Milton Keynes Breakers secured a fourth place finish in their debut NBL 1 campaign as they ran out 82-75 winners over Essex Rebels.
The Breakers had to dig deep to pick up the win over the Rebels, Adrian Scarborough led the scoring for the Breakers with 27 points coupled with 11 rebounds. Nate Robinson netted 18, with Chris Tawiah picking up 14 points and a ridiculous 16 boards. Jordan Spencer showed his creative flair with 10 points and 16 assists, whilst Kai Walker netted nine points.
The win caps off an impressive regular season for the Breakers in their debut NBL 1 campaign, finishing just two points behind second placed Derby Trailblazers. The win sets up an eye-catching playoff quarter final clash against Loughborough Riders next Saturday with Tip-Off scheduled for 5pm. Tickets available HERE.
Although it was the Rebels who scored the first points of the afternoon, the Breakers took control of the game in the early stages as they went on a 8-0 run, forcing Rebels into their first timeout of the game. Points from Scarborough, Tawiah and Walker put the pressure on the visitors early as they looked to regroup and stop the momentum.
The Rebels would stop the run with Hart scoring from the free throw line before nailing a three to cut the lead down to two points. Chris Tawiah’s trademark hookshot preceded Nate Robinsons’ three pointer, with Walker moments later extending the lead to seven with his dunk.
Robinson took to the line to push the Breakers lead to eight points, with Chris Tawiah giving the Breakers their first double-digit lead of the game as he put two more points on the board. Although the Rebels would hit back immediately, nothing was stopping Nate Robinson hitting his second three pointer of the quarter.
Martin would achieve the same for the Rebels at the other end of the court, but Kai Williams ensured the lead returned to double-digits as he netted his shot from beyond the arc. Busumbru looked to have scored the final points of the quarter with his lay up, but in typical Jordan Spencer fashion he produced a stunning half-court buzzer-beater to put the Breakers up 27-15 at the end of the first.
Spencer would hit another three pointer moments into the second quarter with his deep three, before Spencer converted once from the line to push the gap to 16 points in favour of the hosts. Hudson and Spencer would exchange layups, before Busumbru’s layup gave Billy Beddow the chance to regroup his side as he used his first timeout.
It was Busumbru who would hit the first points after the time out with his layup, with Scarborough adding two with his dunk following good work from Robinson. Hart’s layup pulled the Breakers to within ten points, before that lead was cut to seven following Martin’s three pointer. Scarborough and Walker would hit back with layups of their own, but Hart would keep the Rebels in it as he sank his three-point effort.
Chris Tawiah would keep the Breakers lead at 10, but Busumbru would hit back with the final points of the half leaving the Breakers leading 44-36 at half-time.
It was Tawiah who scored the first points of the third quarter, taking himself to double figures for both points and rebounds in the process. Tawiah would again add two points through his powerful dunk, coming shortly after Kanwei’s layup for the Rebels. The same man would go two for two at the line as the third quarter got off to a flyer.
The scoring continued when Martin hit his effort from the three-point mark, before Scarborough would add two points from the line for the Breakers. The lead was once again reduced to five points as Kanwei converted his layup, but Scarborough would add four points in a matter of minutes to give the Breakers some breathing room.
The Rebels pulled themselves once again to within five points of the Breakers and kept themselves in th3 game as both Walker and Martin exchanged three pointers. The Rebels would continue their impressive quarter and make it a three-point game through Johnson-Thompson, but Scarborough kept the Rebels at bay with another floater. It was the same man who closed out the quarter as he added another two points putting the Breakers up 61-54 with 10-minutes left to play.
Scarborough took himself to 20-points in the opening seconds of the final quarter with his layup, before hitting back after Kanwei’s layup. Hart and Johnson-Thompson would both add points on the board to bring the lead to five, before Hart made it a one possession game with his layup. Nate Robinson and Adrian Scarborough swung the momentum back in favour of the Breakers with four points in quick succession putting the lead back at seven points.
Nate Robinson’s three pointer continued a great run for the Breakers that put them up by ten points, however, Nelson would sink the same shot to keep the Rebels hopes of a comeback alive. The exchanging of points continued, this time Tawiah and Kanwei exchanging two points to leave the lead at seven. It was Nate Robinson who put the lead back at double digits with yet another three pointer, but once again, the Rebels’ resilience kept them in the game as they pulled themselves to within six.
Jordan Spencer came up clutch with an important layup with a minute left on the clock the Breakers led by eight points, with Spencer combining with Scarborough to bring the lead to ten points. Martin’s layup pulled the gap to eight, but Scarborough would put the game beyond any doubt as he converted from the line.
The final points came through Kanwei, but it wasn’t enough as the Breakers ran out 82-75 winners to secure a home play-off fixture next weekend against Loughborough Riders, tickets available HERE.
