Basketball: Top spot irrelevant in game plan

Ekene Ibekwe of the Breakers attempts a lay up against Townsville on Thursday. Photo / Getty Images

Breakers in hunt for playoff pack but knocking pacesetters Adelaide off perch is not vital part of their strategy.

The Breakers will need to topple the competition's form side if they wish to have any hope of claiming top spot before the playoffs.

But whether they want to, and whether they will even receive any benefit from finishing first, are entirely different propositions.

After fellow pacesetters Cairns (19-7) yesterday took care of Sydney to edge slightly ahead of the Kiwi club, the onus switched back to the Breakers (18-7) to hold serve this week.

That begins at Vector Arena on Thursday against fourth-placed Adelaide (14-11), winners of their last seven straight games, before a trip to third-placed Perth (15-10) on Sunday.

Those four teams will form the playoff pack - the Taipans and the Breakers will enjoy home advantage in best-of-three semifinal series against either the Wildcats or the 36ers.

Which begs the question - does top spot truly matter? The profits of such a position come into effect only in the grand final series, which is to say a team must first make the grand final to earn any advantage.

And, if the season finished today, an argument could be made that finishing second and playing third-ranked Perth was a more agreeable prospect. Mika Vukona said as much last week, arguing that Adelaide should, in theory, be seeded No 1 heading into the post-season, judging on their form over the last month.

Then again, that form could very well lift them above Perth and into third during the final weeks, setting up a series against the team consigned to second. It's all a rather messy business and it was understandable the Breakers weren't too aggrieved with their loss to Townsville on Saturday night.

Disappointed with the performance, certainly, considering they turned over the ball 21 times, gave up 14 offensive rebounds and shot worse than 40 per cent from the field.

"It really was a recipe for disaster," said assistant coach Paul Henare. "You probably look at that and wonder how we were actually in the ball game for so long. It was a little bit disappointing - I know the guys are pretty gutted about that effort."

But the players and coaches remain relaxed about the bigger picture. Just reaching the playoffs punched a ticket for the lottery that determines the title and, while they have expressed a desire to finish on top, preparing for that lottery is probably more important.

That preparation will be enhanced by the challenges that await in the next seven days, tackling an Adelaide side appearing unstoppable before heading across the Tasman to back up a few days later.

"It's going to be pretty close to a replica of what that first round of the playoffs is going to be," Henare said. "It is perfect preparation for us, playing against those playoff teams.

"They're all top teams and they're all teams that are playing very well, starting with Adelaide on Thursday. So it's going to be a great challenge for us to see how we finish the season off in the last few weeks."