Hamilton gears up for first professional basketball game in 7 years
Waikato basketball fans will be rejoicing, with the long awaited return of the New Zealand Breakers to the GLOBOX Arena next Wednesday, to take on the Sydney Kings in an NBL Ignite Cup game.
It has been a while since Waikato basketball fans have seen the nation’s only professional basketball team, with the last appearance coming in 2018 against the Illawarra Hawks.
The game will have double meaning, as it counts as a regular season game but also an Ignite Cup game. The Ignite Cup is an in-season tournament where teams get points based on winning quarters and games, with the top two teams advancing to a final where the winning team will get $300,000, while the runner-ups get $100,000. Each team plays two home and two away games in the competition.
The Breakers are currently top of the table in the cup, being the only club with two wins so far, while winning a 7 out of 8 quarters with a total of 13 points. On the other hand, their opponents the Kings are 0-2 on 2 points, and are looking to spoil the Breaker’s current undefeated streak in the tournament.
While the Ignite Cup has been a success this year for the New Zealand Breakers, the club is currently in 7th position in the regular season standings, with a 5-10 record after an inconsistent start to the season.
Added to the tension between the sides will be Izayah Le’afa, who is squaring off against his former club after a shaky season with the Sydney based club, which led to a mutual declining of his contract which was supposed to be 2 years.
This game marks only the second time a regular season game has been played in Hamilton, while there have been pre-season games scheduled in Hamilton over the club’s history.
The New Zealand Breakers and Sydney Kings have faced off against each other in Sydney earlier in the season, with the Kings coming out on top 79-72.
Tickets are selling quickly, so if you don’t want to miss out on the action head here.
