2026-01-16

Perth 92 - 87 Illawarra

Perth defeated Illawarra 92-87 in a high-scoring fourth quarter that decided the outcome. Despite Illawarra shooting 44.83% from the three-point line, they struggled to convert points at the rim, shooting just 37.65% from the field. Perth won despite a lower field goal percentage (41.43%) due to superior free throw execution (27 of 37, 73%) and an 11-7 turnover advantage, with Illawarra committing a crucial turnover with 1:01 remaining in the game. The Breakers' offense stalled in the final minutes while the Wildcats pushed the tempo, capitalizing on transition opportunities to close out the game. Jo Lual-Acuil Jr led Perth with 20 points on efficient shooting (8 of 13), supporting Kristian Doolittle's double-double (21 points, 11 rebounds). Illawarra's Todd Blanchfield led the Hawks with 16 points, but the team's reliance on deep shots resulted in a lower effective field goal percentage (45.29%) compared to Perth's 46.43%.

Score Flow

Perth

Player MIN PTS REB AST FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% OR DR STL BLK TO PF +/-
Kristian DoolittleK. Doolittle (#5) 35:03 21 11 3 3-10 30.0 1-6 16.7 14-18 77.8 2 9 0 0 0 0 +1
Jo Lual-Acuil JrJ. Lual-Acuil Jr 23:27 20 7 0 8-13 61.5 0-1 0.0 4-8 50.0 1 6 1 2 2 3 +14
Ben HenshallB. Henshall (#10) 29:05 15 7 7 6-12 50.0 2-6 33.3 1-2 50.0 3 4 0 1 2 2 +9
Dylan WindlerD. Windler (#3) 37:47 11 10 3 4-11 36.4 2-8 25.0 1-1 100.0 2 8 1 0 2 3 +5
Elijah PepperE. Pepper (#40) 31:05 7 4 2 2-10 20.0 1-8 12.5 2-2 100.0 1 3 1 0 1 1 +4
Jesse WagstaffJ. Wagstaff (#24) (C) 13:14 7 4 1 2-4 50.0 0-1 0.0 3-3 100.0 2 2 0 0 0 2 +7
David OkweraD. Okwera (#35) 12:23 5 1 1 2-5 40.0 1-2 50.0 0-0 0.0 1 0 1 2 0 1 -12
Dontae Russo-NanceD. Russo-Nance (#1) 07:33 2 0 0 1-1 100.0 0-0 0.0 0-1 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 1 -1
Lat MayenL. Mayen (#2) 04:29 2 1 0 1-1 100.0 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 0 1 0 0 2 1 -6
Sunday DechS. Dech (#8) 06:00 2 0 0 0-3 0.0 0-2 0.0 2-2 100.0 0 0 0 1 2 0 +4
TEAM TOTALS - 92 51 17 29-70 41.4 7-34 20.6 27-37 73.0 17 34 5 6 11 14 -

Illawarra

Player MIN PTS REB AST FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% OR DR STL BLK TO PF +/-
Wani Swaka Lo BulukW. Swaka Lo Buluk (#9) 29:38 13 2 0 4-8 50.0 3-5 60.0 2-2 100.0 0 2 2 0 0 5 -2
Tyler HarveyT. Harvey (#1) (C) 29:39 11 4 6 3-13 23.1 1-6 16.7 4-6 66.7 0 4 0 0 1 4 -3
JaVale McGeeJ. McGee 21:35 8 14 2 4-11 36.4 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 7 7 2 1 2 0 -10
Sam FrolingS. Froling (#13) 17:23 6 5 1 3-10 30.0 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 2 3 1 0 0 2 -9
Biwali BaylesB. Bayles (#14) 14:08 3 0 0 1-7 14.3 1-3 33.3 0-0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 1 -10
Todd BlanchfieldT. Blanchfield (#21) 26:26 16 2 2 6-15 40.0 4-9 44.4 0-0 0.0 0 2 0 0 0 1 +0
William HickeyW. Hickey (#6) 26:14 14 5 7 6-11 54.5 2-3 66.7 0-0 0.0 1 4 1 0 2 4 -2
Mason PeatlingM. Peatling (#22) 17:26 6 9 0 3-6 50.0 0-1 0.0 0-0 0.0 3 6 1 1 1 5 +7
Daniel GridaD. Grida (#11) 10:41 5 1 1 1-3 33.3 1-1 100.0 2-2 100.0 1 0 0 0 0 1 -2
Johny NarkleJ. Narkle (#16) 03:59 5 2 2 1-1 100.0 1-1 100.0 2-2 100.0 2 0 0 0 0 1 +4
Jackson BallJ. Ball (#2) 02:56 0 0 0 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 0-0 0.0 0 0 0 0 1 2 +2
TEAM TOTALS - 87 49 21 32-85 37.6 13-29 44.8 10-12 83.3 18 31 7 2 7 26 -

Four Factors

Team eFG% TOV% ORB% FT Rate
Perth 46.4% 11.3% 35.4% 52.9%
Illawarra 45.3% 7.2% 34.6% 14.1%

eFG% (Effective Field Goal %): Adjusts FG% for 3-pointers being worth more

TOV% (Turnover Rate): Turnovers per 100 possessions (lower is better)

ORB% (Offensive Rebound Rate): % of available offensive rebounds grabbed

FT Rate: Free throw attempts relative to field goal attempts