Basketball On The Internet.

BRISBANE yesterday drove a stake through Sydney's dreams of an NBL threepeat, reducing the Kings to mere townsfolk, after Perth shot 39 free throws to stall New Zealand's revival, speculation rampant the Breakers could fold despite last year competing in the championship series and taking it to five games.

Coach Mody Maor is reportedly on the Adelaide 36ers' shopping list - contingent on how well interim Sixers coach Scott Ninnis completes the 2023-24 season - with further suggestions if the four-time NBL champions cannot continue in 2024-25 due to financial constraints, the franchise may be relocated to mainland Australia.

Gold Coast, which formerly had the Cougars, the Rollers and the Blaze, is being touted as the likely destination for the Breakers franchise if it cannot be saved beyond this season. 

Meanwhile the defending champion Kings lurch from one poor performance to the next, coach Mahmoud Abdelfattah on a hiding-to-nothing with Brian Goorjian expected to fill that role post-Paris Olympics, and Jacob Jackomas and Bill Tomlinson his likely first choices as assistants.

Abdelfattah's erratic lineup combinations, substitution pattern and rotations are one thing, his notably tenuous relationship with star import Jaylen Adams another which has to have Kings ownership - and their fans - wondering whether the season and its threepeat dream can be saved.

There's no doubt there will be changes next season, but where does 2023-24 conclude? At its best, Sydney is top-three. But no-one can even remotely locate Sydney's best.

* * *

NEW Zealand was looking like a million dollars - how handy would that be to the franchise just now? - with its opening 35-24 quarter against arch rival Perth in Auckland.

Giving up 35 points, even under offence-orientated coach John Rillie, was not a pretty sight for the Wildcats, especially bearing in mind they led 18-14 halfway through the period.

Anthony Lamb and Zylan Cheatham in particular flourished during the Breakers' 21-6 run to the first break, then Izayah Le'afa opened the second with a 3-pointer for a 38-24 buffer.

Mantas Rubstavicius kept that margin alive at 45-31 and another Le'afa triple retained it at 48-34.

Hyrum Harris and Kristian Doolittle, aided and abbetted by the old firm of Bryce Cotton and Jesse Wagstaff, steadfastly dragged Perth back into the contest, NZ up 58-53 at the half courtesy of a Will McDowell-White 3-pointer.

Again Hyrum Harris baskets pulled Perth close and then it began - a free throw procession including three "and-ones" for Cotton, the customary "fouled on a 3-point attempt" 3-of-3, another 3-of-3 when a Breakers bench technical foul tacked on to another free throw trip for Cotton.

The Wildcats shot - and made - 11-of-11 freebies in the third, then were gifted another 12 in the last quarter.

Did Perth earn them? Well yeah, about half of them, the Wildcats a perfect 31-of-31 before Doolittle aborted a pair, the team en route to knocking down 35-of-39.

Cotton's 31 points included 16-of-17 foul shots, Perth's "wind-assisted" 34-19 third period pivotal in shifting this game from a contest into a compromise of accepting the inevitable.

The Breakers did themselves no favours with some of their fouling but the officiating crew also did the game no favours either. (Although one of them was meticulous in ensuring every 0.5 of a second was played to its fullest.)  

PERTH WILDCATS 108 (Cotton 31, Pinder 18, H.Harris, Wagstaff, Doolittle, T.Webster 11; H.Harris 8 rebs; T.Webster 6 assts) d NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 102 (Lamb 27, Cheatham 25, Jackson-Cartwright 11; Lamb 8 rebs; Jackson-Cartwright 9 assts) at Spark Arena. Crowd: 6,280

DON'T let the final scoreline fool you. Sydney was cooked at halftime after Brisbane unleashed a 29-15 second quarter to lead 52-39, the Kings' again dabbling in a zone that was only partially less committed than their defence generally.

A succession of confused players unsure where or how they fit could muster only a few token outbursts as Brisbane seized control, Rocco Zikarsky again a giant-sized factor in minimal time.

He scored three quick shots and rejected three when he followed Tyler Harrison and Aron Baynes into the game and the Bullets were rolling.

Casey Prather's introduction led to an immediate 3-point swish and just his presence on the Bullets' roster added to a sense of depth and cohesion so often absent in Brisbane's juggled rotations.

Baynes also was a factor, although Jordie Hunter (17 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks) worked tirelessly to engage his sometimes wayward team.

Shaun Bruce did little of merit, Jaylin Galloway was good but patchy, Jaylen Adams contributed whenever he felt like it, while Kouat Noi, Denzel Valentine, Alex Toohey, Jonah Bolden and Angus Glover all must have wondered what piece of the Kings jigsaw puzzle they represent.

Nathan Sobey (27 points), Josh Bannan, Sam McDaniel and Isaac White got going, Shannon Scott looked more assured in his starting role and Mitch Norton handed out five assists.

Making a couple of runs at it, Sydney had its chances against a club notorious for suffering from an acute case of the Bullie-wobbles.

Yet it was Brisbane who executed best when it mattered, the Kings with no shortage of talent but a clear lack of cohesive direction. 

BRISBANE BULLETS 101 (Sobey 27, Bannan 13, White 12, McDaniel 10; Bannan 9 rebs; Norton 5 assts) d SYDNEY KINGS 93 (Adams 21, Hunter 17, Noi 13, Galloway, Valentine 10; Hunter 10 rebs; Adams 8 assts) at Qudos Bank Arena. Crowd: 13,078