Rillie: Game 2 cost Wildcats

The Perth Wildcats may have suffered defeat in the do-or-die Game 3 Playoff clash with Tasmania, but head coach John Rillie believes the opportunity to win the series game was in Hobart, as opposed to on Wednesday night in Perth.

The Wildcats entered their Game 2 clash knowing a win would secure their place in the Championship Series for the first time since 2021, however they fell to a JackJumpers side that was without starting center Marcus Lee, to be forced into a third and final game of the series.

Perth eventually fell by a comfortable 16 points at RAC Arena in a game the home side struggled to establish any form of dominance in.

Rillie says when you have a chance to put a series to bed, you have to take it.

“In my experiences in Playoff basketball, and I was a part of a team that I would say choked a championship away to the Sydney Kings (in 2004), it’s not tonight’s game, it was Game 2 where we had the opportunity to go down there and win the game,” Rillie said.

“It’s easy to reflect on tonight’s game and mull through all of that, but when you have the opportunity to wrap up a series, you need to wrap that series up.

“We had an opportunity down there, especially with the way we started the night.

“The JackJumpers played very well, congratulations to them, the last two games they were the better team. It’s very important to have a nice presence defensively which we did for a good portion of the series, but tonight we didn’t have the same collective grit we had for a good portion of the year.

“They did a good job of executing and moving the ball, they made shots and, unfortunately, we didn’t.”

Rillie also took the opportunity to express his disappointment in apparent questioning of Perth’s medical staff following Keanu Pinder’s exit and eventual return to Game 2.

The star center struggled in the decisive game of the series and ended scoreless – however he was able to pull in six rebounds and register four steals.

“We have a qualified medical staff, I have my players’ wellbeing at the highest on my list,” he said.

“When we have uneducated comments being made about something that happened, I would question whether those people really have the players’ wellbeing at the forefront of their mind,”.

“I’m very disappointed.”

The immediate playing future of Jesse Wagstaff still remains uncertain, and given the heralded 37-year-old is currently out of contract going into next season, there is a chance the six-time champion featured in his final NBL game in the defeat.

The club captain became an integral part of Rillie’s rotation after finding himself out of the reckoning early in the season, and Rillie says any decision for Wagstaff to continue would be totally mutual between player and club.

“I would say since I’ve been here it’s always been a mutual situation,” he said.

“I think it’s been his most productive year in the last five or six seasons. I’ll let him speak on it but I think the nature of our group brought a nice energy to himself, he’s phenomenal around our guys, his ability to be like a chameleon and bond with different types of guys is a skill that will serve him well in life.

“When it’s mutual, he has to be comfortable with that. We haven’t had that conversation because we were striving to get number 11 for the club, but he had a ripper season.”

Wagstaff added the time for a decision on his playing future will come soon.

“I’ll let that simmer, I appreciate the question, but it’s probably not the time or place,” he said.

“It’s not about me, it’s about the organisation and striving for that 11. It’ll all come in good time.”