The Countdown is On to Christmas Day Hoops

The historic night of Christmas hoops is almost upon us as the Sydney Kings prepare to host Melbourne United in the first ever Christmas Day fixture in Australian sport.

A new chapter will be written in the long and storied on-court rivalry between Melbourne and Sydney basketball, and the team who takes the win here will hold on to eternal bragging rights.

The reigning champions and host side Sydney are looking to usurp the New Zealand Breakers at the top of the table – and while United will be hoping star King Xavier Cooks will miss the clash with an ankle injury, the powers at be in Sydney are loathe to rule the star man out of the game.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Santa will be dunking more than just cookies on Christmas Night???<br><br>See Santa and the Kings take on Melbourne United at Qudos Bank Arena this Christmas! <br><br>Tickets available via Ticketek ? <a href="https://t.co/ys1smvpcWN">https://t.co/ys1smvpcWN</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeTheKings?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeTheKings</a> <a href="https://t.co/UzZWB7Mgxe">pic.twitter.com/UzZWB7Mgxe</a></p>&mdash; Sydney Kings (@SydneyKings) <a href="https://twitter.com/SydneyKings/status/1603540512170209280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

A winning run has brought Melbourne back into contention for play-off basketball, but having played three games more than those around them on the table they need to keep winning to keep the pressure on.

Rayjon Tucker has looked like a man reborn in recent games, and his high-flying antics above the rim make for a must see show on any court he takes to in the country – and Kings fans will know all about their own history against Melbourne skipper Chris Goulding.

Christmas Day hoops looks set to be an absolute scorcher of a game. You can be at Qudos Bank Arena to witness history – buy your tickets here.