No "get out of jail free cards" left for Wildcats

After three straight, gritty wins, the Perth Wildcats crashed back to Earth on Wednesday night during their Ignite Cup loss to Brisbane.

A big part of those victories was the Wildcats’ resolute defence, but as coach John Rillie explained in the post-game press conference on Wednesday, that aspect wasn’t present during the Round 5 fixture at RAC Arena.

“In our previous four encounters, even including that loss to Tasmania, we did a really good job of respecting the opposition on our defensive end,” Rillie said.

“That’s what kept us [in those games], but we didn’t [produce it] at the same level tonight.

“It was really disappointing with how lackadaisical we were on that end of the court.

“Tied in our defensive effort and lack of rebounding, it was really tough to create any energy in anything we did.

“That performance, in front of our home fans, is going to eat at me for a little while.”

Echoing Rillie’s disappointment was Wildcats skipper Jesse Wagstaff, whose side was out-rebounded 46-32 on the night.

“I sat in here three weeks ago talking about Tasmania and the kind of style of play [we’re trying to play],” Wagstaff said.

“[Honestly] our record doesn't indicate where we are.

“We’ve probably used our get out of jail free cards.”

The Wildcats have a quick turnaround, heading to Sydney for a Sunday afternoon clash with the Kings.

The Round 5 fixture at Qudos Bank Arena tips off at 4.30pm AEDT, live on ESPN and 10 DRAMA.