Jones following their heavy loss to Brisbane on Wednesday, Ben Henshall earned a spot in the starting five.
In a challenging start to the game, he shot 1-5 from the field early on, with Perth dropping just one of their first 12 shots.
But it was Jaron Rillie who came off the bench to give the Wildcats a spark when they needed it.
He came on and hit a pair of threes, inspiring his team to find their range and open up an unlikely seven-point buffer at the first break.
Rillie finished with 16 points (4-7 3P) to mount his case to earn a starting role in their next outing.
DAVIS HITS BACK
After putting just 15 points on the board in the opening term, Sydney exploded in the second term to drop 35 on Perth and charge ahead by five at the half.
Kendric Davis took advantage of fast-break opportunities as the Kings quickly took ascendancy in the contest with the star import leading the way with 16 through two quarters.
They were also able to free up Xavier Cooks inside who had 10 points.
TROOPS DOWN
Already down an import, Perth suffered a major blow with Dylan Windler going down with an ankle injury early in the game.
One of their main attacking weapons, Windler appeared to roll his ankle when hunting a rebound.
SYDNEY KINGS (Davis 25, Cooks 16, Dellavedova 15) defeated PERTH WILDCATS (Lual-Acuil Jr 17, Rillie 16, Doolittle 14)
Crowd: 8032 at Qudos Bank Arena
Harrell posts furious rant at Davis | 00:48
LADDER LEADERS STAY UNBEATEN
Melbourne United is fast becoming the hottest ticket in town.
Seven games undefeated after overcoming New Zealand Breakers 104-88 at John Cain Arena on Sunday, a red hot United is showing no signs of letting up and you have to wonder when their first loss might come because they have looked streets ahead of the field in the opening month.
United is two wins clear of second-placed Adelaide 36ers, who they face in a mouth-watering contest next Sunday.
Coach Dean Vickerman has a vast array of weapons at his disposal and has his newly assembled team humming on both ends of the floor.
The Breakers did so much right in the first period but still trailed by double digits at quarter time.
Breakers import guard Izaiah Brockington produced an offensive flurry with nine first quarter points as part of a game-high 25 points on an efficient 10/16 from the field.
The star of the preseason Blitz seems to be finding his feet as a Breaker.
Almost in an instant though, United had the quarter and ultimately the game on their terms.
United has a knack of being able to click into first gear in a short space of time to change the course of a game.
The reason, veteran sharpshooter Chris Goulding.
United was lethal as a team from three-point range, going 16/34 (47%).
The 36-year-old Goulding bounced off the bench to convert his first two three point attempts, including one from the car park that had the spectators out of their seats, and it became contagious.
Goulding had 18 points, including 5/6 from three, by half time and gave United the platform to launch from, before finishing with 23 points, including six threes.
His activity has been encouraging with the veteran showing no signs of the quad injury that saw him miss the opening four games.
Tanner Krebs was lethal with 17 points, including 5/8 from three.
The game was starting to take on the complexion of their previous match up last month when United destroyed the Breakers from the second quarter on.
The only mild concern for United was centre Jesse Edwards getting felled by aggressive defensive play from Rob Loe.
The Dutch import winced as he held his left shoulder, but stayed in the game as United took a 56-38 lead into half time.
Breakers dig in
Unlike their previous meeting, the Breakers showed more resilience in the second half and would not go away.
The Breakers trimmed the deficit to single figures in the third with the imposing Sam Mennenga, a player chock full of confidence on the back of some hot early season form, making his presence felt and star point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright increasing his involvement.
Jackson-Cartwright just missed a triple double, racking up 20 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, while Mennenga had 16 points and held Edwards to just five points in an impressive defensive display.
With every Breakers run, United found a circuit breaker to restore their 10-plus point lead.
Calm under pressure
Import floor general Tyson Walker was the calm head United needed in those moments of worry.
Specialist scorers Goulding, Krebs and Milton Doyle are relishing Walker’s pass-first approach.
The 25-year-old American gets the job done on both ends too, backing up Friday’s franchise record eight steal game with a further four steals to go with 16 points and nine assists.
NBL SCOREBOARD
Melbourne United 104 (Goulding 23 Krebs 17 Walker 16) d New Zealand Breakers 88 (Brockington 25 Jackson-Cartwright 20 Mennenga 16)
At John Cain Arena, Melbourne.
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