Basketball: New Zealand Breakers fall to another defeat

Reuben Te Rangi of the Bullets celebrates. Photo / Getty

Bullets 81
Breakers 76

Perhaps the third time truly is the charm when facing the New Zealand Breakers.

Three days after the Perth Wildcats grabbed their first win in three games over the Breakers; the Brisbane Bullets did the same, earning a deserved victory in Brisbane.

Having fallen to two close defeats to the Breakers in their two prior meetings, the Bullets got one back, victorious 81-76 in an often-sluggish encounter.

After nearly two months without defeat, the Breakers are now facing their first adversity of the season, having looked flat in their return after the international break.

With a 9-3 record, there's no need to panic, but Perth are right on their heels, and some of the Breakers' strengths are starting to be quickly negated by their informed opposition.

Rebounding, which was the Breakers' calling card on their winning streak, has turned into a battle to keep opposition big men off the glass, while the Breakers' luck is also regressing to the mean.

Their streak of winning close games was statistically unsustainable, and their opposition are now turning the tables; benefiting from their own good fortune.

The Breakers may claim that they received no such luck today, finding themselves on the unwanted end of a lopsided foul count.

Paul Henare's side were whistled for 28 fouls, to Brisbane's 16, leading to the hosts taking 36 free throws, and the Breakers just 13.

While an easy differential to point to, the Breakers had more issues than that one discrepancy. Brisbane managed to snare an array of early offensive rebounds, putting them in control of the game, and while the Breakers kept coming back, they could never carve out a consistent lead.

The Bullets were potent in transition, racking up 24 fast break points, and while the Breakers managed to clasp down on them in the half-court, Brisbane stayed aggressive, creating contact and making the most of the tightly-called game.

Edgar Sosa (18 points) and DJ Newbill (21) kept the Breakers in the hunt, but they couldn't get enough support. Tom Abercrombie (seven) and Kirk Penney (scoreless for the first time in 174 NBL games) were kept in check, with Shea Ili the only other Breaker to hit double digits.

While Sosa and Newbill got some threes to drop, the Bullets were just as deadly, and hit 29 of their 36 freebies to maintain a healthy lead which rarely looked threatened in the final moments.

A blip on the radar, or something more serious? The Breakers will find out when the two sides meet again on Thursday in Auckland, to conclude their season series.

Bullets 81 (Perrin Buford 18, Travis Trice 17)
Breakers 76 (DJ Newbill 21, Edgar Sosa 18)
HT: 44-36