Basketball: Breakers dropping the ball

Frank Arsego

Consistency has been a catchword for the Breakers in practice this week - it's something they haven't achieved within games too often, let alone from game to game.

The Christmas break looms, with one last home game at Trusts Stadium tonight against Adelaide - who the Breakers have not beaten in their last four encounters - before a road trip for two away games.

The Breakers need wins to maintain contact with the table. But the competition is so tight this season that only four wins would put them on top, with the 36ers.

Last weekend they were good on Friday against Hunter, then inconsistent against the Taipans at Cairns.

"We made good runs in that game but we were too patchy," said coach Frank Arsego.

The Breakers let teams off the hook by failing to maintain constant pressure, he said, and the biggest challenge seemed to be the road games.

"We have individuals who slip, just a bit, but in the games we've won we've either had one standout player and everyone contributing or we've had big contributions from five or six guys in double figures.

"We need to play well as a group. That's the benchmark and we haven't always been able to achieve it."

Arsego said he felt there was a mental frailty about the players at times.

"The coach can give them plans but they need to implement that to give themselves a go."

He didn't feel there was need for wholesale change.

"We'll stick to our routines of preparation and scouting the opposition and emphasise the importance of the things we do. It's a growing process."

As far as newcomers go, the Breakers are not doing too badly.

Their win-loss record coming into the 50th game tonight is 18-31, as opposed to the 9-40 history of the Hunter Pirates, who joined the NBL at the same time.

Over the years only West Sydney have leaped quickly into playoffs and that was after a four-year build-up involving development programmes they started in expectation of gaining the second Sydney licence.

This week the Breakers have revisited their games against Adelaide: they won 111-110 in the first NBL game at the North Shore Events Centre, scoring 44 points in their opening quarter, a feat they have not managed to get close to since; Adelaide won the next four games between the teams.

"We believe we're a better team than we were the first time we played them this year," Arsego said. "It will come down to pride and which team wants it more."

New fill-in Matt Smith has added some energy at training this week as he looks for a chance. but realistically he will get a few minutes only, giving Ben Pepper a rest.

Co-captain Pero Cameron said Smith had been banging Ben Pepper around at practice.

The team still believed they could make the playoffs, Cameron said. Players felt they had improved in their three games before the loss at Cairns, and that further improvement was in them.

The Breakers have no injury worries.

Their next home game is against Perth on January 2.

Next is Sydney on December 29 then the Crocodiles at Townsville on the 31st.

The comparison

First-50 game record by franchises joining the NBL since 1990:

2003/04 - New Zealand Breakers 18 wins, 31 losses.

2003/04 - Hunter Pirates 9 wins, 40 losses.

2000 - Cairns Taipans 5 wins, 45 losses, qualified for the finals in their 5th season.

1998/99 - West Sydney Razorbacks 23 wins, 27 losses, made the finals in their second season.

1993 - Townsville Suns (now Crocodiles) 9 wins, 41 losses, made the finals in their 8th season.

1990 - Gold Coast Cougars 22 wins, 28 losses, failed to make finals in 7 seasons.