It was a blistering start from the Sydney Kings in Perth, but Brian Goorjian felt because they had to respond late to hold on that it was their best game to have so far in NBL27 with different players stepping up including Jayden Stone.
Goorjian wanted a response from the defending champions after Sunday's loss to United in Melbourne. He got that in the best possible way to start the game in Perth on Wednesday night.
The Kings made their first 10 shots before shooting 13/14 in the first quarter to lead 33-17 after 10 minutes with Kendric Davis already having 16 points on perfect shooting.
Sydney ended up leading by 25, but the Wildcats finished the first half on a 9-1 run and were all the way back within four early in the fourth.
That was where the Kings were truly tested and what Goorjian was most pleased with was how they got momentum back their way for the 99-91 win to improve to 6-3 ahead of facing the Tasmania JackJumpers in Launceston on Friday night.
"It was real good for us tonight and we've talked a lot about playing through bad patches and difficulty and disappointment, and that we're in the stage of the year where when some things go against us, things haven’t been good and it just snowballs," Goorjian said.
"Tonight, I just knew there was no way we were blowing them out and the big aspect of the game was how the second quarter ended.
"We got up 25 and if you go up 27, 28 it makes it a lot more difficult but when a team runs off nine unanswered points to get back to 17, it's a totally different game.
"So I was prepared for what took place and in your own mind you're dealing with calls and things that go on, but for us there was some really uncomfortable possessions.
"There was a lot of time left and it was anybody's game and we had discussed about how we handled those times, and tonight was the best and a step forward. Since our loss that was a focus point and I'm real pleased with them in there."
Goorjian couldn’t have asked for a better start and in a lot of ways, it might have been the perfect first quarter.
Sydney hit the first 10 shots and didn’t miss for seven minutes and were leading 25-7 before they missed their first attempt, and were leading 33-17 by quarter-time.
Davis was already up to 16 points with two assists, zero turnovers and shooting 7/7, and Goorjian got the exact response to Sunday's loss out of the gate he was hoping for.
"I knew that we were going to be locked in and I knew after the last couple of days with what we took place in our last game that the guys were going to be locked in defensively, and were going to move the ball better," Goorjian said.
"That was a focus right from the start of the game and Kendric had those same shots early in the Melbourne game and the difference was they went down tonight.
"That forced them to double and triple team, but I thought we played off those a lot better and it was a great start to the game. I knew we'd come with energy and I thought we moved the ball and it created good shots for us."
As good as the start to the game was from the Kings, what Goorjian was even more pleased about was how they responded in the fourth quarter to the momentum the Wildcats had.
Perth got back within four with a hot start to the last term and the Kings were put under the pump, but Torrey Craig came up with three huge mid-range jumpers from there before he slammed the door with a massive three.
It was the second half response to the Wildcats' charge that Goorjian came away most satisfied with.
"To be where we were and for them to cut it within four, and it wasn’t without a minute to go, there was a lot of time left in the game," Goorjian said.
"I thought we went to a really good place and didn’t buckle. We went to the next possession and didn’t play perfect basketball from that point, but we defended and if we were disappointed with a call or something somebody did on the floor, it was onto the next.
"Getting rewarded with a win on this court with how this team's been playing this year was huge for us."
Another thing Goorjian likes about this team so far in NBL27 is that different bench players grabbing their chance.
Makuach Maluach hit his first four threes again to be shooting 67 per cent from deep for the season while Perth-local Stone enjoyed his return home for his best NBL performance.
Goorjian showed great faith in him to play him over 19 minutes where Stone finished with five points and four rebounds including a crucial three-pointer, but it was about more than just his numbers.
"He had a little event yesterday as did Wessels and they were really excited to perform in front of family, and this is home, and you always want to play well at home," Goorjian said.
"He was giving us a real physical presence and when you're courtside and stand there and look at (Kristian) Doolittle, (Dylan) Windler and Jesse (Wagstaff), they're not seven-feet tall, but they're a bunch of 6'8, 6'7 guys that are put together.
"He brought a physical presence where he could guard all the guys that I just named so he could guard a power guy in the four position, he could pick up a guard, he could switch and then the other thing he is for a guard is a tremendous rebounder.
"Him, (Harry) Wessels, Will Johnston, they haven’t played in the NBL before and haven’t played in an environment in Australia like this before. So with this process we're going through, I really am excited about the steps that those young guys are taking."
This week had the potential to be a horror one for the Kings given how they lost in Melbourne on Sunday and even though it was a big win three nights earlier, they were still away to Illawarra too.
They had to fly to Perth to prepare to play against an in-form team on Wednesday night and head straight to Launceston to prepare to take on the league-leading Tasmania JackJumpers on Friday.
But all of a sudden, that task in Launceston on Friday isn’t looking quite as daunting with what Goorjian saw from the Kings in Perth on Wednesday.
"We talked a lot about the schedule coming into the season and everybody's been talking about how we haven’t left our place, but we have the second toughest schedule rated in the league," Goorjian said.
"We started at home, but now it's an onslaught and we're doing boom, boom, boom. I know we have a layover in Melbourne tomorrow after a six o'clock up and out in the morning, and then we get there and then are playing the next day.
"And we've come off three road games. Everyone's dealing with it but that's when you see the importance of the youth and the bench.
"If you want to get to where you want to, you gotta win games like this so tonight was a really good start and to me this week is three of the teams too.
"I rate Melbourne really highly, I rate this team very highly and everybody knows what's going on in Tasmania. So not only is it the schedule, but also the calibre of team."