KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand Breakers overcame a 10-point deficit at halftime to beat Perth Wildcats 118-94 in an Australian National Basketball League (ANBL) match in Perth last night.
The Breakers, coming off a 114-70 win over Sydney Spirit, trailed 51-61 after two quarters.
But a sterling defensive effort after the breather laid the foundations for their third win of the season over the Wildcats and a first in Perth.
The Breakers conceded a miserly nine points for a 74-70 lead in the third quarter, and then galloped away in the final period with 44 points as Tony Ronaldson, Kirk Penney, Rick Rickert, Phil Jones and Oscar Foreman found their range.
The Breakers opened up a nine-point lead at the start of the final stanza with baskets from Ronaldson and Jones and continued to dominate from there.
For the quarter, Penney scored 13, Rickert eight, Ronaldson seven and Forman six as New Zealand inflicted a thrashing at home for Perth.
The win takes the Breakers to an impressive 15 wins and four losses record but they remain in second spot on the ANBL ladder with the Dragons getting the better of the Townsville Crocodiles 88-84 last night.
Breakers coach Andrej Lemanis was delighted with the result, particularly after losing star player CJ Bruton for most of the second half with a leg injury and having centre Rickert in foul trouble.
The Wildcats got off to a good start with Wildcats guard Peter Crawford clearly fired up for the challenge of a personal duel with Penney.
In one a fiery opening, Crawford scored 20 points and six-of-six from long range.
But it was former Ronaldson who was the architect of Perth's demise.
He only had one point in the first quarter, but finished with 31 including four three-pointers in an inspired performance backed up by Penney with 32, Rickert 20, Forman 16 and Jones 14.
The Breakers resume their campaign after the festive season with road games against Wollongong and Sydney on January 2 and 3.
New Zealand Breakers 118 (Penney 32, Ronaldson 31, Rickert 20) Perth Wildcats 94 (Redhage 30, Crawford 29, Hinson 12). Halftime: 51-61.
- NZPA
