West Sydney beat Sydney Kings 106-75
The West Sydney Razorbacks ended a three month losing streak at home and over two years of pain from their local rival as they thumped the Sydney Kings 106-75 in SYdney.
The Razorbacks had lost 11 straight home games and been beaten eight successive times by the Kings but exacted some revenge by inflicting their biggest every victory over Sydney.
The Pigs capitalised on a cold start from the Kings' offence at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre to notch only their fourth win in 29 games this season.
The Kings scored the first four points of the game but then missed 20 straight field goals.
Their tally of eight was their lowest first quarter points total ever as they conceded a 20-point lead to the Pigs.
Sparked by guard James Harvey, who finished with a game high 29 points, West Sydney never led by less than seven points after the first break.
A 14-0 run either side of three quarter time ensured the Razorbacks scored their first win over their local rival since November 2004.
While the Big Day Out and Roger Waters concerts in the Olympic Park complex would have attracted bigger turn outs, the assembled crowds would have struggled to make more noise than the success starved Razorbacks supporters.
The Kings came from 16 points down at the final change to beat Wollongong last Monday, but there was to be no Houdini-like escape in the NBL record 652nd match for Sydney coach Brian Goorjian.
The visitors closed the gap to seven points in the second quarter before the Razorbacks hit all four of their three-point attempts in that term to go to the long break with a 19 point advantage.
Kings skipper Jason Smith, who finished with a team high 20 points, tried desperately to rally his flagging troops in the third quarter, scoring 11 points in that period.
The Pigs' lead was slashed to nine late in the third quarter before they made their decisive charge.
Veteran forward Scott McGregor, who re-entered the game in the second quarter after dislocating a finger in the first, was the only Razorback who had played on a winning team against the Kings before now.
The victory was a fitting way to celebrate McGregor's 350th NBL appearance.
The Razorbacks had five double-digit scorers to Sydney's three.
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