Basketball On The Internet.

MANY NBL fans and "experts" shook their heads in dismay when league champion and dual MVP Chris Anstey predicted the Kings would sweep Adelaide for the 2026 championship. Tonight, after the calamitous Game 1 slaughter at Qudos Bank Arena in which Tim Soares shone, those same talking heads were ducking for cover.  

When the Kings led 31-23 at quarter-time, this thing was already wildly off the rails for Adelaide, and a 28-16 second quarter by Sydney created a 59-39 halftime buffer from which there was no coming back.

Not only did the 36ers have no way of recovering, they didn't exhibit even a single clue in how to stop the volcanic avalanche under which Sydney buried them 112-68.

Yes, just for the record, that 44-point mauling IS a new Grand Final and Championships Series record winning margin, eclipsing the 37-point rout Brian Goorjian's Magic inflicted on Melbourne in 1996's Game 3, and the 37-point vengeance the Tigers meted out a year later on his South East Melbourne in Game 1 of that series.

The difference here is Goorjian had played his hand several times already as Sydney went 3-1 on the 36ers in-season, so Adelaide had no excuse for being so criminally unprepared for what was about to unfold.

Sure, they saw Matthew Dellavedova hit with two very quick fouls defending Bryce Cotton, which would have provided some comfort.

But what? They simply didn't foresee Makuach Maluach, Jaylin Galloway or Torrey Craig then sharing duties on Cotton, or that everytime the MVP made a move a second defender would join the fray?

Maybe the Sixers brains trust should perhaps have consulted video from their past few games with the Kings so these defensive strategies would not have come as such a shock.

And as well as Isaac White played - he led the 36ers' scoring in a Grand Final! Give me one fact that can convey how badly the 36ers were travelling - whose idea was it to have him defending Kendric Davis?

The Sixers' "super defender", Matt Kenyon, didn't do any better, Davis scoring a game-high 25 points at 50 per cent, plus seven assists. Who comes up with these ill-conceived strategies? Claiming someone is a great defender sadly doesn't make it so.

Sydney's game plan was so simple - curtail Cotton and make someone else beat us. No-one else stepped up. In fact, if anything, the 36ers stepped out and coach Mike Wells had no idea where they went.

From tip-off, Sydney was playing for keeps and did not have a passenger. Soares had arguably his greatest single game as a King, his 22 points at 80 per cent, with 3-of-4 triples, eight rebounds and three assists.

Craig came off the bench and not only contributed to Cotton's struggles but also shot the ball at a withering pace.

Xavier Cooks only took four shots but made them all and Galloway routed the 36ers with his shooting, his 15 points at 63 per cent.

In fact, Sydney shot the ball at 66 per cent, with 13-of-24 3-pointers, and secured 47 rebounds.

In contrast, Adelaide shot the ball at 35 per cent, 9-of-37 threes and 28 boards.

Wells' dogged persistence with a "small ball" line-up was costly as the Kings convincingly won every quarter in front of a raucous home crowd of 13,181.

He again overlooked what Isaac Humphries can deliver, playing him a meagre 16 minutes during which time he scored 10 points on a flawless 5-of-5 shooting.

Again in stark cotrast, Cotton played twice as much for his 10 points at a rushed 33 per cent (4-of-12 FGs), Nick Rakocevic with identical figures in 14 minutes before he fouled out.

By the time this debacle was over for the 36ers, Hunter Goodrick had thrown down a dunk and Jason Spurgin brought the fans to their feet with five points on 2-of-2 shooting, including a 3-point swish which brought a roar heard in Wollongong.

Thankfully for Adelaide, this was merely Game 1 in a series so it has time to regroup before Friday's Game 2 in the city of churches.

But with so many churches, maybe Wells should call in a say a few prayers. Clearly he had no strategies.

NBL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES (Best-of-5)

Game 1: Sydney Kings 112 (Davis 25, Soares 22, Galloway 15, Maluach 12, Craig 11; Soares 8 rebs; Davis 7 assts) d Adelaide 36ers 68 (White 11, Humphries, Rakocevic, Cotton 10; Cheatham 7 rebs; Cotton 7 assts) at Qudos Bank Arena. Crowd: 13,181