KEY POINTS:
The Breakers have the chance to head into an unwanted mid-season break with a seventh consecutive win when they take on the Townsville Crocodiles on the North Shore tonight.
What coach Andrej Lemanis describes as an "interesting little schedule" will see the league leaders have a 14-day spell before their next encounter against the recently resuscitated Sydney Spirit.
A rescue package announced by the ANBL yesterday should see the financially-troubled Sydney franchise see out the season, with players and coaches agreeing to vastly reduced terms.
"They really are playing for the love of the game and have accepted the absolute bare minimum salary to cover their families' living expenses," the league's interim chief executive Scott Derwin said.
The demise of a second Sydney club in the space of a couple of months had looked likely after the Spirit had revealed their financial plight last week but their survival means the Breakers have two more games to look forward to prior to Christmas.
Had the Spirit gone the way of the defunct Kings, the Breakers would have faced a stretch of almost a month with just a solitary game, against fierce foe Perth Wildcats in Perth on December 20.
A victory tonight over the 7-7 Crocodiles would see the Breakers (13-3) extend their lead over second-placed South Dragons to two wins ahead of their hiatus, but Lemanis has consistently refused to get drawn into discussions about the big picture.
"We don't talk about those sorts of things," he said. "We don't look at 'if we do this and if we do that'. It is all about the day-to-day, how we come out and play against Townsville."
After two single figure points returns, leading scorer Kirk Penney was making good progress recovering from the thumb injury that has limited his play, Lemanis said.
"It seems to be healing up nicely. He practised [yesterday] without any tape on it which is a good sign."
Even without Penney's typical 25 to 30-point contribution, the Breakers have continued their offensive assault on the league.
Last week against the Wildcats they poured in 108 points and they bettered that return by two in Saturday's 110-88 victory over the hapless Gold Coast Blaze - a game that set a club record of six victories in succession.
Led by 36 points from Penney and 26 from American centre Rick Rickert, the Breakers eased to a 119-108 victory over the Crocodiles when the teams met in Townsville a little over a fortnight ago. The Breakers also won an earlier encounter between the teams in enemy territory so it would be a major surprise if they weren't to prevail tonight.
Meanwhile, early season title favourites Melbourne Tigers have been rocked by the news that former league MVP Sam Mackinnon is out for the season with a serious illness.
The Boomers star has been diagnosed with a blood clot on his lung for the second time in his career and it is not known when, or if, he will play again.
