For Josh King, only one thing matters

Josh King zeroes in on South East Melbourne’s suffocating second-half defence as the standard that drove the Phoenix to the top of the NBL ladder.

The numbers all pointed one way for the now NBL-leading South East Melbourne Phoenix, but Josh King had his focus locked on a single stat line: 31 second-half points conceded.

Thursday night’s 114–83 win over the New Zealand Breakers in Auckland lifted the Phoenix to top spot, with the box score overflowing. They attempted 94 shots, knocked down 37 from beyond the arc, earned 25 trips to the free-throw line, grabbed 17 offensive rebounds and committed just eight turnovers. Malique Lewis also delivered his strongest showing since returning.

None of it mattered as much to King as the defensive response after half-time.

After allowing 52 points to see the game level at the break, South East Melbourne clamped down, holding the Breakers to just 31 points in the second half.

“What we just talked about in the locker room was that it was a 52-point first half and a 31-point second half and that's the game right there, that's the name of the game,” King said.

“The guys did a great job of adjusting and playing through some difficult times in the game, and we did a much better job of focusing and locking in on the scout in the second half of the game.

For King, the broader numbers told a story, but the message was simple.

“The numbers all end up looking good and it's all one big picture when you look at the scoresheet, but the only message after the game was the two numbers on the board (52 to 31).

“All of them are good and trust me we need guys to perform, but we need to lock in on the defensive side of the ball and when we do that we are at our best, and we're most dangerous then.”

Another major positive for South East Melbourne was second-year Next Star Lewis delivering his best performance of the season.

Lewis posted his first double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while also adding six assists, two steals and two blocks. He shot an efficient 4-of-6 from the field and was perfect at the foul line, going 5-of-5, in a well-rounded outing that underlined his growing impact.

For Lewis, the breakthrough has come through embracing a shift in role, spending more time at power forward.

“I feel like after the first two games I was OK and it was just adjusting to playing the four mostly, I was telling some of my teammates I just had to find a way to be impactful,” Lewis said.

“I said I wasn’t going to stress about just playing one position or playing out of position as some people would say, it was just about when I go out there finding a way to impact the game at the four and I feel like I'm starting to get the hang of it, that's all it is.”

With South East Melbourne sitting atop the NBL ladder and three games remaining, starting Sunday at John Cain Arena against third-placed Sydney, Lewis believes the Phoenix are hitting their stride at the right time.

“I feel like we're in a good spot and coach is always emphasising that as long as we play defence, we're always going to be in a position to win the game,” Lewis said.

“I feel like that's all that we have to stress on is just to be good on the defensive side on the court and then our offence will be fuelled because of how we're playing defence.

The mood within the group reflects that focus and belief.

“Everyone's positive and everyone's feeling good about this season, we're taking games one by one and we're not thinking ahead, but everyone's locked in and we come together and understand that we have a shot at winning the whole thing, so we're going to put our all into it.”

LESS THAN 500 TICKETS REMAIN FOR SUNDAY'S CLASH AGAINST THE SYDNEY KINGS