C-Web, Manek Spark Wildcats to Down Breakers

Everything the Perth Wildcats needed they got. With their backs to the wall, they rebounded better, Brady Manek and Corey Webster came up huge, and the 'Cats pulled off the upset 92-84 road win over the New Zealand Breakers.

The Wildcats arrived at Spark Arena on Saturday night fresh off losing in overtime to the shorthanded Brisbane Bullets on Thursday. 

It was a mighty task ahead of them too up against a Breakers team sitting on top of the table on a five-game winning streak and having hammered the South East Melbourne Phoenix themselves on Thursday.

Pressure was mounting on Perth having lost seven of the last nine, and New Zealand were on top most of the way in the first half limiting Bryce Cotton to the one field goal, and still being on top by four at the major break.

But the Wildcats then delivered their best half of basketball of the season and it came right at the most important time for NBL23.

It was Webster who lit it up in spectacular fashion in the third quarter. He scored 16 individual points in his first ever game in 249 NBL appearances playing against the Breakers or in Auckland on a visiting team.

That put the Wildcats in front and it was Manek who closed the deal with three massive triples in the opening stages of the fourth. The 'Cats led by 12 with five minutes to play as a result and went on to win by eight.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We&#39;ve all heard of circus shots, but is there such thing as a circus assist? ?<br><br>Ridiculous from the Wildcats!<br><br>Catch the final term live on ESPN via Kayo Sports and Foxtel. <a href="https://t.co/EADtyb71MN">pic.twitter.com/EADtyb71MN</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1598952042466226176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Webster was always going to come up with something special in his first ever NBL game against the Breakers. He torched his former team in the third quarter on his way to 26 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals on 10/17 shooting while also icing the game late.

Manek was superb also for Perth hitting 4/7 from downtown for 18 points and six rebounds. It was just the support Bryce Cotton needed who still had 17 points, six rebounds and six assists.

Having lost all but one rebounding count all season, Perth matched New Zealand with 37 rebounds for the game while hitting 20/21 free-throws proved crucial.

Wildcats coach John Rillie couldn’t have been happier with what must be his team's best performance of NBL23.

"It was phenomenal the way we played tonight. Would have I liked it a few games earlier? Absolutely, but it was great to see and it was a complete team effort," Rillie said.

"TaShawn Thomas was good, so was Brady Manek and obviously Corey. No matter what Bryce Cotton does when he's on the floor, he gets the ultimate respect and he creates a lot of opportunities for his teammates. 

"Then the guys coming off the bench, Mitch Norton was phenomenal for us. Everyone that played, contributed in their own way and then the guys who didn’t play did a great job on the bench. 

"It just goes to show that when we're dialled in and locked in for each other like we were tonight, we're good. But as you saw the other night in Brisbane, if we don’t have that mentality we're pretty s**t."

The loss for New Zealand is their first in six NBL games with Barry Brown Jr top-scoring once more with 27 points.

Dererk Pardon added 13 points and 14 rebounds, Tom Abercrombie 10 points, and Jarrell Brantley nine points despite being limited to 23 minutes with foul trouble.

Breakers coach Mody Maor just felt his team never got up to the level at any point in the game that they have been playing at.

"We didn’t play our game at all today. Even when we were up, it wasn’t us," Maor said.

"We're a good basketball team, we can be up when we play average too but we never played the way we want to play. 

"There was an air of complacency and at some point it's going to come, and to click, but that's not how this works. It's a good lesson for us."

The Breakers threatened to have the dominance inside coming into the game and that was on show early with Jarrell Brantley and Dererk Pardon helping them to a 7-4 lead which became 10-4 with a triple from Izayah Le'afa.

It was Corey Webster hitting two of Perth's first three baskets in his first ever game against the Breakers, but New Zealand remained on top. Barry Brown Jr made an immediate impact with two and-one plays either side of triples from Tom Vodanovich and Tom Abercrombie.

That put the home team up 21-10 but the 'Cats did finish the quarter better with Bryce Cotton's first two points coming at the foul line after eight and-a-half minutes.

New Zealand still led 27-20 after one with the lead back out to double-figures early in the second term following a three-pointer from Le'afa and three-point play from Pardon.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Corey Webster finding space and dropping tidy middies? That&#39;s a sight Breakers fans will be used to ?<br><br>Catch the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> action live on ESPN via Kayo Sports and Foxtel. <a href="https://t.co/YuW6BXgWiU">pic.twitter.com/YuW6BXgWiU</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1598936873300242433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Mitch Norton steadied Perth with a three of his own and then Cotton's first field goal of the game just before half-time turned into a three-point play.

The Breakers were still leading at the half at 47-43 but the Wildcats were in touch and after their rebounding woes, would have been happy to lead that count at the break and to have scored seven second chance points.

The Breakers threatened to pull away again to start the second half with Pardon finishing the alley-oop pass from Brown, but then it was all the Wildcats and Webster lit it up like he did so many times in a Breakers singlet previously.

After six straight points to Cotton, it became the Webster show beginning with a three. He would then score the next nine points for Perth hitting tough jumper after tough jumper.

He helped the 'Cats lead 73-66 at three quarter-time after Norton hit a buzzer-beating triple and then it was Manek who had a remarkable streak to open the fourth.

The North Carolina alum hit three tough threes including a dagger with just over five minutes to go in Abercrombie's face. He threw down a dunk three minutes later to keep the lead at 12, but the Breakers made one more run.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Jarrell Brantley with the RIP and the RISE ?<br><br>Catch the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> action live on ESPN via Kayo Sports and Foxtel. <a href="https://t.co/pBmLyeUGoW">pic.twitter.com/pBmLyeUGoW</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1598939371616358400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Abercrombie and Brown hit threes before Pardon scored inside, but then it was a tough trademark fadeaway jumper from Webster that sealed the Wildcats' eight-point win.

The Breakers remain at home to host the Sydney Kings to open Round 10 on Thursday back at Spark Arena. The Wildcats remain on the road to play the Adelaide 36ers on Friday.

HUNGRY JACK'S NBL ROUND 9

NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 84 (Brown Jr 27, Pardon 13, Abercrombie 10)

PERTH WILDCATS 92 (Webster 26, Manek 18, Cotton 17) 

BOX SCORE