DJ Vasiljevic to Kings: 'No celebrating on our court'

• ‍Game 1: 'Saturday night slaughter' as KD's Kings fire first shot‍
• Game 2: Cotton game-winner levels series as KD loses his cool‍
• Game 3: 'All love' as KD talks Cotton clash as Kings take Game 3
• Game 4: DJ winds back the clock to keep 36ers alive

Adelaide 36ers skipper Dejan Vasiljevic revealed Game 4’s motivation was simple: “We didn’t want them to celebrate on our court.”

“That was the main goal”, Vasiljevic said as the 36ers found a way to force Game 5 of the NBL26 Grand Final Series against the Sydney Kings 92-91 on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Adelaide.

Game 5 is on Easter Sunday — April 5, 2026, at 2.30pm (AEDT).

“We wanted to take this to Game 5, which we’ve done,” Vasiljevic added.

“We’ve played through adversity all year. We’ve gone down in halves and found ways to come back.

“You’ve got to give credit to the crowd as well. Without them, this doesn’t happen.

“Now we go to Sydney and compete for a championship.”

The Kings led by as many as nine points in the close-out, but the 36ers were energised by their home crowd of more than 10,000 and held on as NBA veteran guard Torrey Craig short-armed the back end of a pair of free throws to tie the game at 9.2 with seconds left.

“It’s a great atmosphere,” Kings head coach Brian Goorjian said.

“I didn’t feel like we were intimidated by it at all or that it had an effect on us.

“It’s a great place to play.

“They played with a lot of energy. I don’t know if it was the crowd or what, but they did, and I thought we did as well.

“It’s pretty emotional. You have a chance to win a championship, and you’re right there for it.

“It’s been twice now — we’ve had the last shot to win it or been on the break with an opportunity, and both times we’ve fallen short.

“So it’s on to the next one, and we’ve done a pretty good job in that aspect so far.”

36ers wing Zylan Cheatham flirted with a triple-double, posting 23 points, eight rebounds and nine assists to go with a pair of steals to be +9 in 35 minutes.

“Z is just being Z,” 36ers head coach Mike Wells said.

“He’s done that stuff for us in different ways all year, but it manifests differently each game.

“You’re looking at the offensive side, but his defensive impact is just as big. When you’re down in games, you have to respond, and this group has done that over and over again.

“That’s what I mean by true grit. He’s always saying, ‘We can win this’.

“We’ve been on the ropes twice in elimination games, and when you win those, you build belief.

“We believe we can go to Sydney and win.

“My early NBA years — 1995 Houston Rockets — we won multiple elimination games on the road. When you win those, it builds belief in each other and the system.

“We know Sydney is a hell of a team. It’s going to be one hell of a game Sunday afternoon.

“It’s the greatest thing in professional sport — a Game 5. Somebody has to break the home court streak.

“We know the challenge. It’ll take an unbelievable effort. You’ve got to be great and get a little lucky.

“But I’m excited for this group, from where we started in August to now finishing the season in this game.”

Two-time NBL champion Vasiljevic, both with the Kings, side-stepped what it would mean to win his third title back in Sydney against Sydney.

“You’re trying to get me there,” Vasiljevic responded when asked what it mean to him.

“My time in Sydney — I appreciate that organisation. They took a chance on me out of college.

For me, it’s about a third championship in six years and doing it for this city.

“They haven’t felt success in 26 years.

“Me and Bryce would join a small list of players who’ve won with multiple clubs.

“But it’s about winning it for Mike, for Marco, for everyone in this organisation.

“We know what this club has gone through the last seven or eight years.”

Goorjian also knows the significance of the moment, playing for a championship on home court, especially after Game 3 broke the all-time attendance record with more than 18,000 packed into Qudos Bank Arena.

“I think we’ve got the city behind us,” he added.

“I’m expecting a great crowd and a great environment.

“I didn’t think we did anything tonight that anyone back home would be disappointed with.

“The message I’m getting is 'hang tough, great game’.”

“I think for everybody — the game of basketball, the fight over the years — the quality of this series from all aspects has been high.

“Coaches, players, referees, community support, passion — everyone’s engaged.

“It’s exciting for basketball.

“I think the league has done a great job.

“The competition is really close. Injuries have played a factor, but when you get to the top four, there’s nothing between them.

“When you have two teams like this, it’s going to go five.

“It’s an incredible league, and these final series have been tremendous.

“This one — everything around it — you walk around town, and everyone’s engaged.

“Sydney’s the same.

“It’s exciting for our league.”