Bryce Cotton entered a flow state on Sunday.
The four-time NBL MVP had a level of focus that was as deep as he's ever experienced, blocking out every ounce of outside stimulus and focusing on the task at hand.
Entering that zone saw Cotton drop 20 points in the opening quarter of the Perth Wildcats' contest against the New Zealand Breakers, before hitting the 45-point mark midway through the third period. He never wavered from the task at hand, ultimately finishing with a 59-point explosion, which is the most in a single game in the NBL's modern 40-minute era.
"I was just so focused going into the game, so locked in, wanting to win," Cotton told ESPN.
"And understanding where we're at in the season on the ladder, and knowing how big it is for us to come out of this FIBA break with a hot start, especially against a great team like New Zealand."
And how long did that flow state last?
"Honestly, it didn't really pass until late, late that night," Cotton said. "It's not one of those things you can turn on or turn off, so it took a while to get out of that state."
The performance - in a Wildcats win - saw Cotton surpass the 51 points James Batemon scored for the Brisbane Bullets just two weeks prior, which had overtaken Chris Goulding's 50-point game for the Melbourne Tigers in 2014.
There's a laundry list of records and places in league history Cotton was able to accomplish with the game. The 59 points was the most ever by a Perth Wildcats player - surpassing James Crawford's 57-point game in 1987 - and the 28 field goal attempts is the fewest by a player who has scored 55 or more points in the NBL.
What was perhaps most impressive, though, was how he did it. Of course, the skill package and capacity needed to score the ball with that level of consistency over the course of a game - especially with his smaller frame - is immense, but this isn't just some random player.
Cotton is the most scouted individual, probably in NBL history. When preparing to play the Wildcats, opposing teams will often throw a bib on one player during practice and let him shoot whatever wild shots he wishes, mimicking Cotton's incredible shot-making ability. Melbourne United has used development player Joel Foxwell as the mock Cotton in the past, while the Illawarra Hawks used AJ Johnson last season.
"I didn't know that," Cotton said, when told how most teams prepare to face him. "It comes along with the territory, of wanting to be an elite player. I just embrace the challenges as they come."
Cotton is often a singular focus for opposing teams, yet he's still able to overcome that significant attention and put forward historic scoring performances like he did on Sunday.
"They know how I'm gonna play; I do the same thing every year," Cotton said. "But I know how they're gonna defend every year.
"You know what I mean? We both know each other's moves; it's just about who's gonna be better on the day, I guess.
"My biggest skill is knowing who I am as a player, and staying true to that. I know there's a lot of things I do exceptionally well, and there's something I do kind of good, but I just try to stay in the lanes of the things I do exceptionally well at. Over the years, I've just gotten better at sticking to what works for me at an extremely high rate."
We saw Cotton attack in a multitude of ways. He scored in isolation, came off on-balls or hand-offs with his usual aggression, was a blur in transition, and hunted his three-ball at an extremely high rate.
The Breakers had no answers, and it didn't help when their new import big-man, Tacko Fall, entered the game and fell into his deep drops coverage.
Over his time in the NBL, Cotton has been extremely effective against a drops, thanks to his three-point range and ability to hit pull-up jumpers from midrange with efficiency. So, when Fall entered the game and the Breakers went to their extremely deep drops - with the big-man effectively just standing stationary at the defensive semi-circle - Cotton's eyes lit up.
"Any time I can get a clear, open look against a drops, I'll take it," Cotton said.
"The few ones I got, those are the ones you wanna hit, because, throughout the game, you're gonna have to take semi-contested shots or fully-contested shots. So, when you get those few open ones, you definitely wanna bury those.
"It was nothing especially about Tacko. I just felt like I was gonna be aggressive, no matter what defence they were in."
So, what keeps Cotton motivated, after all these years dominating in Australia?
The 32-year-old is a four-time MVP, three-time champion, two-time Grand Final MVP, and appears on his way to a seventh scoring title in the NBL.
"Anything there is to do in this league, I've done it and done it multiple times," Cotton says. "But I've still got a lot left in the tank."
Back in 2022, in an interview with ESPN, a then-30-year-old Cotton used the metaphor of a mountaintop, and "once you get there, there's a new challenge seeing how long you can stay there."
Bryce Cotton scores 59 points as the Perth Wildcats beat the New Zealand Breakers in a high-scoring affair.
Cotton was quick to climb to the very peak of that proverbial NBL mountain when he entered the league. He's so very clearly remained there, staying true to his challenge of longevity and excellence.
"I pride myself in the hard work I put in year after year," Cotton said.
"So to continuously be playing at the level I'm at, I'm very proud of myself. A milestone like 59 points, that was one to remember.
"That motivation stays the same. For me, it's how many times can I do the same thing over and over again, while you're able-bodied. It's not even so much about the achievement; it's about having the opportunities to continue to do that.
"Then, whenever you finish, whatever legacy you've left behind, or whatever you've achieved, you've earned it."