Breakers Outdo Taipans

The New Zealand Breakers have thrashed the Cairns Taipans 71-53 to claim Australia’s National Basketball League title in front of a capacity crowd at Auckland’s North Shore Events Centre. The Breakers are the first New Zealand team in any sport to win an Australia-based competition. The team scored the first six points and never trailed at any stage in the final game of the three-match grand final series. A 16-4 run swelled New Zealand’s lead to 15 and they maintained a double-digit advantage for the remainder of the game. Guard and Australian Boomers representative CJ Bruton topscored for New Zealand with 14 followed by import American forward Gary Wilkinson 13 and guard Kirk Penney 11.