DESPITE starting a day later than other weeks, Round 13 of the National Basketball League (NBL) begins tonight, with two games on the agenda as the bumper Christmas week of play kicks off.

With just seven weeks remaining in the 2024/25 season, each week contains matchups that will certainly shape the race for the finals. With a whopping six consecutive days of hoops and eight games taking place in that time, there is plenty to look forward to for basketball fans over the holiday period.

It all kicks off tonight, with a double-header that will prove vital in how the ladder looks in the new year as the fixture comes to a close.

New Zealand Breakers vs. Sydney Kings

The Breakers will be looking to snap a six-game losing streak when they host the Kings to open the round tonight in a battle between two sides in very different form.

New Zealand has lost all of its last six clashes, and looks a completely different side than the team that sat in second place on the ladder a month ago. Since the roster change in their front court of Tacko Fall replacing Freddie Gillespie, the Breakers have become one of the easiest teams to score against. Opposition sides are taking advantage of the deepest drop coverage ever seen in the NBL and are scoring from behind the arc and from mid-range, so New Zealand will be looking to tighten up the amount of points they concede.

The Kings are quietly chugging along nicely, sitting third on the ladder with a record of 10 wins and seven losses so far this season. With a level of star power that is among the best in the NBL and one of the greatest coaches to grace the competition in Brian Goorjian, Sydney is finally firing on all cylinders. It is a campaign that has been built on the back of some tremendous defensive work, and that was highlighted in the Kings’ win over the Bullets last week. Brisbane came into the match having scored 100+ points in its previous three games, but was held to just 81 points thanks to yet another defensive masterclass from the Kings, who will be looking to do the same against the Breakers.

A key battle in this match will be at the point guard position, with both New Zealand’s Parker Jackson-Cartwright and Sydney’s Jaylen Adams, given both players are capable of tearing a game open. Jackson-Cartwright controls the tempo of the Breakers’ offensive sets perfectly, while Adams came off the bench last match to be the most productive player in the game, so whichever player can set up their side with ball in hand will have a huge say in determining the result.

Brisbane Bullets vs. Cairns Taipans

Speaking of breaking losing streaks, the Taipans will be looking for their first win in 13 games when they travel to Brisbane to take on the Bullets at Nissan Arena on Friday night.

It is just about season over for Cairns as it stands, with the team sitting on the bottom of the ladder by a considerable margin with a record of three wins and 12 losses, and given how close the rest of the competition is, a charge up the ladder seems impossible. However, the Taipans do have the opportunity to spoil the fun for other finals contenders, and that it exactly what they will look to do against the Bullets. One positive for the NBL’s northernmost team is that they have been competitive in most of their losses, so it seems a win is on the horizon, and Cairns will be excited at the opportunity to break the drought against its state rivals.

The Bullets have turned their fortunes around in recent weeks, winning three of their last four and dragging themselves back into contention for a spot in the postseason with some high-scoring performances. Brisbane’s shift in tempo to play at a much more frantic pace has resulted in several scores of over 100 points, and that should be enough to get the job done against a struggling Taipans side. Although the Bullets were brought back to earth by the Kings last week, this matchup offers the perfect opportunity to bounce back and continue their charge up the ladder.

The battle of the bigs will be important in the context of the match, with Brisbane’s Tyrell Harrison in excellent form of late. He is emerging as one of the best two-way big men in the competition, with several games with 20+ points and 10+ rebounds. This means that Tanner Groves will have his hands full throughout the match, but if he can quell Harrison’s influence, it will help the Taipans get a significant edge over the opposition.