Breakers look to continue in playoff mode this Thursday night

The SKYCITY Breakers look to continue in what they have openly described as being in playoff mode through the final part of the regular season when they host the Cairns Taipans at the North Shore Events Centre this Thursday night.

The Breakers have moved to second equal (third on series decider) with the Illawarra Hawks with four games remaining before the post-season officially gets underway, but with the league so incredibly tight and every team in contention for a place in the final four, it is almost as though all teams (Adelaide excluded) are in a knockout battle to see who is left standing.

SKYCITY Breakers Head Coach Paul Henare is certainly of that mindset. The club legend took little time in the press conference after last nights win over the Wildcats (one that ensured a series win as well over the defending champions) to turn his attention to Thursday night.

"We will enjoy this one for a day or two but we get back on the grind this week. The only thing we have achieved right now is what we had to do and what we were supposed to do.

"For us nothing has changed, urgency is a key word for us these past few weeks. We have four games left and we cant afford to take a breath or take the foot off. It is business as usual, I have just said to the boys in the locker room that we have another big weekend ahead of us. The good thing for us is we are in control of our own situation right now."

Cairns are very much one of the teams right in the mix, despite having played two games less than the Breakers, the Taipans can effectively wipe out that deficit with wins in their next two games and know that a win in New Zealand is crucial to their hopes of post-season action.

After defeating the Hawks on Sunday, the Taipans will no doubt be further motivated in that quest with confirmation this week that NBL veteran and Australian legend Mark Worthington will retire at seasons end, after twelve years playing for five NBL clubs.

During that time, Worthington has always proven a great adversary for SKYCITY Breaker and Tall Black forward Mika Vukona, with the two engaging in some memorable battles over their careers, with Thursday night promising another rematch of heavyweight proportions.

There is still no confirmation as to when Tom Abercrombie might return to playing duties. The swingman was suited up over the weekend but did not feature on the team sheet for either game as he continues his return from a broken hand.

- This story has been automatically published using a media release from Basketball New Zealand