Sydney Kings 83-93 NZ Breakers

When it comes to celebrating milestones, the Breakers are pretty decent. This was their 400th game in the Aussie NBL and as such they treated their fans (aka: us) to a fine performance on the road. Well, for two quarters it was a grinding one. Then in the third it was a convincing one. Then in the fourth they got to stretch their legs as Corey Webster capped off one of the best scoring nights of the season with a flurry of late points.

Webby ended with 38. He shot 12 of 24 and was aggressive throughout – exactly what we wanna see from him and exactly what he keeps showing us. He’s quick enough, sharp enough and good enough off the floor that he can score in a variety of ways and with that, give the lad a screen or two and he will get off a good shot. His career high is 39 but maybe he decided the game wasn’t polished or special enough to go all in on the records, passing up a couple late chances for desperate Kobe Heaves in favour of hitting open teammates… who missed, but that’s not the point.

It’s been a hard season for the Kings. The Breakers were focussed for this win having lost at home in embarrassing fashion to Kirk Penney’s Hawks but the Kings are losing to everyone. And they really backed themselves too. But repeated injuries to Josh Childress has meant a revolving door in their second import slot and the latest set back was a season ending injury to star PF Julian Khazzouh. It’s gotten so bad that Ben Knight, club icon and assistant coach, made a return to play eight minutes off the bench in what became his 400th NBL appearance – four years after #399. Milestones all round, yay.

That first quarter. This also happened to be the debut of the Kings’ new Sydney Olympic Park home after 28 years at the Entertainment Centre and they started it nicely. Or maybe it was more the Breakers being sloppy becuase they had seven first Q turnovers. Seven of them. And so even though the Breakers led the rebound battle 14-7 and kept the Kings to 5/17 shooting in that quarter, the Kings left it with a 17-16 lead.

It was not a high scorer or much of a flowing game at all in the first half with Tommy Garlepp leading Sydney. Jason Cadee pumped a late, late three to tie it up at 38 at the break. Between those two they scored 17 of the home team’s final 19 points of the half.

But forget about that. The third quarter came and the Breakers blew them out. An early burst was decorated with some tight plays at each end, Cedric finding his feet after a poor first half. Then Corey took over with a few quick buckets, hitting the 20s with room to breathe in the third. It was a 32 points Q having scored 38 in the first half total. The Breakers led by 14, a difference that came down a little bit but not often into danger territory. Not even after Garlepp and Rhys Carter (!) decided that they’d play the two-man offence to some decent results.

That’s because Corey Webster hit his groove. He’d taken some time to get going but once he got there he was pretty unstoppable. This was his game and he finished it off the way he does best.

Along with his 38 points, Webster added 5 rebounds and a couple assists, also showing the crucial ability to draw fouls on the drive, taking contact and getting to the line – something he doesn’t always do, preferring the shielded jump shot. Abercrombie had a nice night with 14 points and 7 boards. Catfish had 9p/7r and Cedric had 4p/8r/4a. Plus there were solid bench offerings from Ale Pledger (8 pts, 10 reb & 6 blk) and Tai Wesley (11 points).

Stocks:

Movin’ On Up Like Curtis Mayfield – Oh mate, how about the Pledgehammer!? Six blocked shots, he played the best defence he has played all season in his 16 minutes, despite drawing four fouls in the process. He was more aggressive with his hands, getting physical with guys and actively going after the ball and he was rewarded with some great numbers. But it wasn’t only that, he also nabbed five offensive boards and shot 6 of 6 from FT. Fantastic effort from him, this’ll be crucial if it can be repeated down the stretch.

Goin’ Down Slow Like Howlin’ Wolf – It’s pleasing to see that the Breakers can get a full offensive half out of their lads without relying on Cedric. Ol’ Ced is probably the best player in the NBL but he’s not much of a shooter (even though he has the sweetest layup in the local business) and in a game like this where he only shot 0/4 from outside the paint and committed six turnovers, not only was he still able to be a positive influence but the team had no trouble finding points when they needed them. It’ll be different against better teams but this kinda variety is the Breakers’ biggest strength.

Key Stat

THE BREAKERS MADE 19 OF 21 FREE THROWS. PRAISE THE LORD WITH A HALLELUJAH, HOW ABOUT IT? COREY WAS 10 OF 10, CEDRIC DIDN’T SHOOT ONCE. AMERCROMBIE (0/1) AND CATFISH (1/2) WERE THE ONLY ONES TO MISS.

Play of the Game

Well, damn, son. This shot is about as slick as it gets. Once he turns the corner to pop behind Mika there, it’s unguardable.

Season Standings

Cedric Jackson – 24

Corey Webster – 23

Tom Abercrombie – 19

Match MVP Points

Corey Webster – 3

Alex Pledger – 2

Tom Abercrombie – 1

Up Next

Thursday, 9.30pm: Cairns Taipans vs NZ Breakers, Cairns Convention Centre (NZT)