Ili leads way as Breakers win again
The New Zealand Breakers remain atop the Australian National Basketball League after gunning down the Brisbane Bullets last night.
A career-high 23 points from backup point guard Shea Ili was the catalyst to get the Breakers over the line, sealing their fourth straight win and further ensconcing their reputation as a team which will cause problems in every arena.
While the Bullets aren’t competition frontrunners, the Breakers have proven capable of beating a big side, and can once more take heart from the manner in which they claimed victory. Again missing Kirk Penney, the Breakers also overcame middling performances from some of their usual contributors to seal their 101 picking up two by halftime. With the big guns temporarily sidelined, the Breakers had to rely on their rising star to step up, and Ili lit a spark with 15 first half points in just 11 minutes. Ili’s play is getting to the point where the Breakers won’t need an import point guard in the seasons ahead, and his efforts kept the Breakers in the contest in the early going.
The first half was as level as any game this season. Through the first 25 minutes of the match, neither team led by more than five points, and constant lead changes ensured a tense tussle.
Brisbane were the first side to edge ahead, claiming a nine-point buffer as the Breakers could muster only four points in the first five minutes after halftime. However, Edgar Sosa stepped up to assist his point guard understudy, with some timely threes dragging the Breakers back level by the end of the third quarter.
Ili’s efficient scoring night was soon supplemented by some creation, as he linked with Rob Loe for some crucial buckets. Loe had 12 points as the Breakers bench stepped up, contributing 47 points in total, but in the end, the game-sealing moments came from the starters.
DJ Newbill shrugged off his foul trouble to hit a big three and convert an and-one, and when the Bullets loaded their final chamber, Sosa stepped up to seal the deal, and keep the Breakers’ winning streak alive.
(Shea Ili 23, Edgar Sosa 19, Tom Abercrombie 13)
(Perrin Buford 18, Travis Trice 15, Daniel Kickert 15) Halftime: 49-50.
Breakers 101 Bullets 96