Perth Wildcats vs NZ Breakers: Thursday Preview

Game Details
Perth Wildcats vs NZ Breakers
7.30pm WST Thursday 7 April @ RAC Arena
Watch LIVE on ESPN – available via Kayo or Foxtel
Tickets

Context
The Perth Wildcats are looking to bounce back after dropping their last three games. Throughout that period, the Wildcats have been missing guards Mitch Norton and Michael Frazier II. The Wildcats last win actually came against the NZ Breakers in their first home game after 14 consecutive away games. The Wildcats sit in fourth position on the ladder and will be looking to edge closer to clinching a Finals berth, while the Breakers are 10th.

Pre-game words
Scott Morrison on team effort and culture
“It’s a little late in the season to be talking about effort. So, hopefully, that’s fixed now. We’ve spoken about making a big deal of the culture here and the history here, and it’s time to start living up to it.”

Scott Morrison on New Zealand preparation
“There’s no team you can beat if you don’t focus on yourself, but you also have to give yourself the best chance to know what’s coming, what to expect. The nice thing is we’ve played these guys twice in the last month, so we should be fairly familiar with them given the short turn around. I think they played the same night we did so they’ve had the same amount of time to prepare.”

Roster Availability 
The Perth Wildcats go into the game with the same line-up as on Monday. Mitch Norton and Michael Frazier II remain out with hamstring injuries.

Opponents to watch out for
Young gun Ousmane Dieng has found form for the Breakers, scoring 18 points in his last outing to improve his average to 8.3. He and fellow Frenchman Hugo Besson are both expected to be selected in the 2022 NBA Draft.

Last time they met
Vic Law and Bryce Cotton combined for 51 as Perth defeated the Breakers by 10 points in their homecoming game after three months away.

Fun Facts and Stats
Shawn Redhage has scored more points against the Breakers than any other Wildcat. Ironically, the Redhage played 13 games for the Breakers before he was cut and signed by Perth.
Vic Law’s 39 points last month was the most any Wildcat has scored against the Breakers. It included the shot which sent the game to overtime.
The Widlcats average the most points per game in 2021/22 with 89.3 per game.

History
The 2010s was owned by Perth and New Zealand, with the two sides dominating the competition to take nine of the 10 championships. They last met in the Finals in 2016, with Perth taking out the best-of-three games Grand Final series.