League MVP Xavier Cooks' NBL season could be over after he suffered a nasty ankle injury in Sydney's chaotic 93-82 loss to Cairns in game two of the semi-finals.
The Kings' dark night at the Cairns Convention Centre on Friday took a dreadful turn midway through the third quarter when captain Cooks rolled his left ankle while landing awkwardly on opponent DJ Hogg's foot.
In immediate pain, Cooks hobbled off for treatment and did not see any more action.
His potential absence for Sunday's game three decider places Sydney's bid for back-to-back titles in peril.
"It's his ankle, so we'll see," Kings' coach Chase Buford said glumly.
"Probably not good for us."
Buford also didn't see out the match, ejected after receiving successive technical fouls with two minutes remaining.
His bone of contention was a flopping technical foul called by referee Nico Fernandes on Kings forward Kouat Noi, who went to ground with a bloody nose after a clash of heads with Hogg.
Buford stormed onto the court and screamed at Fernandes: "How the f*** is that a flop warning? He's bleeding. Admit it, you f****d up!"
The fiery American coach then went to head referee Vaughn Mayberry and pleaded: "How is that a flop? Can you talk to him (Fernandes)? He (Noi) has got a broken nose now and it's a flop warning."
Buford was eventually booted out of the game as he continued to swear and berate the officials before continuing his attack on them after the match.
"They guessed ... they guessed wrong," he said.
"It happens a lot in this league and I don't know why.
"They're guessing the whole time."
Cairns skipper Tahjere McCall "defied doctor's orders" as he returned from a shoulder injury to play a starring role in the series-levelling victory, which was achieved without import playmaker Shannon Scott (hamstring).
Taipans coach Adam Forde hinted that Scott's injury, sustained late in game one on Wednesday, was relatively minor and a return for game three at Qudos Bank Arena hasn't been ruled out.
"With the flight (from Sydney to Cairns), it was just a little concern," Forde said.
"We went and got an MRI and there were some things that you could potentially play through."It was one of those situations where if he didn't feel confident, it could become worse."
We trusted the group to extend this out to three games and we'll see how he pulls up."
