'Bank is Open!' Pepper burns down Cotton’s 300th

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Bryce Cotton ($473,900) hit big-time shots countless times inside RAC Arena in his now 300-game NBL career, but this time the six-time MVP was on the receiving end as Wildcats shooting guard Elijah Pepper ($202,700) muscled a banked and-1 three to beat the Adelaide 36ers on the buzzer, 98-97 in Round 2 of NBL27 on Thursday, September 24, 2026.

Ironically, Pepper called game on Cotton, who fouled Pepper on the three. Pepper missed the free throw on purpose with 1.1 seconds left to let the clock run down.

“That wasn’t exactly the play that was drawn up,” Pepper admitted.

“We have stuff set up for that, but, as I said, he was able to turn me a couple of times, which made it tough to get into those actions. By the time I got to the three-point line, I think there were only two seconds left, so I just had to get one up. He happened to reach when I was going to shoot.”

It was a galvanising response to the Wildcats' disappointing blow-out loss to South East Melbourne Phoenix on Saturday, while they wait for import point guard Brandon Knight ($277,000) to arrive.

The significance wasn’t lost on Pepper.

“I think staying together is huge for us,” he said.

“After the South East game, I think it was tied with about six minutes left, and they went on that big run to blow the game out. This time, they went on a run in the third quarter and made a run at the end of the fourth as well, but we stuck together.

“That’s big for this group. Teams are going to make runs. Basketball’s a game of ups and downs, so being able to stick together is huge for us.”

What you need to know

• Perth Wildcats beat Adelaide 36ers 98-97 at RAC Arena in Round 2 of NBL27, in front of 10,145.
• Perth led 30-20 at quarter time, the scores were level at 48-48 by half time, Adelaide led 77-70 at the last change, and the Wildcats won the final quarter 28-20 to take it by one.
• Bryce Cotton scored 37 for Adelaide on 10-for-22 with seven threes and 10-for-12 at the line; Elijah Pepper led Perth with 25 on 10-for-17.
• Both sides took exactly 67 shots from the field. Perth made 39 of them, Adelaide 31.
• Adelaide went to the free-throw line 33 times to Perth's 13, and missed nine of them. Perth missed one.

Perth Wildcats

• Elijah Pepper ($202,700) top-scored with 25 points on 10-for-17, including 3-for-7 from three.
• Jo Lual-Acuil Jr ($318,100) had 21 points and a game-high 11 rebounds on 8-for-14, with 5-for-5 at the line.
• Anthony Dell'Orso ($100,000) scored 20 on 9-for-12 and added six assists and three steals.
• Dylan Windler ($271,100) had 16 points, four rebounds and three assists on 6-for-13 before fouling out.
• Kristian Doolittle ($317,500) finished with 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists on 4-for-7, playing more minutes than anyone in a Perth shirt.
• Jesse Wagstaff ($84,700) did not score but handed out four assists in 10 minutes.
• Jimmy Whitt ($69,000) added two points in 10 minutes, part of a Perth bench that scored four points between them.
• Perth shot 39-for-67 from the field, 8-for-23 from three, and 12-for-13 at the line, with 31 rebounds, 24 assists, and 12 turnovers.

Adelaide 36ers

• Bryce Cotton ($473,900) scored 37 with nine assists and four steals on 10-for-22, 7-for-12 from three and 10-for-12 at the line, in just under 40 minutes.
• Zylan Cheatham ($339,500) had 21 points, nine rebounds and five assists on 6-for-9, with 7-for-11 at the line.
• Nick Rakocevic ($188,400) added 20 points and eight rebounds on 10-for-19.
• John Jenkins ($152,100) scored seven off the bench on 3-for-9.
• Keanu Rasmussen ($69,000) had six points and two steals in 17 minutes, going 4-for-4 at the line.
• Matt Kenyon ($69,000) contributed two points, five rebounds and two steals in 18 minutes.
• Jacob Rigoni ($69,000) managed one point in 20 minutes as a starter and missed both his three-point attempts.
• Adelaide shot 31-for-67 from the field, 11-for-26 from three, and 24-for-33 at the line, with 35 rebounds, 23 assists, and seven turnovers.

36ers head coach Trevor Gleeson, who won five championships with the Perth Wildcats, didn’t hide his disappointment.

“I really thought we went a backwards step today,” he admitted.

“Obviously, we didn’t start [well]. We knew Perth would come out pretty aggressive after last week. Then we weathered the storm, and I thought we had the tempo of the game. About two minutes before three-quarter time, I tried to get some guys rest, ready for the fourth quarter.

“I think it went from 13 to seven, and then they cut it down pretty quickly.

“I was really disappointed how we kept reverting to Bryce and not moving the ball and running our offence. It was all like, ‘He must touch the ball’.

“You can’t win that way. Well, my experience is you can’t win that way.”

Wildcats' shooting guard went from coal to diamond in the space of five days. The former Arizona Wildcat torched Adelaide for 20 points on 9-for-12 from the field after not scoring against the Phoenix.

“Credit to Delly,” Perth Wildcats head coach John Rillie said.

“He was disappointed, and we were disappointed, in his influence on last week. We saw a nice sample size of what he can be, but he’s also jumping into a professional atmosphere that will have its bumps. We’ve seen both sides of it already.

“Now the trick is finding that consistently.”