Saturday night NBL action is here, with the Perth Wildcats hosting the South East Melbourne Phoenix at RAC Arena.
Round 1 of the NBL27 season gets underway, and the Perth Wildcats will be looking to make a fast start in front of their home crowd against Josh King’s South East Melbourne Phoenix.
The Phoenix have made a host of changes for their NBL27 campaign, bringing in several new faces, including imports with experience playing European basketball, where a strong emphasis on defence is a major part of the game.
The Perth Wildcats, meanwhile, welcome back much of their core group from last season. Coach John Rillie will be hoping former NBA guard Brandon Knight can add plenty of experience and creativity to the point guard position as the Wildcats look to build on last season’s campaign.
With both teams entering the new season with plenty to prove, this should be an interesting opening-round matchup at RAC Arena.
Here is a Perth Wildcats vs SEM Phoenix Prediction for Saturday, September 19th 2026.
Perth Wildcats vs South East Melbourne Phoenix
Venue – RAC Arena
Tip Off – 7.30pm WST
Pre-Season Blitz Record
| Team | W-L | Home | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perth | 0-2 | ||
| SEM | 2-0 |
Pre-Season Blitz Scoring
| Team | PPG | Opp PPG | Game Total Ave |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perth | 82 | 91 | 173 |
| SEM | 107 | 94.5 | 201.5 |
Quick Game Facts
- The Perth Wildcats have won 7 of their past 8 home games vs the Phoenix
- The Perth Wildcats have won just 1 of their past 5 games vs NBL Opponents
- The combined Game Total average for the last 3 games between these two sides is 201 points
Prediction
The Perth Wildcats might be the home team, but they will be without some important pieces for this Round 1 clash. New import Brandon Knight has not yet joined the team, while main ball-handler Jaron Rillie will also miss the game.
The Wildcats haven’t looked particularly convincing in their preseason games against NBL opponents, and with Rillie unavailable, Kristian Doolittle could be asked to take on a lot more responsibility with the ball.
The Phoenix, meanwhile, are a full-court pressing team that likes to play aggressive defence and get up plenty of quick three-point attempts. They will be ready to go under coach Josh King, and their preseason form has been encouraging.
With Perth missing some key ball-handling options and the Phoenix bringing their trademark defensive pressure, this could be an interesting test for the Wildcats in their opening game of NBL27.