Kings crowned champions in greatest Game 5 ever

• ‍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

The Sydney Kings have been crowned NBL26 champions after Kendric Davis took over a dominant overtime to help his team escape six-time MVP Bryce Cotton and the Adelaide 36ers in an overtime thriller in front of an NBL record crowd at Qudos Bank Arena.

Davis took home the Larry Sengstock Medal for the Championship Series MVP after finishing game five with 35 points and 14 assists to lead the Kings to a miracle comeback in front of 18,589 people after trailing by as much as six points with just two minutes left in the game.

The Sydney superstar made history, dishing out the most assists in a Championship Series in NBL history.

Only one of the greatest performances of all-time from Davis could overcome a vintage performance from Cotton, who almost carried the 36ers to a drought-breaking title, with 35 points and nine assists.

Adelaide seemed destined to win their first championship since 2002, leading by six in the dying stages before back-to-back buckets from Davis and an offensive rebound and outback from big man Tim Soares tied scores up.

A last-second layup from Cotton just missed as the Kings had another five minutes to try and complete a fairytale comeback.

Sydney then dominated the overtime period through their trademark pressure defence which ignited their transition game to runaway from the 36ers with an 18-6 in the final five minutes and claim the club's third championship in five seasons and first since Brian Goorjian returned to the Harbour City.

QUARTER 1

Different to most deciding games, both teams weren't feeling the nerves or pressure of the situation early with the Kings and 36ers executing to perfection offensively to start the contest.

Derek Rucker summed it up perfectly in commentary, saying "we're more nervous" than the players.

It was clear the 36ers wanted to punish Sydney's defensive pressure on actions involving Cotton, finding big man Isaac Humphries rolling to the basket and putting pressure on the rim early, while Tim Soares looked damaging for the Kings.

Confusion then surrounding rotations from the Kings staff with Matthew Dellavedova going out within the first two minutes of the game, then Brian Goorjian needing a timeout to avoid a technical foul for six players being on the court.

Adelaide, and Cotton in particular, capitalised with the Kings leading 14-11 the six-time MVP hit back-to-back threes to give the visitors the lead. In true Cotton fashion, the three-time champion was then ultra-confident, hitting his third for the quarter after a pump fake on Makuach Maluach to put fear in the sold-out Sydney crowd.

Big man Nick Rakocevic also provided a massive punch for the 36ers, using his physicality to attack the offensive rebounds and punish the Kings on the scoreboard with seven first-quarter points as Adelaide dominated the first quarter but only finished with a 31-29 advantage following a buzzer-beating triple from Jaylin Galloway.

The 36ers were on fire from beyond the arc, hitting 5-from-12 from downtown as Cotton led the way with 11 points.

Kendric Davis was back to the patience he showed in game three at Qudos Bank Arena but still finished the first period with six points and five assists.

QUARTER 2

The second quarter tipped-off the way most of the first 10 minutes went as Cotton added to his scoring tally with an early layup but his rival immediately responded with a four-point play.

Humphries then continued to put his imprint on the game with back-to-back buckets, including a thunderous two-hand slam, before a Dellavedova three-pointer put a stop to any 36ers momentum.

From there, the Kings went on a 9-0 run and did their work in transition as Galloway threw down a dunk on a fast break before Soares added another layup to his performance.

All of Sydney's damage in transition came from their defence with Goorjian making a critical adjustment, putting Dellavedova on Cheatham which allowed the Kings to switch actions between Cotton and the damaging big man and slow down Adelaide's ball movement.

The Kings' increase in defensive intensity resulted in a Dellavedova charge as the mometum was well and truly in the favour of the hosts.

However, a late offensive rebound and putback from Humphries tilted the game back the way of the visitors somewhat. Humphries was impressive in the opening 20 minutes, going into the main break with 12 points and five rebounds.

Cotton seemed headed towards one of those famous finals games with 18 points and four rebounds to end the first half while Rakocevic had nine points and eight rebounds.

Davis was the man keeping the Kings ahead with a 56-55 advantage with 11 points and nine assists.

Cotton captured the first half perfectly during his half-time interview with Jo Healy: "What more can you ask for?"

QUARTER 3

The rollercoaster of game five went to another level in the third quarter as both teams tried to land knockout punches throughout the period.

Adelaide guard Dejan Vasiljevic finally hit his first basket of the decider but Davis answered back with a transition three before back-to-back triples from Dellavedova had the NBL record crowd of 18,589 on their feet as the Kings took a 67-65 lead.

Cotton couldn't be contained for much longer, hitting his fourth three-pointer, before the 36ers had rotations issues with Flynn Cameron and Rakocevic both receiving their fourth fouls.

It didn't seem to trouble Adelaide though, as they resorted to a one-four flat setup offensively to counter how the Kings were guarding Cotton, which allowed John Jenkins and Vasiljevic to find open looks from beyond the arc.

Jenkins hit one while Vasiljevic hit a logo three in danger signs for the Kings.

But it was the defence of the 36ers which reallys stood out, living with Dellavedova hitting from the outside, something that dired up late in the quarter.

Mike Wells' team limited the Kings to just 13 points in the third, scoring 21 of their own to go into the fourth and final quarter with a 76-69 lead.

The 36ers limited Davis' ability to create for himself and his teammates, executed on the offensive end, which kept the Kings out of transition and forced Dellavedova and Cooks to be the heavy-lifters offensively - a move that paid off as the visitors had all the mometum going into the final 10 minutes of the season.

QUARTER 4

The start of the fourth-quarter replicated the rest of game five, going back and forth as stars made big play after big play.

Adelaide would have to go the rest of the game without Flynn Cameron after the Kiwi fouled out early in the final period.

Jenkins came alive once again for the 36ers, hitting a mid-range jump shot and then a three-pointer to extend Adelaide's advantage, before a Cotton assist to a rolling Humphries forced an early Goorjian timeout with the visitors holding an 83-76 lead.

Things got worse for the Kings, turning the ball over straight out of the timeout, but a Galloway three at the end of a shot clock put. astop to Adelaide's momentum.

A Cotton four-point play appeared to almost put the final nail in the Kings' coffin, forcing another timeout from Goorjian, before the mastercoach had to call his final timeout after Davis had to be taken to the bench for a blood rule after a foul from Cotton.

Sydney tailed by four but a Davis hail mary three-pointer drew them within one point. Cotton was fouled on a three-point attempt from Dellavedova with the superstar making all three free-throws to give his side a 95-91 advantage.

But the Kings weren't done with Davis connecting on a floater and then Soares offensive rebound and putback drew scores level at 95-all with one possession left.

It was all set up for a Cotton game-winner but the three-time champion couldn't get an up-and-under layup to go as the Kings forced overtime.

OVERTIME

The extra five minutes belonged to Kendric Davis and the Sydney Kings.

Sydney suffocated Cotton, who looked understandably fatigued, and the Kings capitalised. The pressure from the hosts forced several turnovers from the 36ers resulting in transition layups and dunks to runaway with a 113-101 victory.

The Kings won the extra period 18-6 to add the franchise's sixth championship to their trophy cabinet.

+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+
| Date                 | Venue               | Attendance           |
+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+
| Apr 5, 2026 2:30PM   | Qudos Bank Arena    | 18,589               |
+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+

+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+
| Team                 | Score               | Result               |
+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+
| Sydney Kings         | 113                 | WIN                  |
| Adelaide 36ers       | 101                 | LOSS                 |
+----------------------+----------------------+----------------------+

+----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| Quarter Scores       | P1  | P2  | P3  | P4  | OT1 |
+----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+
| Sydney Kings         | 29  | 27  | 13  | 26  | 18  |
| Adelaide 36ers       | 31  | 24  | 21  | 19  | 6   |
+----------------------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+

Sydney Kings — Player Box Score

+----+----------------------+-------+-----+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+
| #  | Player               | MIN   | PTS | FGM | FGA | FG%    | 3PM | 3PA | 3P%    | FTM | FTA | FT%    | OR  | DR  | REB | AST | TO  | STL | BLK | PF  | +/- | EFF |
+----+----------------------+-------+-----+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+
| 1  | Kendric Davis        | 44:56 | 35  | 13  | 29  | 44.83  | 6   | 17  | 35.29  | 3   | 5   | 60.00  | 0   | 1   | 1   | 14  | 4   | 1   | 0   | 4   | +12 | 29   |
| 6  | Jaylin Galloway      | 34:18 | 16  | 5   | 11  | 45.45  | 3   | 7   | 42.86  | 3   | 3   | 100.0  | 0   | 6   | 6   | 2   | 0   | 0   | 0   | 1   | +10 | 18   |
| 8  | Matthew Dellavedova  | 22:02 | 11  | 3   | 5   | 60.00  | 3   | 5   | 60.00  | 2   | 2   | 100.0  | 1   | 2   | 3   | 3   | 0   | 0   | 0   | 5   | +11 | 15   |
| 10 | Xavier Cooks         | 34:29 | 19  | 7   | 12  | 58.33  | 0   | 0   | 0.00   | 5   | 10  | 50.00  | 7   | 5   | 12  | 4   | 2   | 3   | 1   | 3   | +10 | 27   |
| 11 | Tim Soares           | 33:26 | 20  | 8   | 11  | 72.73  | 1   | 2   | 50.00  | 3   | 4   | 75.00  | 2   | 5   | 7   | 0   | 1   | 2   | 0   | 4   | +19 | 24   |
| 2  | Torrey Craig         | 32:53 | 6   | 2   | 6   | 33.33  | 0   | 2   | 0.00   | 2   | 2   | 100.0  | 3   | 6   | 9   | 2   | 0   | 0   | 1   | 5   | +5  | 14   |
| 12 | Kouat Noi            | 10:05 | 4   | 2   | 5   | 40.00  | 0   | 1   | 0.00   | 0   | 0   | —      | 2   | 2   | 4   | 0   | 1   | 0   | 0   | 1   | -4  | 4    |
| 15 | Makuach Maluach      | 12:11 | 2   | 1   | 3   | 33.33  | 0   | 1   | 0.00   | 0   | 0   | —      | 0   | 0   | 0   | 0   | 1   | 2   | 1   | 1   | -2  | 2    |
+----+----------------------+-------+-----+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+

TEAM TOTALS:
PTS: 113 │ FG: 41-82 (50%) │ 3PT: 13-35 (37.14%) │ FT: 18-26 (69.23%)
REB: 48 │ AST: 25 │ TO: 9 │ STL: 8 │ BLK: 3

Adelaide 36ers — Player Box Score

+----+----------------------+-------+-----+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+
| #  | Player               | MIN   | PTS | FGM | FGA | FG%    | 3PM | 3PA | 3P%    | FTM | FTA | FT%    | OR  | DR  | REB | AST | TO  | STL | BLK | PF  | +/- | EFF |
+----+----------------------+-------+-----+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+
| 1  | Flynn Cameron        | 19:11 | 6   | 2   | 8   | 25.00  | 1   | 6   | 16.67  | 1   | 2   | 50.00  | 1   | 1   | 2   | 3   | 1   | 2   | 0   | 5   | +7  | 5    |
| 8  | Isaac Humphries      | 27:50 | 14  | 6   | 6   | 100.0  | 0   | 0   | —      | 2   | 2   | 100.0  | 2   | 7   | 9   | 2   | 3   | 2   | 0   | 2   | -10 | 24   |
| 11 | Bryce Cotton         | 45:00 | 35  | 9   | 22  | 40.91  | 6   | 13  | 46.15  | 11  | 11  | 100.0  | 1   | 3   | 4   | 9   | 4   | 1   | 1   | 4   | -12 | 33   |
| 34 | Dejan Vasiljevic     | 39:14 | 7   | 2   | 14  | 14.29  | 1   | 11  | 9.09   | 2   | 3   | 66.67  | 1   | 4   | 5   | 2   | 0   | 1   | 0   | 3   | -22 | 2    |
| 45 | Zylan Cheatham       | 37:59 | 15  | 4   | 11  | 36.36  | 1   | 2   | 50.00  | 6   | 7   | 85.71  | 4   | 8   | 12  | 6   | 3   | 1   | 0   | 2   | -17 | 23   |
| 12 | John Jenkins         | 34:14 | 13  | 4   | 11  | 36.36  | 3   | 9   | 33.33  | 2   | 2   | 100.0  | 0   | 0   | 0   | 0   | 0   | 1   | 0   | 3   | -12 | 7    |
| 31 | Nick Rakocevic       | 21:39 | 11  | 5   | 8   | 62.50  | 0   | 1   | 0.00   | 1   | 3   | 33.33  | 7   | 6   | 13  | 2   | 2   | 0   | 0   | 5   | +6  | 19   |
+----+----------------------+-------+-----+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+--------+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+------+

TEAM TOTALS:
PTS: 101 │ FG: 32-80 (40%) │ 3PT: 12-42 (28.57%) │ FT: 25-30 (83.33%)
REB: 49 │ AST: 24 │ TO: 13 │ STL: 8 │ BLK: 1