Basketball: Low-stress road trip awaits

Tom Abercrombie promises more of the same after a strong game against Adelaide. Photo / Greg Bowker

Shortened schedule has meant breathing space on Breakers’ visit to Taipans and Crocs

After an arduous stretch of six games in 17 days, the Breakers have no fear heading into this weekend's Sunshine Swing.

An imposing ask in any normal season has been rendered "just another road trip" by an Australian NBL campaign that has been condensed by one month.

The shortened schedule has seen the Breakers back up on the road two or three days after a home fixture on three occasions already this year, meaning the North Queensland jaunt may actually allow the players to see some sun instead of the inside of an airport.

The trip begins in Cairns (6-0) tonight before the Breakers (4-3) shift down the coast to tackle Townsville (3-3) on Sunday afternoon. And while the opposition will provide plenty of hurdles for the Kiwi club - particularly the league-leading Taipans - the travel factor is one thing they won't be worrying about.

"In terms of us looking at this road trip, it's just another trip and not the toughest one we could have," said assistant coach Paul Henare. "We've got a decent day's travel but we're there for a full day before we play Cairns and we actually have a day in between before we play the Crocs.

"Last year when we played up there we just went straight back-to-back."

That extra day will allow for a physical hit-out between games, something the Breakers have come to realise is a requirement when the turnaround is so short. And the club has at least been blessed with a relatively clean bill of health, a pleasing development given the gruelling start to the season.

Two players under injury clouds for the opening games - Alex Pledger and Tom Abercrombie - are now able to contribute their best from the opening tip and Henare foresaw no changes to the starting five.

"We're pretty settled in our rotations now. Alex at the start of the season, his injury wasn't tracking along so well and Ekene [Ibekwe] had to start. But now Pledge is back and we're able to manage his minutes, we won't see any changes in that lineup in the near future."

Abercrombie, meanwhile, looked his old self last Sunday when torching Adelaide for 13 of his 25 points during the failed comeback attempt in the fourth quarter.

"He's obviously someone who's gradually going to get better with time," Henare said. "He was out for some time after the World Cup and it was always going to take a while.

"We saw a glimpse of what he's capable of at the end of that Adelaide game, so that would have been good for his confidence, to be able to get through some serious minutes and see the ball go through the hoop."