Triple treat as 36ers beat Breakers

A final quarter frenzy has lifted Adelaide 36ers to a 111-94 win against New Zealand Breakers at the Entertainment Centre on Saturday night.

In front of an eighth straight sellout crowd of 9449, the home side outscored the visitors 33-18 in the final 10 minutes to record a 17-point success.

Kendric Davis was the star again, scoring a game-high 36 points to go with nine assists and five rebounds as the 36ers snapped a four-game losing streak.

Montrezl Harrell made a huge impact in his return from suspension with 21 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, while Jarell Martin played his best game for NBL25 with 16 points and four rebounds.

Big man Isaac Humphries was also prominent with 10 points and five rebounds, Nick Marshall was huge at both ends of the court for nine points and four assists and Lat Mayen showed his length and size for seven points.

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Harrell scored on his first possession back in 36ers colours after drawing two quick fouls on Breakers big man Jonah Bolden.

Humphries then scored on his first three shots inside under the hoop and Davis swished a three-pointer for an 11-6 lead.

The Breakers responded through Parker Jackson-Cartwright (25 points, eight assists) Tacko Fall (nine points, nine rebounds) and when Mojave King hit from downtown, the visitors had the lead for the first time at 17-16.

Martin scored four straight points, then Harrell attacked the basket to score again as both sides went to the first break tied at 22-22.

Davis started the second quarter on target, scoring on a tough drive, then connected on a three-pointer and when Marshall stuck back-to-back triples, the 36ers had a 34-26 lead.

Adelaide caught fire from outside, the home side swishing six three-pointers without a miss, three from Davis, two from Marshall and one from Jason Cadee as the 36ers’ lead grew to 43-31.

New Zealand bounced back with an 8-0 run, but Marshall continued his hot streak from outside and Davis scored 17 points in the quarter as the 36ers took a 58-49 lead into the main break.

Davis continued to score to start the third quarter, but Jackson-Cartwright got the Breakers back into the contest with three straight three-pointers as the 36ers’ lead was cut to 64-58.

The Breakers connected on four of their first five three-pointers to start the third quarter, but a big Harrell dunk from a sweet Marshall dish had the Adelaide lead back to 70-63.

New Zealand reduced the margin to just one point, but Adelaide responded, a big Harrell slam dunk brought the crowd to fever pitch as the 36ers took a 78-76 lead into the final 10 minutes.

Adelaide looked to attack the hoop to start the fourth quarter, Martin got to the free throw line, then Harrell converted a three-point play for an 85-78 lead.

Humphries scored on consecutive possessions, then Davis took over, scoring five straight points before a Martin triple extended the lead to 100-84.

The 36ers controlled the game from there, head coach Mike Wells giving Tom Kubank and Paddy D’Arcy their first NBL minutes, Kubank making history as the first father-son combination to play for the club.

Swingman Jacob Rigoni finished the night in style, his three-pointer found the bottom of the net as the final buzzer sounded.

Adelaide will be back in action next Saturday night when the 36ers travel to John Cain Arena to tackle South East Melbourne Phoenix.

ADELAIDE 36ERS 111 (Davis 36, Harrell 21, Martin 16) def NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS 94 (Jackson-Cartwright 25, Mooney 19, Lopez 12) at Adelaide Entertainment Centre.
Crowd: 9449
BOX SCORE