KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand Breakers lost their unbeaten record in the Australian National Basketball League against a determined Cairns Taipans in Auckland tonight.
Cairns prevailed 122-111 on the back of an outstanding defensive display, particularly from Ian Crosswhite and Larry Abney, the Breakers' first setback this season after three home victories.
In front of the first-ever sellout crowd for the Breakers at North Shore Events Centre, the Taipans took an early five-point lead to force a time out from the hosts.
Cairns muscled up well in defence and Crosswhite scored freely, while the Breakers missed a number of shots and would have been further behind had Rick Rickert not been in top touch to score their first 11 points.
The Taipans led by 12 at one point in the first quarter but some quick three-pointers saw the Breakers drag the margin back to three points at the end of the quarter.
The visitors again started well in the second quarter but stronger defence and some fine work in attack by CJ Bruton and Rickert helped the Breakers get back to one point.
Paul Henare gave the Breakers the lead midway through the quarter, and a run of scoring from Bruton helped them into a 60-52 lead at halftime.
Solid defence from the Taipans got them back in the game and with Darnell Mee scoring points quickly they retook the lead early in the third quarter.
Kirk Penney, Oscar Forman and Dillon Boucher then got into foul trouble for the hosts, while the Taipans went on an 11-2 run to lead by seven points with four minutes remaining in the quarter.
The Taipans again hit their straps early in the last spell, regaining their seven-point advantage as the Breakers found it difficult both to score and get offensive rebounds.
An 11-0 run for the Taipans at the beginning of the quarter sealed the result for the north Queenslanders, whose defence kept tabs on normally reliable shooters Penney, Forman and Tony Ronaldson.
The Breakers battled hard at the finish and got the margin down to six points at one stage but the Taipans' nerve held.
Stephen Black and Mee controlled the game well for the Taipans, while Crosswhite and Abney, who took 13 rebounds, dominated the boards.
Rickert and Bruton were the best for the Breakers, who were outmuscled in both attack and defence.
Taipans coach Alan Black said his team targeted the Breakers' three-point shooters and retained confidence they could improve on their own poor shooting percentages from the past two games.
"I had a look at the videos and there wasn't a lot of problem with the shots we were taking," he said.
"I was reasonably confident we could turn it around - it's not as if we can't shoot it."
Crosswhite said Cairns had bonded well after the internal suspension of leading player Martin Cattalini.
"Cat gives us so much - without him there's about 20-25 points gone," he said.
"The guys knew they needed to contribute and everyone contributed."
When asked what went wrong with his team, Breakers coach Andrej Lemanis said "70 points in the second half (for the Taipans) went wrong".
"I spoke to the guys about how when we get a little cold offensively, is our defence good enough to hold sway, and tonight would suggest we still have some work to do."
- NZPA
