Wildcats Excited for Historic Open Air Game

The Perth Wildcats will open the RAC Arena roof on Saturday night for WA’s first open-air game when they host the Adelaide 36ers.

NBL veteran and Wildcats captain Jesse Wagstaff commented on his excitement in what will be a cracking and unique atmosphere.

“Everyone here just loves playing games, that’s why we’re athletes, we’re playing basketball, we’re doing something we love. You want to play with the brightest lights and roof open, it should be a cracker,” Wagstaff said.

“You want to play in the big games and play games that mean something.”

Melbourne United’s open-air game earlier this season was sold out and the environment in Perth promises to be just as special. 

Coach John Rillie assured the 'Cats won't succumb to the pressure of the open-air game and have been preparing in training the same way as other games this season.

“It’s something that players may buy into early, I was lucky enough to play in one myself," Rillie said.

“You go into the game thinking weather is going to play a part in it where really all it is, is like playing outside with the elements and 11,000 thousand fans cheering you on.

“It’s going to be a great environment and it certainly doesn’t impact the way you play.

“I think the Perth fans and the WA community in general, this is exciting because it’s the first time ever."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Skipper Jesse Wagstaff spoke about the team’s intensity and physicality on Tuesday night and how they’re looking to bring it more consistently going forward.<br><br>Full presser: <a href="https://t.co/ECP1iA7uTW">https://t.co/ECP1iA7uTW</a> <a href="https://t.co/4Jp9XTrTYG">pic.twitter.com/4Jp9XTrTYG</a></p>&mdash; Perth Wildcats (@PerthWildcats) <a href="https://twitter.com/PerthWildcats/status/1613428720089583616?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 12, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Wagstaff assured the ‘Cats’ mindset as a whole is on making playoffs and to win games as a unit, after Mitch Norton and Todd Blanchfield have seen their minutes decline in recent games. 

“We’re trying to win as many (basketball games) as we can and try to make playoffs, that’s the job,” Wagstaff said.

“It’s a team game and if we win, that’s the ultimate goal.

“It’s not to play a certain amount of minutes or score an amount of points, it’s to win basketball games.”

Wagstaff also touched on the significance of playing hard for the full 40 minutes, and how that is crucial for the rest of the campaign.

This came after a nail-biting final quarter against the New Zealand Breakers on Tuesday night where Perth took out the 93-90 win.

“The possessions at the start of the game are just as important I think,” Wagstaff said.

“You try and do as best as you can for 40 minutes, it’s not necessarily the last two minutes.”

The Wildcats are fifth on the ladder with an 11-10 record. They play on Saturday night in Perth’s first ever open-air game against the Adelaide 36ers at 8:00pm AEDT.