NZ Breakers' return to the court in the ANBL has gone down like a lead balloon, falling to a huge 83-59 defeat to league newcomers Tasmania JackJumpers.
Two weeks on from their last match, a shock 82-75 comeback victory over Sydney Kings, the Kiwi outfit showed all the rust after their COVID-enforced break, falling to their eighth defeat of the season.
The Breakers had spent a week in isolation after another COVID-19 outbreak in the camp, with eight players among the positive cases in the team, currently based in Australia.
The Kiwi side trailed by 10 points after the first quarter in Tasmania, which pushed out to a huge 26-point deficit at halftime, as the Breakers went in 53-27 down after the JackJumpers went on an 11-0 scoring run.
And while the Breakers were able to rally in the third by taking the quarter 20-14 to bring the gap back to only 20 points, the Kiwi side never challenged Tasmania to fall to a 24-point defeat.
French import Hugo Besson was the best on display for the Breakers to finish with 19 points and eight rebounds, while Yanni Wetzell added 15 with four rebounds.
No other players reached double figures in scoring as the Breakers shot at just 35 percent from the floor.
For the JackJumpers, Josh Maggette scored 22 with eight assists and five rebounds, Jack McVeigh 17 with five rebounds, and Josh Adams 11, four assists and four rebounds as the standout performers.
The Breakers are bottom of the ANBL ladder after their first 10 matches of the 2021/22 season, with just two wins. The Kiwi side are level on wins with Cairns Taipans, albeit having played four games more.
The team can bounce back as early as Wednesday, when they face Illawarra Hawks (6-4).
Breakers 59 (Hugo Besson 19, Yanni Wetzell 15)
JackJumpers 83 (Josh Magette 22, Jack McVeigh 17, Josh Adams 11)
Q1: 23-13, HT: 53-27, Q3: 67-47.
