Basketball: Breakers of old swarming on D

The feared Breakers' physical defence has returned. Photo / Photosport

After watching his side dominated defensively by the Breakers, Townsville coach Shawn Dennis delivered bad news for the rest of the league.

The Kiwi club had rediscovered their desperation and physicality, he adjudged, hallmarks of the championship years. He also believed the Breakers had finally made the requisite adjustments to the rule interpretations and, if they continued in the same vein as Friday night's win, their campaign would end in one place.

"They've got the tools to go a long way," Dennis said. "If they can play with that physicality and desperation, they're certainly going to be pushing.

"I thought they gave us a lesson in what in means to be a playoff basketball team."

Whether the Breakers (4-2) can back up the words of the Crocs coach will be examined in the coming weeks, with this afternoon's game against Adelaide marking the start of a three-game road trip. But the signs are promising.

The Breakers overturned a halftime deficit to comprehensively triumph in the rebounding battle, a point of pride and a facet the coaches and players often stress as pivotal.

They saw a performance from Cedric Jackson that reminded why the point guard won the Most Valuable Player award in his last season in the league, while every other starter enjoyed a good contribution.

But it was the team's defensive effort that would have most pleased Dean Vickerman and Paul Henare. Townsville headed to Vector Arena boasting the Australian NBL's leading scorer in Brian Conklin but he was duly shut down to the tune of three points on 1-13 shooting.

Restricting the Crocs to 70 and ensuring a comfortable final quarter was all about that desperation and physicality, qualities sorely missing as the Breakers finished last in almost every defensive category during their painful previous campaign.

The Breakers' three titles were won with a hard-nosed defensive edge, and without it, their high-powered offence was powerless to prevent an 11-18 season. Now it's back and so, too, it appears are the Breakers of old.

"It was a solid defensive game for us," said Vickerman. "We're trying not to make any game more important than the other but, coming off a loss at home last time, it was really important that we bounced back."

Mika Vukona's muzzling of Conklin was vital in ensuring that, with Dennis declaring it "one of the best defensive jobs I've seen on a person". But the defence was much more than a one-man job; it was an all-round performance that would have helped the Breakers in re-establishing their renowned fear factor they had developed.

"I don't think it was just Mika, it was a team defensive effort," Dennis said. "They swarmed him, which we expected them to do. You have nights like that but I don't think that was the deciding factor in the game - Conklin not playing well. I'm more concerned with the fact they man-handled us and out-rebounded us 40-31." NZME.