The Wildcats, though, looked so hungry in game one. A veteran core of five players are smarting from consistently losing to the Breakers in semifinals and finals, and having the ignominy of watching the Breakers celebrate a title in Perth in 2013. Those players desperately want to return the feeling.
Especially Damian Martin, who missed the 2013 grand final series with a ruptured Achilles tendon. On Wednesday, he was the difference down the stretch in the fourth quarter. He's a point guard who seems to be everywhere, a floor leader who can sniff a steal a mile away.
Conversely, this is the time of year when Mika Vukona is virtually unstoppable. He's relentless like Martin and should be considered one of the great athletes of New Zealand sport. He's feared and respected not just across the league but internationally and while he's not the name of Steven Adams or a high-scoring star such as Kirk Penney, he's the guy everyone wants on their team.
Vukona once played with a partially torn knee ligament to win a do-or-die game against the Wildcats in the 2011 semifinals and went on to win the club's first title against Cairns.
The Breakers will be a different team at the friendly and understated confines of the North Shore Events Centre tonight, where they shoot much better than at Vector Arena, which is hosting Madonna.
The key here is to keep Perth out of the key's painted area. Nathan Jawai, a huge 145kg slab of a man, destroyed any chance of the Breakers getting into a rhythm by scoring early and often, forcing the likes of Alex Pledger and Charles Jackson into foul trouble. However, he has been struggling with a back injury.
What the Breakers won't need to manufacture is a feeling of desperation because it's unfamiliar territory for the core of a team which has won four titles without ever going a game down in a grand final series.
How they deal with making adjustments in the day-and-a-half between games will be imperative.
It's time to dust off Madonna's Celebration CD and get ready for a cracking game.
