The Wollongong Hawks have fallen just short of conquering NBL title-holders New Zealand for the second time in five days.
Taking on the Breakers last night in Auckland, the Hawks led for most of the game before being overrun in the final quarter and going down 82-74.
Wollongong held an eight-point lead just before half-time and had effectively buried any doubt last Saturday’s 80-64 thrashing of the Breakers was a fluke.
Full coverage of the Hawks But they couldn’t contain acrobatic forward Tom Abercrombie (25 points, 11/16 field goals) and American guard Cedric Jackson (20 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, two steals) in crunch time, falling to their 15th loss of the season.
Joevan Catron (13) top-scored for Wollongong, while Ayinde Ubaka (13), Larry Davidson (12) and Rhys Martin (12) also played well.
The Breakers remained in top spot, leaving the Hawks in a battle to avoid finishing last for just the second time in club history.
Wollongong have no games scheduled this weekend but are due to face surging Gold Coast twice next weekend.
After losing two of three clashes with the Hawks this season, the Breakers were eager to make a statement.
The reigning champions scored the game’s opening two baskets before Wollongong got the scoreboard moving with Martin’s three-pointer.
Martin had seven points in the first quarter, while Tyson Demos continued his recent good form with five points off the bench to give Wollongong an 18-16 lead at the end of the opening period.
Showing no signs of fear, the Hawks started the second quarter with Davidson’s basket and free throw before Glen Saville scored his team’s next six points to extend the lead to 27-22.
The Breakers responded with Gary Wilkinson’s three and hit the front with a basket and free throw by Abercrombie.
But Wollongong refused to buckle, with Catron chipping in five points to give his side a 34-30 edge with five minutes left in the half.
Ubaka drained a three and the Breakers’ frustration showed when the mercurial Jackson was whistled for a technical foul.
The Breakers fought back again, but Wollongong deserved their 40-38 half-time lead.
Little separated the teams at the offensive end, New Zealand making 48 per cent of their shots compared to their opponents’ 47 per cent.
Davidson led the way with eight points and Martin had seven, while Saville, Catron and Demos combined for 17.
Jackson was the standout for New Zealand with eight points, five rebounds and two assists. CJ Bruton had eight points off the bench and Abercrombie was up to seven.
The Breakers were mistaken if they thought the Hawks would fold.
If anything, it was Wollongong who stayed cool while the home side was in danger of imploding after being issued another technical foul, this time to Wilkinson.
But after pushing their lead out to 49-44, the Hawks briefly relaxed and allowed New Zealand to seize the momentum.
An energised Jackson sparked a 10-3 run and Abercrombie’s buzzer-beater gave New Zealand a 56-54 lead with a quarter to play.
Abercrombie was still hot when play resumed and Wollongong suddenly were staring at a 61-54 deficit.
The Hawks trimmed the margin to four before another Abercrombie-inspired charge pushed the Breakers’ lead to 11 with a little over three minutes on the clock.
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