Sydney coach Brian Goorjian says veteran Matthew Dellavedova is "instrumental" in their quest to repeat as NBL champions after the Kings pulled off the season's biggest comeback with a 110-99 victory over South East Melbourne Phoenix.
In the Kings' first home game since October 17, the partisan crowd was left stunned after the Phoenix jumped out to a 30-9 lead midway through the first quarter on Sunday.
Returning from a calf injury that had sidelined him since round four, Dellavedova produced the initial spark off the bench before stars Kendric Davis (28 points, nine assists) and Xavier Cooks (15 points, 14 rebounds) lifted in the second-half.
The Kings (8-3) climbed to the top of the ladder on percentage over Tasmania JackJumpers.
"When he was injected into the game....it settled us down. It got Kendric back into the game," Goorjian said of Dellavedova, who hit a key three-pointer and produced composed playmaking to start the fightback.
"If we're going to go to where we need to go, he's instrumental."
Dellavedova (seven points, four assists) led the Kings' bench, who outscored their Phoenix counterparts 30-18.
"I felt like there was plenty of time," Goorjian said of the Kings' early hole. "It's not 25 down in the middle of the third.
"Over the course of the last month, we've been getting lots of contributions from the bench."
The Kings had to withstand a comeback from the Phoenix, who whittled down a 17-point deficit in the third quarter to get within 93-89 midway through the last period.
Nathan Sobey had a game-high 33 points for the Phoenix (4-7), who are mired near the bottom after tapering off from beyond the arc having hit 8 of 15 in a blistering first quarter.
But Sobey lacked support, with former NBA player Skylar Mays scoring two points from 1-of-7 shooting in just 10 minutes of playing time.
"Everybody is replaceable, including myself," Phoenix coach Josh King said when asked if moving on from Mays was an option.
"This is professional sports, it's a performance-based business. He's a capable basketball player and we just need him to play better."
After a brutal four-game road trip in eight days was followed by a nine-day breather, the Kings returned to the court in scratchy fashion.
A pumped-up Phoenix's fast tempo caused problems and a flurry of shots from deep powered them to an astonishing 21-2 lead.
A layup from Cooks finally ended the Phoenix's 19-0 run, before Dellavedova sparked the Kings whose dominant second and third quarters turned the game on its head.
The Phoenix bravely fought back in the last quarter, with Sobey rediscovering his hot hand, but the Kings had all the answers.
