KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand Breakers, in the cut-off spot for the Australian National Basketball League playoffs, have two consecutive home matches to help them improve on their eighth spot.
The Breakers meet the Adelaide 36ers at the North Shore Events Centre tonight and will be up against the West Sydney Razorbacks at the same venue next Wednesday.
The 36ers are ninth and the Razorbacks 12th in the 12-team league. The teams are a third of the way through the 33-game season.
Breakers coach Andrej Lemanis knows that wins in their next two games will consolidate his team's top-eight position and further dent the Australian teams' hopes.
"These are two teams that we are in the war with, so it's important we continue to stay ahead of them," Lemanis said.
"It's hard to win on the road in this league, so you need to do the business at home to take the pressure off."
The Breakers have not beaten the 36ers at home since their ANBL debut in 2003, but they did triumph 99-90 in Adelaide this month.
That win was built on 34 points from Carlos Powell and handy contributions from Ben Pepper and Brian Wethers. The trio will again be the key in the next two matches.
"The 36ers had difficulty with our offensive weapons in Adelaide, and if we play with intensity they will again create problems," Lemanis said.
"But we need to be right on our game defensively, because the 36ers are a free-flowing team that like to get out and run.
"They play with a lot of confidence and shoot without conscience, so we want to make their shots as difficult as possible."
Inspirational 16-season veteran Brett Maher, who has scored 155 points in his 10 games against the Breakers, and ANBL All-Star Willie Farley, who averages 19.6 points a game against them, are the major threats.
Maher is the only 36er to have appeared in all 10 encounters between the two clubs.
Three Breakers have played in all 10 matches - Aaron Olson, Paul Henare and Oscar Forman, who started his career with the 36ers and played 148 games for them.
- NZPA
