How to watch & talking points: SE Melbourne v Perth (Seeding Qualifier)

01 Mar 2026

south east melbourne phoenix

perth wildcats

South East Melbourne hosts Perth in the NBL26 Seeding Qualifier on Wednesday night.

South East Melbourne Phoenix v Perth Wildcats
Wednesday, March 4, 7.30pm AEDT
John Cain Arena

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Talking points

Turning point
‍The South East Melbourne Phoenix finished off the season with a very different defensive rating than they started it and the decline began when they faced the Wildcats at the State Basketball Centre in January.

Perth decided to attack the Phoenix’s pressure and had success doing so, which laid a blueprint for other teams to follow.

Power forward battle
‍Two of the best in their position will go head-to-head once again, when the Best Defensive Player in John Brown III draws the matchup of Kristian Doolittle.

While Doolittle may have the edge in terms of his production offensively, he’s also found a way to be super-effective defensively, becoming arguably the best two-way player in the League.

How does Brown III slow down the Wildcats' most important weapon?

Young stars to shine
‍Two of Australia’s brightest young guards in Ben Henshall and Owen Foxwell will lock horns to begin the game and have both proven to be crucial to their team’s success.

Not only can they both turn it on when required, in terms of scoring the ball, but their ability to control the offense has been key for the rest of their starters to get going.

Phoenix's Plan B
‍When the Wildcats got their two wins over the Phoenix in the regular season, it came down to Jordan Hunter getting in early foul trouble.

When he went to the bench, Jo Lual Acuil Jr went to work and became tough to stop for Josh King’s men.

While the Phoenix will be hoping that doesn’t occur in this game, the question remains as to what is their plan B if they have to go down that path.

What they're saying

Phoenix import Wes Iwundu on playing against Perth:
“We've got to really lock in on these guys [Perth]. It's a good team. We've faced them plenty of times, and they’ve beaten us the last two times.

“[It’s important we’re] trying to make sure our attention to detail is very special going into this game, to give ourselves the best chance to win it.

“Honestly, we’ve got all the pieces. From one to whatever it goes, we can have all the pieces and all the depth needed to make a deep run in these playoffs [starting on Wednesday].

“When I look at our team compared to other teams, I think we're the deepest in the league, and that's going to take us a long way in the playoffs.

“Certain guys might be tired on the other teams, but we’ve got another body to throw out there for a moment and give our guys some rest.

“We have the right mindset and the right bodies to make a great playoff run.”

Wildcats forward Kristian Doolittle on the growth of Elijah Pepper and Ben Henshall:
“They [Pepper and Henshall] were very important to our success [in the back end of the season], and they will remain to be for the remainder of the season.

“For us to win a championship, I feel like they'll have to have high contributions on offence, and make timely shots for us.

“I feel like whenever they're on, the opponent’s defence has to pick their poison on what they want to take away, because they have to respect everybody [including Pepper and Henshall] on the floor.”