NZ Breakers 81-101 Sydney Kings

Huh. That wasn’t how that was meant to go.

Josh Childress, also known as the ANBL’s leading scorer and rebounder, had a big game as the Breakers lost their 5 game win streak and top place with it.

It was the Kings’ first ever win at Vector and the Breakers’ first loss there this season (second in total at home). The Sydney side pretty much needed to win to keep their playoff chances alive and after a close fought and high-scoring first quarter, they scored first in the second and never lost the lead from there. It was actually the kind of win that you’d expect the Breakers to have had at home.

Childress showed his NBA class with 28 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists to lead the show, with solid backup from Tom Garlepp especially (16p & 6a).

Really, it was just a lack of effort. The Kings are not a better team man-for-man, and for the opening quarter especially the duel between Childress and Cedric Jackson looked like one for the ages. But complacency had set in and that was reflected in a 28 to 8 rebounding count at half time. Just 8 boards in the entire half! Sydney shot well but you give them that many chances and most teams will.

Childress finished the half with a flourish to have the Kings up by 14. The second half saw several half-comebacks that all ended with sloppy possessions, fouls or poor rebounding. Frustrations grew. By the end, four Breakers were fouled out, Cedric the most dramatic as he was ejected for arguing with the refs. NZB looked hard done by with a few calls there in the back half but the hole had been dug already. Sydney padded it out at the end.

Cedric led from the front as usual. He had 21/4/7 following up on his triple-double last game. Mika Vukona had 12 & 9, Corey Webster (back in the starting five) scored 13 (from 15 shots) while Abercrombie and Wesley both scored 12.

A shout out to youngsters Brad Anderson and Yuat Alok, after the academy duo made debuts late in the game. Both got a cheeky 79 seconds on the court to savour despite the occasion.

As for the first place thang? Well, the Breakers are still tied with Cairns so it ain’t that bad. Both have 17 wins with 5 games remaining. Perth are next with 13 wins. Cairns and NZ will both be in the playoffs, that’s a given. Now it’s about seeding as in the short series of the ANLB, home court advantage in massive.

With Cairns up next, and a trip to Perth still to come (in their second-last game), maybe this was a welcome wake-up call…

Stocks:

Movin’ On Up Like Curtis Mayfield – Hmm, there isn’t too much to savour from this one. It’s definitely a case of putting it in the rearview mirror as soon as possible. The academy can move up for another couple graduates, how about that?

Goin’ Down Slow Like Howlin’ Wolf – Alex Pledger added an ankle injury to his long term foot one that limited him to only 7:34 of game time. In which he recorded an assist and a turnover and not a single rebound. It reeeeally hasn’t been his season.

Key Stat

The final foul count was 28 to 13. The Kings got to the free throw line 31 times for 25 points (compared to 6/10 for NZB).

Play of the Game

Cedric gives the Breakers their final lead of the game with a buzzer beater to finish the first. He had four seconds to get from hoop to hoop and he did it with ease, floating as teaser over the defence. And getting a hi-five from the crowd for his efforts.