NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport / Basketball

Basketball: New Zealand Breakers fall to Illawarra Hawks in double overtime thriller

Christopher Reive
By Christopher Reive
Senior Sports Journalist·NZ Herald·
17 Dec, 2021 11:00 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Yanni Wetzell led all scorers with 25 points in the Breakers' loss to the Hawks. Photo / Getty Images

Yanni Wetzell led all scorers with 25 points in the Breakers' loss to the Hawks. Photo / Getty Images

NZ Breakers 96
Illawarra Hawks 97

The New Zealand Breakers are in a rut.

For the second game in a row, the New Zealand side coughed up a double-digit lead and went on to lose a game, this time falling to the unbeaten Illawarra Hawks 97-96 in a double overtime thriller and dropping their fourth-straight game to start the campaign.

Again, there were encouraging signs for the Breakers. Yanni Wetzell was a monster on the inside with 25 points and 16 rebounds, while young Frenchman Hugo Besson's scoring ability remains a surprisingly vital part of this team's hopes in the early stages of the season.

In stretches, they look like they could be challenging in the playoffs later in the season. But if they're going to do so, they will need to learn how to protect a lead.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It all started so well for the Breakers. On the back of 13 points from Wetzell, the side got the game underway in ideal fashion to take a 27-14 lead after the opening quarter. At that point, 60 per cent of their shots were falling as they worked for high percentage opportunities.

However, settling for jump shots early in the second quarter and missing their first five attempts, the Breakers saw that 13-point gap become smaller and smaller as the Hawks started to find their stroke from the floor.

Illawarra quickly erased the deficit as they started the period on a 17-2 run, before ultimately outscoring the Breakers 25-14 in the quarter.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The Breakers were able to maintain the lead as they got into the paint with success from Finn Delany, Thomas Abercrombie and Robe Loe, but their lead was trimmed to just two points at half time.

From the start of the third quarter, things started to get a bit ugly with neither side shooting particularly well. However, the Hawks found their way into the lead late in the period, only to see Besson catch fire and score eight-straight for the Breakers and maintain a lead at the break.

It was a similar story in the fourth quarter as the sides fought to gain some sort of ascendancy, however the Breakers were guilty of trying to win the game through isolation offence rather than moving the ball around. When they did try to move the ball, it was often late in the shot clock and led to optimistic passes that were easily picked off.

After falling behind down the home stretch, the Breakers looked on track for their first win of the season when Wetzell put them ahead with about 30 seconds to play. However, Hawks guard Tyler Harvey – who has made just one of nine attempts from three-point range – stepped up to land his second of the night, with a William McDowell White basket saving the game for the Breakers and forcing overtime.

Discover more

Sport

Biggest winner from new sport funding model

16 Dec 09:00 PM
Basketball

Ex-NBA guard answers Breakers' SOS for injury relief

14 Dec 04:00 PM
Sport

They said it: The memorable sports quotes of 2021

14 Dec 09:00 PM
Basketball

Breakers blow big lead to slump to third straight loss

12 Dec 06:21 AM

After one overtime period wasn't enough to separate the two, the second came down to the final minute. Again, it was Harvey who put the Hawks in front, with his floating jump shot cancelling out a dramatic deep three pointer from Besson and leading the Hawks home with the win.

The loss sees the Breakers fall to 0-4 to start the campaign, and they could be at risk of having more players spend time in the casualty ward as Tom Abercrombie (ankle) and William McDowell-White (leg) were forced out of the play late.

NZ Breakers 96 (Yanni Wetzell 25 points 16 rebounds, Hugo Besson 20 points)

Illawarra Hawks 97 (Justinian Jessup 21 points, Duop Reath 19 points 12 rebounds)

1Q: 27-14. HT: 41-39. 3Q: 60-57. 4Q: 77-77. OT1: 84-84.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Basketball

Basketball

'More complex than anticipated': Indian Panthers withdraw from NBL

22 May 03:00 AM
Tall Blacks

Tall Blacks score rare victory over Boomers in series finale

11 May 06:15 PM
Basketball

'Transformative moment': Dame Lisa Carrington backs women's basketball

03 May 06:00 PM

Why Cambridge is the new home of future-focused design

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Basketball

'More complex than anticipated': Indian Panthers withdraw from NBL

'More complex than anticipated': Indian Panthers withdraw from NBL

22 May 03:00 AM

It was the team's first season in the New Zealand league.

Tall Blacks score rare victory over Boomers in series finale

Tall Blacks score rare victory over Boomers in series finale

11 May 06:15 PM
'Transformative moment': Dame Lisa Carrington backs women's basketball

'Transformative moment': Dame Lisa Carrington backs women's basketball

03 May 06:00 PM
Indian Panthers suspension: Companies allegedly owed thousands of dollars

Indian Panthers suspension: Companies allegedly owed thousands of dollars

03 May 04:15 AM
Clean water fuelling Pacific futures
sponsored

Clean water fuelling Pacific futures

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP