Kings got too much fire power and depth. Cairns will have a go but kings got this by 15.

I think/hope Cairns at home so I selfishly get a game 3 on Sunday to attend...

We really need Pinder to put some breaks on Cooks but hopefully our home court will help get us home.

Hope Antonio sinks a few long bombs & gives Chase the bird.

Snakes in OT by 2

Gooo the Snakes!!

Can barely watch 2 minutes without getting an error code from kayo, love it

Nice start by snakes, kings depth gets you at the end though.

I see Smith, Longley and Bogut in the crowd. Very good game, can snakes hang on, McCall on three fouls isn't good. Waardenburg again very good. Simons doing the damage for kings with good help from Glover. McCall really helps defensively for snakes.

Cooks limps off when kings 17 down, can snakes get this, one and half quarters to go.

Have only just tuned in. What's the go with Scott?

Buford never uses Hunter, even when Cooks out. 3/4 time snakes by 16. Walton junior travels, and carries the ball a lot imo. Cairns crowd giving it kings. Game not over yet though I'm hopeful.

Gaze seems to be a bit of a one eyed fan

Scott been out all game, Cooks not coming back, was ineffective while on.

Why is Scott not playing?

vasiljevic doing his best Blanchfield impersonation

Good ole Chase.

The lack of security staff around the Kings team and Chase when he walked off is a little eye opening also.

You can't behave like Buford, storming on the court, it was a flop, he bent at the knees so fast, yes he got hit in head by reaching in.

Game descending in to farce. Interesting to see how Sydney reacts when they're given a good shake. Would love to see Cairns dust them in G3.

Soares got problems, have the nbl got the balls for suspensions. Kings behaving like Prima donnas.

Piss poor from Soares

This is one of the great playoff upsets in NBL playoff history. Cairns so undermanned and knocking off the reigning champs. Just wow. Hopefully game 3 isn't a fizzer.

Buford could also be in trouble at the beginning of the time out for the coach's challenge when he looks into the baseline camera and says " Chris Reid sucks". He has priors here. He may not coach Sunday.

Would love to see Cairns dust them in G3.

This is one of the great playoff upsets in NBL playoff history. Cairns so undermanned and knocking off the reigning champs. Just wow. Hopefully game 3 isn't a fizzer.

Taipans go you good thing. Super impressive, doing things their way, leaves Deng on bench, unearthing no-names who are contributing. Getting the most out of everybody

That was great watching the mentally fragile Kings lose the plot

Would be so epic if Kings get rolled on their home deck. Cairns will be tired with their limited rotation but you never know. It all comes down to 40 minutes.

[The odds were even money]

The odds assumed Scott was playing. Kings would've been favourite if it was known he was out. But I agree, not a ridiculously unexpected result. Cairns have been clicking and "overachieving" all year. Let's hope for another Sunday

On the Wagstaff precedent Soares should be gone.

Cooks ankle is the big X Factor here

Although it did look ok in the tunnel. We'll see. Would rather see him on court, he's the villain we all wanna see go down

Just remembered, Barker sustained a concussion from Wagstaff. Key difference. Suspect Soares Will be ok

Yeah, zero composure down the stretch, very disappointed. I'm ok with Buford fishing for a tech to fire up the team for game 3, but it led to what came next.

Soares will be suspended but to be honest with the way he fouls I don't know how big a loss that is.

Interesting game and very poor coaching. It wasn't really so visible during the season but it was so obvious tonight that Vasiljevic and Walton can't play together. Walton seems to ignore plays designed for DJ but passed three times to Glover on the same set. Sydney has nobody to blame - 9 missed FTs, 20 TOs in a basically very close game was the difference in the end.

Waardenburg has some attitude, cockiness maybe arrogance?

Could be the best local 5 in the comp!

Just great to have a game three, Cooks didn't look that bad, should play, Soares should be gone, imo Buford should also be gone, twice on the court abusing referees, it’s not good enough.
Cairns will be gallant but I think the petrol in their tanks will be dry. Forde really showing if you don’t defend well you don’t play, Deng and Djeric bench warmers even with low healthy numbers.
Hunter should ask for out at kings, he’s better than a few minutes of garbage time.

Cairns deserved their victory but refereeing is so sub par in this series compared to the other semi between NZ & Tasmania
Fernades is the worse with his flop calls & inconsistency's in calls. Like if a player falls let it ride it’s 5 on 4, player’s will stay on their feet
For Buford & Soares both will be fine & be in the game. Buford done his time with being ejected so nothing will happen there & Soares will get a fine with a early plea
On the summary shear the only difference is free throws & turnovers, if the Kings fix this they will be in the grand final

Burford actually thinks he is the Coach Popovich of the NBL! Totally classless with his 2 year old tantrums, how about focusing on getting DJ going in the series instead of looking down the camera & making comments about the umpiring.

Brilliant defensive adjustments from Forde and Cairns, threw Sydney completely out of whack. Thoroughly deserved to get a decider. Hopefully both teams as close to full strength as possible, should be a great game.

Buford didn't get ejected he walked out after receiving his first tech , Mayberry was surprised by this and the subsequent verbal abuse he got as Buford walked past him earned him his second tech which I guess means he was in the end ejected . I understand sticking up for your players but he just threw his toys out of the cot and cried. Kudos to the Kings players for not only abusing the fans but calling them out for a fight in the car park after the game classy stuff .Soares spent the last 2 minutes of the game throwing his weight around and finally landed one of Sam it was only luck that he did not get more injured .We already have two players out of the final series with facial fractures and he could easily have made it 3 .

SamCro - doubt anything will change in game 3. In game 1 emphasis was on DJ, game 2 DJ and Cooks - basically Forde will allow anyone else shoot but them. So the solution seems simple - get DJ going by running plays for him (same as MU started having successes when started running plays for CG). That will open room for Cooks (and others) to drive. Last night Walton passed it only once to DJ and Sydney will not win games without DJ delivering something but without open looks he will have hard time to deliver.

Buford will only keep getting jobs because of the last name, anyone else without the connections that carries on like this will quickly wear out their welcome. The guy can coach but there's going to be a point in time where no will care who his dad is.

I don't think the Kings were prepared for the defensive intensity they encountered from the start of the game which seemed to throw them completely out of whack, as Anonymightymouse noted. Scott not playing may have also thrown them a curve ball. McCall was very good in his place despite his 6 turnovers.

One of the more memorable games I have been to and the close to sell out crowd would have all gone home very happy. No Pinder, no Scott and a restricted McCall beat a team who are supposed to win it all. The challenge for the Taipans on Sunday is it will be their 5th game in 11 days and Sydney will make some adjustments however if Cooks is not playing it could make things interesting.

The flop call on Noi might have been harsh, but it was clearly a foul and if Noi hadn't stuck his nose into Waardenburg and not started bleeding none of the eruption with Buford would have happened. It was be nice to see in super slow mo if he actually did flop. Noi and Sydney are a perfect match.

Noi fouled Hogg & at the same time they hit their heads together right in front off the referee, who then calls a flop. Buford has every right to blow up as the referee is right there & only looking for 1 thing. As I said earlier Fernades is poor & shouldn't be calling in the NBL

I like the flop warning & NBl should implement it from the start of the year. it does seem like Kings have been targeted for it in this series. If they don't reward the flop players stop doing it & it's as simple as that.

Adam Forde can smell blood now & what a great game 3 this will be!!

Let's see how the snakes handle a very hostile environment...

Qudos Arena is not a hostile environment. Illawarra, NZ, Perth and Cairns are the most uncomfortable places to play.

I don't consider Qudos hostile either. With the crowds we've been getting the noise is insane when we go on a run, but that's not the same as hostile.

Do we know when game 1 will be of GF?

BTW if Sydney don't give us a hostile reception tomorrow the fans need a lesson in home court support. Our fans last night ripped into the visitors & we should expect the same treatment.

I'll be happy for Cairns if it's not hostile though...

Do we know when game 1 will be of GF?

"Qudos Arena is not a hostile environment. Illawarra, NZ, Perth and Cairns are the most uncomfortable places to play."

Tassie says hi.

The NBL's refs aren't at a good enough level to officiate flops on the spot. We regularly see charges called for contact that is given a flop warning on a different possession.

The league should adopt the NBA idea that flops are adjudicated by video afterwards. In the moment, the refs should just allow play to go on if they think it's a flop.

Tassie is very loud but not hostile. The other 4 can be down right nasty

Illawarra? Really?

Agreed Mouse. Post game videos would be the most effective solution

Clearly you have never been to Illawarra Ben. Absolutely feral

There's no way any suspensions happen in time for game three, right?

Post-game videos, fine, provided that there was enough punishment to fit the crime, as it were.

First offense in a season = suspend for a game, and then double the suspension every time it happens again. 3 flops by Goulding or Wagstaff = suspended for four games. I think you'd see no more flopping from them after that.

No suspensions.

League is a fucking joke.

As expected, Flop was not a Flop (Obviously call not made by Mayberry, They would not have thrown him under the bus)
Also no chance a Sydney team would get suspended, most of us would just expect that, but the size of the fines are just ridiculous, small change for them.
All credibility gone.

I don't get it. Buford has a suspended suspension. Offends again and cops a game. Now for a third time and this time a far worse exhibition of poor behaviour......no suspension.

I don't get it. Buford has a suspended suspension. Offends again and cops a game. Now for a third time and this time a far worse exhibition of poor behaviour......no suspension.

Surely the penalty should be more severe every time you repeat the same offence.

What utter bullshit, there is no integrity left in the NBL.

Kings are obviously their favourite child due to being the biggest market.

Disappointing result as per the judiciary, but no point crying over spilt milk. I hope we go down to Sydney tomorrow and win convincingly. The league has shown it doesn't have the integrity to police its rules fairly. Big market teams always get away with situations as such....

Snakes for the Win tomorrow as a big "F" you to Sydney, and the NBL.

A Snakes win tomorrow would be gold....just to see Buford and Smith react with zero class.

Soares shoulder to the head would get you a week in both codes. The nbl has to be careful, players with their lawyers can come back at you in future years.

Buford will more than likely get away with it even though he should be suspended.

Who has the balls to do it.

He does not deserve to be able to coach.

No doubt there's a lot at stake for the NBL - they NEED Sydney in the GF, which means they need Sydney to win tomorrow

What a joke ith just fines.

Precedent set for future same matters.

Look after the Kings-absolute joke

Fines are as useless as f**k - suspension is the only way to enforce whatever standards the NBL says it has

Havachat did you see the league statement. Flop was incorrect and it was Fernandes not Mayberry. But hey, cool vendetta

Hey Sebastian,
Read the post, I said lucky Mayberry did NOT make the call, I doubt they would have thrown him under the bus as they did Fernandes. Had to make it look like Buford had a reason to go off, just about dollars, need the Kings in there to make some money, just so blatant.