BOXSCORE

The Sydney Kings have dampened New Year's celebrations in Wollongong, escaping with a gritty 86-83 victory over the Hawks.

The Kings saw a pair of hefty double-digit leads dissolve in the second half and were forced to stave off the desperate Hawks during a furious finish.

Anatoly Bose (23 points) and Ben Madgen (13 points) helped guide the Kings home from the free-throw line, as the Hawks unleashed a last gasp effort to the steal the game.

Tim Coenraad (18 points) and Joevan Catron (13 points) combined for 16 of the Hawks 35 fourth-quarter points as they attempted to overcome a mighty 17-point deficit.

Both teams scored with ease in the opening moments, but once the game tightened up the Kings gained the upper hand, claiming the final five points of the first quarter to lead 19-14.

Sydney parlayed the spurt into a quick-fire 11-2 run to start the second with Kevin Ratzsch and Aaron Bruce each connecting from long-range.

The Kings remained in the driver's seat, enjoying a 43-32 lead at the half, while the Hawks relied on a pair of late inside buckets by Rhys Martin to keep the deficit from expanding any further.

Jerai Grant sparked a bruising 10-0 spurt for the visitors to start the third, his rare three-pointer a seemed a sure sign the night belonged to Sydney.

Sydney led by as much as 24, but left the door ajar as Wollongong rallied to score the last 12 points to slice the deficit in half, leaving the Kings with a 60-48 advantage with 10 minutes to play.

The last quarter was a thriller as the Hawks finally found their shooting range, bringing the large home crowd to life before falling just short.

Sydney Kings 86 (Bose 23, Grant 14, Madgen 13)
Wollongong Hawks 83 (Coenraad 18, Saville 14, Catron 13)

Crowd: 4016 at WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong