Adam Gibson awoke the Gold Coast Blaze from a first-half slumber to steamroll the Kings 84-72 in Friday night’s NBL game in Sydney.

The Blaze were in foul trouble and trailed by six points at halftime before Gibson (17 points, nine assists) exploded with 15 points and three assists in the third quarter.

Mark Worthington (12 points, seven rebounds) sat out most of the second quarter due to foul trouble, but returned in the second half to wreak havoc, draining three-pointers at one end and blocking Kings shots at the other.

Blaze guard Adris Deleon had a game-high 29 points, his outside shooting and control of the offence a struggle for Sydney to contain.

When Deleon and Worthington again hit from three-point range the Blaze led by 14 with just under two minutes left and the contest was over.

Sydney’s Jerai Grant, chief tormentor the last time these two sides met, had a tough night, while star centre Julian Khazzouh’s influence was fleeting.

Anatoly Bose (21 points) tried in vain to bring the home side back into contention, while Khazzouh (16 points, nine rebounds) and Ben Madgen (14 points, four rebounds, four assists) provided the best support.