GAME REPORT: Kings go down in thriller to Breakers

‍Result: New Zealand Breakers 102 Sydney Kings 101

Stats that matter: Breakers 15 three pointers; Bench points Breakers 21 Kings 4; Breakers 50.7% FG, Breakers 26 assists

Kings MVP: Torrey Craig’s fourth quarter rescue mission fell agonisingly short.

Turning Point: The Kings were held to just five field goals in the third period.

The game was over when: Sam Mennenga deliberately missed the second of his two free throws with 1.2 seconds left and the Kings couldn’t make a Hail Mary heave.

Trending in the right direction: A double-double from import forward Andrew Carr was a positive sign.

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That one hurts.

A remarkable fourth quarter shooting performance from import swingman Torrey Craig wasn’t enough as the Sydney Kings went down in a 102-101 thriller to the New Zealand Breakers in front of 4,103 fans on Wednesday night at the AIS Arena in Canberra.

The Kings trailed by 13 points with a little over two minutes remaining before Craig (28 points, six rebounds) lit up the stadium. He knocked down four consecutive triples in about 90 seconds to almost singlehandedly drag Sydney across the line.

Unfortunately, the Kings couldn’t close the deal in what would have been an unlikely victory, given how much New Zealand controlled the game in the second half and an undermanned Kings missing Matthew Dellavedova weren’t able to get enough stops in the end.

“I just think that overall we had some really good patches defensively and offensively,” Kings Head Coach Brian Goorjian said afterwards.

“We didn’t play well with certain combinations on the floor. We looked uncomfortable and the four or five guys that were comfortable together got worn out.

“It’s basically just getting more contribution from the bench and getting them comfortable on the floor.

“The first quarter was tough, we tightened it up in the second, and then we went to the bench and were uncomfortable.”

10 points from Kendric Davis (17 points, 11 assists) led the Kings in what was a shootout of a first quarter, but New Zealand got 12 points from power forward Sam Mennenga (27 points, 13 rebounds) and the Breakers took a 31-29 lead at the first break.

But Makuach Malauch (19 points, seven rebounds, five assists) was devastating in the second period, knocking down a pair of triples as part of his 12 points in the quarter, and he keyed a 13-2 run that helped the home team gain a measure of control, as another late 11-2 Sydney charge saw them head to the locker room with a seemingly comfortable 61-51 advantage.

The Kings shot a blistering 64% from the field in the opening 20 minutes and looked to hold all the aces against a New Zealand unit missing two imports, including star point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright.

But in this NBL, you can take nothing for granted.

Coming out of the break, New Zealand changed up their defensive coverages, particularly against Kendric Davis, who roamed free in the first half but saw two or three bodies thrown at him at every turn from there on in.

Suddenly, the Kings offence sputtered, and the team struggled for fluency against a Breaker team that had clearly upped their level.

Sydney shot just five of 20 from the field in the third period, missing seven consecutive shots at one stage, and an 11-0 New Zealand run saw them take control of the game.

As Coach Goorjian moved bodies around to try and find a combination that worked, the Breakers kept the pressure on, and a tough three-point play from Carlin Davison (20 points, career-high 14 assists, four steals) gave the visitors a 93-85 lead with 3:36 left on the clock.

A jam from Mojave King (17 points, four rebounds, four assists) followed by a Reuben Te Rangi three blew out the margin to 13, setting the stage for Torrey Craig’s last ditch pyrotechnics.

The Kings showed great heart to keep fighting but ultimately fell just short to fall to 3-2 on the season. New Zealand goes to 4-3 with their road victory.

It’s another short turnaround for the defending champions as they head back to Sydney and the friendly confines of Afterpay Arena for a blockbuster clash with the streaking Perth Wildcats on Saturday night. Tickets for the Kings-Wildcats clash are available via Ticketek.

NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 102 (Mennenga 27, Davison 20, King 17)

SYDNEY KINGS 101 (Craig 28, Maluach 19, Cooks 18) at AIS Arena, Canberra.

CROWD: 4,103

BOXSCORE

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