Sportingbet.com.au – New Zealand Breakers vs Perth Wildcats
November 27, 2008 11:00 am BasketballWhere and When: Thursday 27 November, North Shore Events Centre, 7.30pm (NZDT)
Past Three Head-to-Head
New Zealand Breakers 103-99 Perth Wildcats, Round 7 2008.
Perth Wildcats 98-85 New Zealand Breakers, Round 22 2008.
New Zealand Breakers 93-83 Perth Wildcats, Round 20 2008.
Season Series
Breakers 1-0
Current Standings
Breakers (11-3) second, Wildcats (9-6) fourth
This shapes as being the match of the round with both sides in good form – the New Zealand Breakers have won their past four while the Perth Wildcats are currently on a three-game winning streak.
When these two sides last met in round seven the Breakers won in controversial circumstances.
The Wildcats copped a decisive foul and technical foul double whammy in the dying seconds that saw the Breakers awarded five straight free throws with the scores tied 99-all.
New Zealand eventually prevailed 103-99.
Despite the loss the Wildcats will enter this clash with plenty of confidence as they led by as much as 18 points in the second term.
Perth was superbly led by guards Peter Crawford who had 22 points and Darnell Hinson (18 points) and their match-ups with fellow guards Kirk Penney and CJ Bruton respectively will go a long way to determining the outcome of this match.
Penney was the chief destroyer in the four-point win over the Wildcats in round seven with 24 points while Bruton provided solid support, scoring 17 points.
The underrated Crawford and Hinson will need to apply immense defensive pressure for the full 48 minutes as Penney and Bruton are both capable of scoring in quick bursts.
Bruton and Penney are New Zealand’s two leading scorers, averaging 26.6 and 18 points per game respectively, so shutting them down will go a long way to winning the game for Perth.
The Breakers have the edge in terms of outside shooters – they average a league-high 44% from three-point range but the Wildcats have the advantage in the paint with Shawn Redhage averaging 19.4 and 7.7 rebounds per game while the likes of Alex Loughton, Ben Knight and Isiah Victor have all been solid contributors so far this season.
And it is their spread of scorers inside the paint that should prove to be the difference in what promises to be one of the games of the season.
Given the position of both sides on the ladder you would expect this contest to be a close one, so my money is on a Perth win by 1-10, offering $4.00.