Breakers 91
Adelaide 77
It was going to be a massive upset or a massacre. Happily for a Breakers side that has now given itself a smidgen of breathing space at the top of the NBL ladder, it was the latter.
The Breakers went into last night's match on the North Shore at full strength and in good form. They faced an Adelaide 36ers decimated by injury and with an uncomfortable record of being the only team in the league yet to post a road win. Perfect circumstances for a boilover, maybe, but they aren't called upsets because they happen all the time.
A bit muddled early, the Breakers found their groove late in the first quarter. A 9-0 run took them from 17-18 down and they closed out the quarter seven points to the good and bossing the game. The 36ers had been hanging on gamely enough but they came out cold for the second quarter and before they knew what had hit them the Breakers had posted another effortless run, this time 13-0, to blow the game open. By mid-quarter the lead was 24. Game over, particularly given the disparity of talent lurking on the benches.
While Breakers coach Andrej Lemanis enjoyed the luxury of cycling through the likes of CJ Bruton, the ever-improving Corey Webster and seven-footer Alex "the Chief" Pledger, the only notable part of 36ers coach Marty Clarke's armory was an American bloke called Ron Howard. He might as well have been Richie Cunningham.
Pledger was particularly impressive, cleaning up the scraps at the offensive end and rejecting shots in front of his own hoop.
Pledger used to look a bit like a fish out of water. These days he is just another of the sharks prowling the court for the Breakers. The gawkiness that comes with a being a young human being of his stature isn't completely gone, but it is receding rapidly. In its place appears to be a burgeoning confidence that comes with knowing he can now foot it with the league's other big men.
A truly dominant big player is something the Breakers have usually lacked. Those days may soon be over.
Elsewhere, import forward Gary Wilkinson continued to deliver on the promise he showed when he was the leading light in the pre-season tournament.
A muscular presence under the hoop, Wilkinson is a deft shooter. The American knocked down threes either side of a bomb from Thomas Abercrombie as the Breakers started the second half where they left off in the first.
At one stage the lead grew to 28, before settling in around the 20 mark. A late run by 36ers as the Breakers eased off the gas gave the score some respectability but, make no mistake, this was as one-sided as it gets.
Wilkinson ended with 21 points, the third straight game he has topped 20. Kirk Penney eased his way to 19 points, while Kevin Braswell chipped in 11. Daniel Johnson had 18 for the visitors, with Adam Ballinger contributing 16 points and eight rebounds.
The Breakers dominated the boards to the tune of 42-34, Mika Vukona leading the way with 10.
With the Cairns Taipans having gone down to the Gold Coast Blaze on Wednesday night, the Breakers are now two wins clear of nearest challengers Perth.
Tougher assignments remain over the last 12 games of the regular season, starting with a trip to Cairns on January 30. But if the Breakers continue in this vein, it is their opponents who will be eyeing the fixture list nervously.
